Animals in Malay: word list with pictures
60 words · tap 🔊 to hear each one in Malay.
| Picture | English | Malay | Say it | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Cow | lembu | ||
 | Bull | lembu jantan | ||
 | Buffalo | kerbau | ||
 | Goat | kambing | ||
 | Sheep | biri-biri | ||
 | Horse | kuda | ||
 | Donkey | keldai | ||
 | Camel | unta | ||
 | Pig | babi | ||
 | Yak | yak | ||
 | Dog | anjing | ||
 | Cat | kucing | ||
 | Rabbit | arnab | ||
 | Hamster | hamster | ||
 | Mouse | tikus | ||
 | Elephant | gajah | ||
 | Lion | singa | ||
 | Tiger | harimau | ||
 | Leopard | harimau bintang | ||
 | Bear | beruang | ||
 | Monkey | monyet | ||
 | Gorilla | gorila | ||
 | Orangutan | orang utan | ||
 | Deer | rusa | ||
 | Zebra | zebra | ||
 | Giraffe | zirafah | ||
 | Hippo | badak air | ||
 | Rhino | badak sumbu | ||
 | Fox | rubah | ||
 | Wolf | serigala | ||
 | Jackal | jakal | ||
 | Squirrel | tupai | ||
 | Mongoose | cerpelai | ||
 | Porcupine | landak | ||
 | Hedgehog | landak mini | ||
 | Kangaroo | kanggaru | ||
 | Koala | koala | ||
 | Panda | panda | ||
 | Polar Bear | beruang kutub | ||
 | Sloth | kungkang | ||
 | Bat | kelawar | ||
 | Wild Boar | babi hutan | ||
 | Indian Bison | seladang | ||
 | Rat | tikus besar | ||
 | Fish | ikan | ||
 | Goldfish | ikan emas | ||
 | Frog | katak | ||
 | Whale | ikan paus | ||
 | Dolphin | ikan lumba-lumba | ||
 | Shark | ikan yu | ||
 | Octopus | sotong kurita | ||
 | Crab | ketam | ||
 | Prawn | udang | ||
 | Squid | sotong | ||
 | Seal | anjing laut | ||
 | Jellyfish | obor-obor | ||
 | Pufferfish | ikan buntal | ||
 | Otter | memerang | ||
 | Starfish | tapak sulaiman | ||
 | Seahorse | kuda laut |
Animals name in Malay is a favourite first topic for children in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, and a lovely way for families abroad to share their language. This page has 60 animals (haiwan) with pictures and clear audio: farm animals such as lembu (cow), kambing (goat) and kerbau (buffalo), pets such as kucing (cat) and arnab (rabbit), wild animals from gajah (elephant) to harimau (tiger), and sea creatures from ikan (fish) to kuda laut (seahorse). Tap a picture to hear the Malay and English names.
Farm animals and pets in Malay
Begin with animals your child meets in the kampung, at a farm or in picture books: lembu (cow), kerbau (water buffalo), kambing (goat), biri-biri (sheep), kuda (horse), keldai (donkey) and unta (camel). Pets (haiwan peliharaan) follow: kucing, arnab, hamster and ikan emas (goldfish). Cats are hugely popular in Malaysia, so kucing is often a child's very first animal word. The list also includes the pig (babi) and dog (anjing); many Muslim families prefer to begin with other animals, and you can skip any card.
Wild animals, including Malaysia's own
Malaysia's rainforests are home to famous animals that children love to hear about. The Malayan tiger, harimau Malaya, appears on the national coat of arms. The orang utan, "person of the forest", lives in Sabah and Sarawak, and English borrowed its name from Malay. The seladang (gaur, a huge wild cow) is in the game as the bison card. Other wild animals here include singa (lion), beruang (bear), monyet (monkey), rusa (deer), zirafah (giraffe), tupai (squirrel) and kelawar (bat). The clever mouse deer, Sang Kancil, is not in the game, but every Malay child knows him from folk tales.
Animal names worth a smile
| Malay | Literally | English |
|---|---|---|
| badak air | water rhino | hippo |
| badak sumbu | horn rhino | rhino |
| kuda laut | sea horse | seahorse |
| anjing laut | sea dog | seal |
| harimau bintang | star tiger | leopard |
| tapak sulaiman | Solomon's footprint | starfish |
Many sea animals start with ikan even when they are not fish: ikan paus (whale), ikan lumba-lumba (dolphin) and ikan yu (shark). Point this out and older children will enjoy the puzzle. Also listen for doubled words: biri-biri, obor-obor (jellyfish), lumba-lumba.
Animal sounds in Malay
In Malay, a rooster crows kukukuruyuk, a cat says meow, a duck kuek kuek, a goat mbek and a cow moo. Make a sound, let your child guess, then find the animal in the game. The English animal sounds game makes a good comparison.
How to teach animal names in Malay
- Five at a time. Choose five animals in Listen mode and say each one together.
- Find it. Golu asks for an animal in Malay. A wrong tap gets a gentle hint, never "wrong".
- Sing. "Bangau oh Bangau" (the heron), "Burung Kakak Tua" (the cockatoo) and "Lompat Si Katak Lompat" (jump, little frog) are classic Malay children's songs.
- Visit. At Zoo Negara, a bird park or a farm, name each animal you see.
- Sort. Group toys into haiwan darat (land) and haiwan laut (sea).
At 2-3, aim for 5-10 animals with lots of sounds. At 3-4, 15-20 animals and sorting. At 4-6, short sentences like "Gajah itu besar" (the elephant is big). Praise every try, and let a shy child point before speaking.
For English and Hindi names, see animals name for kids. Indonesian-speaking relatives can compare animals in Indonesian, where the cow is sapi and the rabbit kelinci.
How to use the animal game
Open Listen and tap only the animals your child already knows from real life, such as kucing, ikan and lembu. Say each name after the audio and make its sound. When those feel easy, play Find it, where Golu asks for an animal in Malay and gives gentle hints after a wrong tap. Memory suits 5-6 year olds. For a 2-year-old, the settings can show fewer pictures at a time, and calm sound keeps things gentle before bed.
Families abroad can name animals in the park, at the zoo and in English picture books in Malay. Stories of Sang Kancil outwitting the crocodile (buaya) or the tiger make a lovely bedtime habit and bring new animal words with them.
Nama haiwan untuk kanak-kanak
Halaman ini ada 60 haiwan dengan gambar dan suara: haiwan ternakan seperti lembu, kambing dan kerbau; haiwan peliharaan seperti kucing dan arnab; haiwan liar seperti gajah, harimau dan orang utan; serta haiwan laut seperti ikan paus, ketam dan sotong.
Ajak anak meniru bunyi haiwan dan menyanyi lagu kanak-kanak seperti "Bangau oh Bangau". Apabila melawat zoo atau kampung, sebut nama setiap haiwan bersama-sama. Ceritakan juga kisah Sang Kancil supaya anak mengenali haiwan melalui cerita rakyat.
How to use this page at home
Say it, then find it
Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: malay words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.
Ten minutes is enough
Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.
Use both languages
Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.
