The pantun is a traditional Malay poem, recited at weddings, in songs and in everyday teasing. The usual form has four lines (empat kerat): the first two are the pembayang, a picture that sets up the sound, and the last two are the maksud, the real message.
What your child will learn
- Name the pembayang and the maksud
- Hear the a-b-a-b rhyme
- Complete well-known pantun
- Explain the lesson of a pantun
How a pantun is built
Line 1 rhymes with line 3 and line 2 with line 4. In “Buah cempedak di luar pagar…”, pagar rhymes with belajar and jolokkan with tunjukkan. Each line has eight to twelve syllables.
A two-line pantun (dua kerat) has one line of pembayang and one of maksud, rhyming a-a: “Banyak udang banyak garam; banyak orang banyak ragam.”
Example questions
Here are a few questions like the ones in the first quest. Can you solve them?
1. Dalam pantun empat kerat, baris ketiga dan keempat dipanggil…
🎶- rangkap
- maksud
- pembayang
- tajuk
Show answer
Answer: maksud. Dua baris terakhir membawa maksud pantun.
2. Baca pantun: “Buah cempedak di luar pagar, / Ambil galah tolong jolokkan; / Saya budak baru belajar, / Kalau salah tolong tunjukkan.” Perkataan yang manakah berima dengan “pagar”?
- belajar
- galah
- tunjukkan
- jolokkan
Show answer
Answer: belajar. Baris pertama berima dengan baris ketiga.
3. Lengkapkan pantun: “Buah cempedak di luar pagar, / Ambil galah tolong jolokkan; / Saya budak baru belajar, / Kalau salah tolong ___.”
🎶- biarkan
- tunjukkan
- lupakan
- marahkan
Show answer
Answer: tunjukkan. “Tunjukkan” berima dengan “jolokkan”.
Tips for grown-ups
- Learn one pantun by heart and recite it with a swing.
- Keep the pembayang and make up a new, funny maksud that still rhymes.