Today, we are going to learn how to say “where is the toilet” in Bahasa Indonesia. But, before we go right to the explanation, you have to know the word or phrase that is used by Indonesian to refer to toilet.
In Bahasa Indonesia, there are some vocabularies that refer to a toilet or restroom. All of them are most likely similar in meaning to each other. So, let’s first learn what are the words or terms that refer to toilet in Bahasa Indonesia
The Terms for Toilet in Bahasa Indonesia
In general, there are four terms in Bahasa Indonesia that means toilet or restroom. These four terms are the most common terms used to refer to toilet. There is also an additional term that could mean toilet in Bahasa Indonesia, but, in order to use the term, you need to be in a particular situation.
So, what are the terms in Bahasa Indonesia that mean toilet?
- Toilet
To refer to a restroom or toilet, Indonesians usually call it as toilet. Toilet in Bahasa Indonesia is actually a borrowed word from English itself. The word toilet in Bahasa Indonesia is commonly used by the people who live in an urban or business area since it is a word borrowed from a foreign language, English.
- Kamar Kecil
Indonesians also like to say toilet as Kamar Kecil. In Bahasa Indonesia, kamar kecil refers restroom or toilet in a polite way. In many formal occasion or situation, Indonesian will likely to use the phrase kamar kecil to refer to toilet. You can pronounce kamar kecil as “come-are-k-chill” in Bahasa Indonesia.
- Jamban
Jamban is a word that refers to toilet in Bahasa Indonesia, but is not commonly used in many conversations. Jamban is usually only used in non-urban or periphery areas that do not really consider about being polite or not.
Also, jamban is usually a very traditional toilet in many villages in Indonesia and is built on top of a river or on the riverside. So, jamban is a toilet which is directly built in an open space and can be used by public. You can pronounce jamban as you say “jump-bun”.
- WC
WC, in Bahasa Indonesia, is actually an English term that means water closet. Many Indonesians use this word to refer to toilet. The way WC is pronounced in Bahasa Indonesia is “way-say”.
- Ke Belakang
As you may already know, ke belakang means to the back. But in some occasions, it can also mean as toilet. This term is usually used by the student when they ask their teacher when they want to go to the bathroom or toilet.
How to Say “Where is the Toilet”
Basically, you can use any of the five terms above that mean toilet in Bahasa Indonesia. But, you must consider the formality of your situation to use the right term for toilet. To be safe, toilet, kamar kecil, or WC if you refer to toilet in Bahasa Indonesia.
The most common and polite way to ask where the toilet is in Bahasa Indonesia is “permisi, dimana kamar kecilnya?”. You can add permisi that means “excuse me” to be more polite.
If you want to be a bit informal, you can say “ toilet dimana ya?”. This is a bit improper since you diminish the word permisi that signs about being polite.
Also, if you are going to borrow someone’s restroom, you can say, “permisi, bolehkah saya menggunakan kamar kecil”. It means that you are asking them whether you are allowed to use their toilet or not.
So, how to say where is the toilet in Bahasa Indonesia is mostly the same. The only difference is the term you are using to refer to toilet in Bahasa Indonesia because it usually affects the politeness or the appropriateness.