There are four types of affixes in Indonesian unlike English which only have two types of affixes. These four types of affixes are: prefixes, suffixes, confixes and infixes. As in the indonesian prefix table has discussed about the prefixes in Indonesian, this article about Indonesian infixes is going to give you a detailed explanation about the use of infixes in Indonesian.
Infixes are affixes that is inserted in between the letters of a words. The use of this affixes is not productive anymore because of most of Indonesian society see the words that is combined with infixes as monomorphemic words or root words. Moreover, there are only several root words that could be combined with infixes.
Learning Indonesian infixes could be difficult since there are several words that might look like it has been added with infixes while the truth is those words are the root words itself. However, there is an easy way to distinct which words is considered as root words and which one is not. you need to take a look to the meaning from each word. If the meaning is completely different, then they have no correlation to each other. On the other words, the first word is not the root word of the second word.
Knowing which one is infixed word and which one is not requires a wide knowledge in Indonesian vocabulary. However, there are no exact lists of words which only consist of infixed words. Therefore, it depends only on the knowledge of words in Indonesian.
To make it easier and more time efficient, let’s move to the discussion.
Adding infix in a word can alter the words attribute. It can be used to change a noun into an adverb, into an adjective, or into a verb. The altered words however, still have the similar meaning to the root words. In more detailed way, the infixes can be used to:
- Conveying the variety of an item.
- Conveying intensity.
- Conveying that something is having an attribute similar to the root word.
There are five types of infixes in Indonesian. They are: -el-; -er-; -em-; -in-; -ah-. To make an infixed word, one of these infixes only need to be inserted after the initial letter of each word. i.e. the word “gigi” could be inserted with -el- or -er- and become “geligi” or “gerigi”. Both have the same meaning which is many tooth, usually used to describe a gear as in machine gear.
Below is the list of several words that could be infixed including the infixes.
1. Infix -el-
| Root words | Meaning | Root+infix | Example |
| Suling (n) | Flute | Seruling | Suara seruling itu sangat indah.
The sound of the flute is fascinating. |
| Panjat (v) | Climg | Terperanjat (ter+peranjat) | Ayah dan ibu terperanjat mendengar kabar kecelakaan yang dialami oleh kakak. Mom and Dad are shocked knowing an accident happened to my brother. |
| Gigi (n) | tooth | Gerigi | Gerigi mesin ini sudah tidak layak pakai.
This gear is not usable anymore. |
Terperanjat is a word that has been added by two affixes which are prefix and infix. You can learn prefix in indonesian prefix table.
2. Infix -el-
| Root words | Meaning | Root+infix | Example |
| Tapak (n) | Palm of the hand | Telapak | Telapak tangan orang itu lemah lunglai. The palm of that old man is getting weak. |
| Gembung (n) | Bubbles | Gelembung | Gelembung-gelembung sabun ini sangat disukai oleh anak-anak.
The soap bubbles are liked by the children. |
Now, we can learn Indonesian infixes better.
3. Infix -em-
| Root words | Meaning | Root+infix | Example |
| Getar (n) | Shake | Gemetar | Tubuh ibu gemetar dan akhirnya pingsan mendengar kabar mengejutkan ini.
My mother is shaking and eventually fainted hearing this news. |
| Kilau (n) | Shiny | Kemilau | Kemilau berlian itu telah membuat semua orang lupa diri.
The diamond shines and makes people forget who they are. |
| Jari (n) | Finger | Jemari | Jemari perempuan itu lentik sekali.
The fingers of the woman is very beautiful. |
Let’s find more Indonesian infixes examples.
4. Infix -in-
| Root words | Meaning | Root+infix | Example |
| Dulu | Past | dahulu | Dahulu kala orang mengawetkan makanan dengan memasaknya.
In the past, prehistoric people preserve food by cooking it. |
| Bagian | A part of | Bahagian | Teman juga merupakan bahagian dari sebuah keluarga.
Friend is also a part of a family. |
| Baru | new | Pembaharuan (pe+baharu+an) | Ponsel saya sudah mendapatkan pembaharuan terbaru.
My phone has already got a new upgrade. |
The word pembaharuan is a word which has been added with prefix and suffix also. The addition of two affixes or more is called confix of circumfix in Indonesian. You can learn further in indonesian affixes for a general overview of affixes in Indonesian.
Learning affixes cannot be separated with learning grammar. Therefore, you should sufficiently know the Indonesian grammar first. It can be learned through indonesian grammar.