ibabaIn English, we use prepositions such as in, at, and on. In Tagalog, we simply pair nasa with other words to indicate location. See how the words above are used in the following sentences:
| Nasa loob ng bag ko ang libro. | My book is in/inside my bag. |
| Nasa loob ng bahay ang nanay ko. | My mother is inside the house. |
| Nasa labas ng bahay ang aso. | The dog is outside the house. |
| Nasa ibabaw ng mesa ang lapis. | The pencil is on top of/on the table. |
| Nasa ilalim ng silya ang pusa. | The cat is under the chair. |
| Nasa itaas ng bahay ang attic. | The attic is at the top part the house. |
| Nasa ibaba ng bahay ang basement. | The basement is below/at the lower part of the house. |
QUESTION AND ANSWER PRACTICE
Ask and answer questions using the cues given below.
grandmother – inside bathroom
cat – on the bed
punchbowl – above the refrigerator
cereal – inside the kitchen cabinet
nook – under the table
TV antenna – above/top part the house
laundry area – below/lower part of the house
1. Question: Nasaan ang lola mo?
Answer: Nasa loob ng banyo ang lola ko.
2. Question: Nasaan ang pusa?
Answer: Nasa _________________ ng _________________ ang pusa.
3. Question: Nasaan ang __________________________?
Answer:____________________________________________________.
4. Question: ____________________________________________________?
Answer:____________________________________________________.
5. Question: ____________________________________________________?
Answer:____________________________________________________.
6. Question: ____________________________________________________?
Answer:____________________________________________________.
Playing with Muning
Melissa is looking for Sarah and their cat, Muning.
Study the following sentences using demonstrative pronouns and adjectives (here, there) in Tagalog.
| narito | here |
| Narito ako | Here + I. I am here. |
| Narito ako sa sala. | Here + I + in + living room.I am here in the living room. |
| Narito siya. | She/he is here. |
| dito/rito | here |
| naglalaro | playing |
| Dito kami naglalaro. | Here + we + playing. We are playing here. |
MELISSA : Nasaan ka, Sarah? Where are you, Sarah?
SARAH : Narito ako sa sala, Melissa. I am here in the living room, Melissa.
MELISSA : Nasaan si Muning? Where is Muning?
SARAH : Narito siya. Dito kami naglalaro. She is here. We are playing here.
VOCABULARY AND GRAMMAR
Let us study the equivalents of demonstrative pronouns that indicate location—here, there, and over there.
| dito/rito/nandito/narito | here |
| diyan/riyan/nandiyan/nariyan | there |
| doon/roon/nandoon/naroon | over there |
Dito and rito have exactly the same meaning and are interchangeable in spoken Tagalog. In the indigenous writing system, baybayin, the/d/and/r/sounds shared the same symbol and were interchangeable. Thus, diyan and riyan, doon and roon, nandito and narito, nandiyan and nariyan and nandoon and naroon are interchangeable in spoken Tagalog.
In written Tagalog, we use dito, diyan, and doon when the preceding word ends with a consonant; and rito, riyan, and roon when the preceding word ends with a vowel. For example, in the sentences below, dito is used after “Muning,” while rito is used after ka.
| Naglalaro si Muning dito. | Muning is playing here. |
| Naglalaro ka rito. | You are playing here. |
In addition, the latest spelling and editing guidelines for written Tagalog published by the University of the Philippines Center for the Filipino Language (2008) specify that because the affix na- ends with a vowel, in contracted forms we should use rito and roon, and not dito and doon.
| na + dito = narito |
| na + doon = naroon |
Study the following sentences.
| Narito ako. | I am here. |
| Nariyan si Muning sa kusina. | Muning is there in the kitchen. |
| Naroon ang bag ko sa kuwarto. | My bag is there in the room. |
As you can see, nandito/narito, nandiyan/nariyan, nandiyan/nariyan are equivalent to saying is here, is there, or is over there. None of these sentences use the be-verb (or even have a verb at all). However, these locational adverbs help supply the meaning of “be” in these sentences.
Now compare the sentences above with the following sentences.
| Nag-aaral ako rito sa Maynila. | I study here in Manila. |
| Diyan ako nakatira. | I live there. |
| Magtatrabaho ako roon sa New York. | I will work over there in NewYork. |
