2torial #0828: Learn2 Get By in Indonesian (continued) Painless grammar Tenses Rejoice! Indonesian does not have any tenses. The same form of the verb is used to indicate the past, present and future. The tense intended is usually clear from the context of the sentence. Indonesian is often called a "contextual language"--similar words and phrases are used in a wide variety of sentences. Differences in meaning are gleaned from the sentences' contexts.   saya makan = I eat or I am eating saya sudah makan = I have already eaten saya makan tadi = I ate just now saya akan makan = I will eat saya makan nanti = I will eat later   Gender Rejoice again! There is no gender distinction in Indonesian pronouns. "He," "she" and "it" are all "dia."   Attributive adjectives are placed after the word they qualify. anjing putih = a white dog (anjing = dog, putih = white) kantor besar = a big office (kantor = office, besar = big) kota kecil = a small town (kota = town or city, kecil = small).   Step 5