How to Say "Stop" in Indonesian

berhenti

/bərhənˈti/

To say stop in Indonesian, use berhenti.

The word berhenti means to cease an action or movement.

Meaning: not to continue (verb)

What does it mean word for word?

The prefix ber- is a standard verbal prefix used to form intransitive verbs, indicating a state or an action performed by the subject.

While berhenti means to cease an action or movement, it is distinct from menghentikan, which means to cause something else to stop.

/bərhənˈti/

When telling a vehicle to stop, such as a taxi or 'ojek' bike, it is more common to say kiri meaning 'left' or stop than the formal berhenti.
If you are waiting for a bus, you might use berhenti to describe the bus's action, but you would use turun to describe your own action of 'stopping' to get off.
To tell someone to stop talking in a sharp or rude way, Indonesians often use diam rather than berhenti, as diam specifically means 'be quiet' or 'silent'.

Dia harus berhenti merokok.
She has to stop smoking.
This sentence shows how to use berhenti regarding the habit of smoking.
Tatoeba #12054869 by Pacific, translation #311563 by CK
Dia mencoba berhenti merokok.
He tries to stop smoking.
This sentence shows an attempt to use berhenti regarding the habit of smoking.
Tatoeba #1503815 by menyo, translation #454676 by mamat
Aku menyuruhnya untuk berhenti.
I told him to stop.
This sentence shows the use of berhenti when giving an instruction to stop.
Tatoeba #4134350 by Bilmanda, translation #2439737 by Hybrid
49 more sentences on Tatoeba

Rian and Maya are walking and notice a red light.

Rian

Kita harus berhenti di sini.
We have to stop here.
Maya

Ya, lampu lalu lintas sudah merah.
Yes, the traffic light is already red.
Rian

Tunggu sampai lampunya hijau baru jalan.
Wait until the light is green then go.
Maya

Oke, Maya setuju.
Okay, Maya agrees.

Sources

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