How to use 'antara' correctly

For today's post, I will talk about the usage of 'antara'.

The word 'antara' (between or among) can exist as a preposition or 'kata arah' (direction word).

As a preposition, 'antara' is used for non-position situations. Look at the following examples:
1 Pertandingan pingpong antara kelas akan diadakan pada hujung minggu ini.
[The inter-class table-tennis competition will be held this weekend.]
2 Antara mereka berdua, saya lebih suka bergaul dengan Hashim.
[Between them, I prefer to mix with Hashim.]
3 Kerjasama antara negara amat penting demi kebaikan bersama.
[Co-operation among neigbouring nations is important for their common good.]
4 Antara cerpen dengan novel, saya lebih suka membaca cerpen.
[Between short stories and novels, I like reading short stories more.]

Note that when two parties are involved, 'dengan' is used after 'antara'. For example, 'Perhubungan antara Ali dengan Muthu amat baik.' [The relationship between Ali and Muthu is good.]
However, when three people are involved, 'dan' is used instead. An example is:
Antara Ali, Bakar dan Chandran, Bakar paling gemuk.
[Among Ali, Bakar and Chandran, Bakar is the fattest.]

As a directon word in combination with prepositionn 'di', i.e. 'di antara', position is involved. Look at look at a few examples below:
1 Kedai ubat itu terletak di antara kedai guning rambut dengan kedai runcit.
[The pharmacy is situated between the barber shop and the sundry shop.]
2 Adik duduk di antara ibu dengan bapa.
[My brother sat betweem my mother and my father.]
3 Kuala Lumpur terletak di antara negeri Perlis dengan negeri Johor.
[Kuala Lumpur is situarted between the state of Perlis and the state of Johor.]

I hope after the explanation and the examples, readers can use 'antara' and 'di antar' correctly.

So much for 'antara' for today.