Indonesian

[ in-duh-nee-zhuhn, -shuhn, -zee-uhn, -doh- ]

/ ˌɪn dəˈni ʒən, -ʃən, -zi ən, -doʊ- /

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noun

a member of the ethnic group consisting of the natives of Indonesia, the Filipinos, and the Malays of Malaysia.

a member of a population supposed to have been resident in the Malay Archipelago before the Malays, and believed to constitute one element of the present mixed population of Malaysia and perhaps Polynesia.

Official name Bahasa Indonesia. an Indonesian language that is based on the form of Malay spoken in Java and has the status of official language in the Republic of Indonesia.

the westernmost branch of the Austronesian family of languages, including Malay, Indonesian, Tagalog, and Malagasy.

adjective

of or relating to the Malay Archipelago.

of or relating to Indonesia, the Indonesians, or their languages.

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Origin of Indonesian

First recorded in 1840–50; Indonesi(a) + -an

OTHER WORDS FROM Indonesian

pro-In·do·ne·sian, adjective

Words nearby Indonesian

Indologist, Indo-Malayan, indomethacin, indomitable, Indonesia, Indonesian, indoor, indoor baseball, indoor-outdoor, indoors, indoor soccer

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Indonesian in a sentence

SiCepat is one of several Indonesian startups that have raised funding recently to make the supply chain and logistics infrastructure more efficient.
Indonesian logistics startup SiCepat raises $170 million Series B|Catherine Shu|March 5, 2021|TechCrunch
Her Indonesian grandmother made the fried-rice dish a childhood staple, but Lee’s version comes from a culinary research trip to the Javanese city of Yogyakarta.
Take a culinary journey with these new travel-inspired cookbooks|Jen Rose Smith|January 22, 2021|Washington Post
Once Indonesian authorities approve Sinovac’s vaccine, vaccinations will start immediately, likely later this month.
Data delays aren’t slowing the global rollout of a Chinese COVID-19 vaccine|Grady McGregor|January 4, 2021|Fortune
In December, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said the country would have 3 million CoronaVac doses by January 2021, and that it would receive supplies to locally produce 45 million more doses.
Data delays aren’t slowing the global rollout of a Chinese COVID-19 vaccine|Grady McGregor|January 4, 2021|Fortune

A sign on the wall shows the conversion rate between Indonesian rupiah and various goods and services.
The fight to stop the next pandemic starts in the jungles of Borneo|Brian Barth|December 2, 2020|Popular-Science
Indeed, Lion Air, with 45 percent of the domestic Indonesian airline market, has swallowed the Fernandes formula whole.
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
There is a larger reason, beyond the airlines themselves, why Lion Air and 61 other Indonesian airlines are on this black list.
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Two Indonesian airlines, Garuda and Lion Air, have seen Fernandes eat their lunch and are only now responding.
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
AirAsia Indonesia, which operated Flight 8501, is the Indonesian subsidiary of AirAsia, which is based in Malaysia.
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
They castigated the captain, a 48-year-old Indonesian, and his rookie copilot, a 24-year-old Indian.
Who Will Get AsiaAir 8501’s Black Boxes?|Clive Irving|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Then the Malays came down from the north and added to the Indonesian mixture a strong Mongolian element.
The New Gresham Encyclopedia|Various
In fact, one meets a great number that seem to come up to the Indonesian standard of Keane.
The Manbos of Mindano|John M. Garvan
Montano also recognizes these two elements which, however, he more correctly calls Indonesian and Malay.
The Manbos of Mindano|John M. Garvan
Big O'Ryan took the first set six games to three on a single service break against the Indonesian champion.
The Ambassador|Samuel Kimball Merwin
O'Ryan played like a blind man and the Indonesian ran it out with the loss of exactly one point per game.
The Ambassador|Samuel Kimball Merwin

British Dictionary definitions for Indonesian

Indonesian

/ (ˌɪndəʊˈniːzɪən) /

adjective

of or relating to Indonesia, its people, or their language

noun

a native or inhabitant of Indonesia

another name for Bahasa Indonesia

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012