Although “batal” and “batalin” look similar, their meanings and grammar functions are different.
Understanding the pattern helps learners use both naturally in daily conversation.

1. BATAL (adjective / intransitive verb)

Meaning: “cancelled / not happening”

“Batal” is used when something is cancelled or doesn’t happen, but no object is mentioned.

It describes a state, not an action done to something.

Examples:

• Meet-nya batal.
  (The meeting is cancelled.)
• Rencananya batal.
  (The plan is cancelled.)
• Aku batal pergi.
  (I ended up not going.)

Here, nothing is being “cancelled by someone.”
The event simply did not happen.

2. BATALIN (informal transitive verb)

Meaning: “to cancel something”

“Batalin” comes from batal + suffix -in, making it causative and transitive:

➡️ to make something cancelled
➡️ to cancel something

It must have an object.

The formal version is membatalkan.

Examples:

• Aku mau batalin pesanan ini.
  (I want to cancel this order.)
• Dia batalin janji sama temannya.
  (He cancelled his appointment with his friend.)
• Tolong batalin meeting jam 3.
  (Please cancel the 3 PM meeting.)

3. Easy Summary

Word	Meaning	Part of Speech	When to Use
batal	cancelled / not happening	adjective / intransitive verb	when an event simply doesn’t happen
batalin	to cancel something	transitive verb (informal)	when someone cancels an object/event
membatalkan	to cancel (formal)	transitive verb	formal writing/speeches

4. Example Sentence Pairs

• Acara itu batal.
  (The event is cancelled.)
• Mereka batalin acara itu.
  (They cancelled the event.)

• Aku batal ikut kelas.
  (I ended up not joining the class.)
• Aku batalin kelasnya.
  (I cancelled the class.)

• Pesawatnya batal berangkat.
  (The plane didn’t depart—it was cancelled.)
• Maskapai membatalkan penerbangan itu.
  (The airline cancelled the flight.)

10 Practice Questions (Batal vs Batalin)

Choose the correct word: batal or batalin.

1. Aku mau ______ pesanan GoFood ini.
2. Meeting jam 4 ______ karena bosnya sakit.
3. Dia tiba-tiba ______ datang ke pesta.
4. Tolong ______ janji temu saya besok.
5. Pertandingannya ______ karena hujan deras.
6. Kamu udah ______ tiketnya atau belum?
7. Rencana liburan kami ______ mendadak.
8. Mereka memutuskan untuk ______ acara itu.
9. Aku akhirnya ______ ikut kelas yoga.
10. Bisa tolong ______ reservasi restoran itu?