This is the smartphone version. The earlier and fuller version, which discusses the Indonesian language as well, can be found here.
Lesson 43 Berapa harganya? (What's the price?)
Click to listen to the Malay sentences.
A second reading (by Michelle Nor Ismat, a native speaker)
| What's the price? | Berapa harganya? |
| Ten ringgit. | RM 10.00 = Sepuluh ringgit |
| Five hundred ringgit. | RM 500.00 = Lima ratus ringgit |
| Four thousand ringgit. | RM 4,000.00 = Empat ribu ringgit |
| Too expensive. | Terlalu mahal. |
| Can you reduce (the price) a bit? | Boleh kurang sedikit?* |
| Vocabulary
harga = price terlalu = too mahal = expensive kurang = to lessen, reduce sedikit = a little, a bit |
|
*Also Boleh murah sedikit? (Can it be cheaper?)
For those who want to know more
Note that Berapa harganya? is only used when you are asking the price of an article. When you ask a taxi-driver the cost of the fare you would say Berapa tambangnya? (How much is the fare?)
Words you will use or hear when you go shopping or when you are in the market:
You have learnt that Berapa means "How many..." or "How much..."
We have seen (in Lesson 2) nya tagged on to nouns ( keretanya = his car or her car). Here harganya would mean "its price" and tambangnya "its fare".
murah = cheap
mahal sekali (or sangat mahal) = very expensive
tidak mampu = cannot afford
harga yang tinggi = a high price
harga mati or harga tetap = a fixed price
tawar = to bargain (as an adjective tawar means "tasteless")
Money terms:
The Malay word for money is wang though duit is frequently used too eg.
Saya tidak ada wang or Saya tidak ada duit (I don't have money) and
Wang ini adalah untuk beli makanan or Duit ini adalah untuk beli makanan (This money is for buying food.)
On festive occasions (Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, etc.) you might hear the term duit raya. This is money put in a tiny envelope and given to children as a gift. It originated from the Chinese custom of giving "angpow" (red packets containing lucky money called ya1 sui4 qian2 in Mandarin) to children on the occasion of Chinese New Year.
Apart from ringgit and sen you might hear the following terms used in some states in Malaysia:
rial (used especially in Kelantan) meaning ringgit
kupang (used especially in Penang) meaning 10 sen. Thus dua kupang would mean dua puluh sen