: Sa UCLA po. Kayo po? At UCLA. What about you?
MR. TOLENTINO : Sa UP, pero nag-master’s ako ng abugasya sa Netherlands. At U.P., but I took my master’s in law in the Netherlands.
SARAH : Talaga po? Mag-aaral din ako sa Netherlands next year. Really? I will also study in the Netherlands next year.
RALPH : Saan ka magtatrabaho after graduation, Melissa? Where will you work after graduation, Melissa?
MELISSA : Magtatrabaho po ako sa Center for Community Health. Magiging community health worker po ako. I will work for the Center for Community Health. I will become a community health worker.
VOCABULARY AND CULTURE TIP (Taglish) Taglish refers to Tagalog-English, the colloquial way of speaking wherein people, especially those living in urban centers, use both Tagalog/Filipino and English in a sentence. Thus, Sarah’s line “Mag-aaral din ako sa Netherlands next year” is not unusual. If in a similar situation you are at a loss for Tagalog words, you can say, for example, “Nag-work po ako sa hospital for two years.” No one will fault you if five out of eight of the words you use are in English.
QUESTION AND ANSWER PRACTICE
Ask and answer the following questions:
1. Question: Saan nagtatrabaho si Ralph?
Answer: ___________________ si Ralph sa ______________________.
2. Question: Saan nag-aaral si Melissa?
Answer: _____________________________________________________
3. Question: Saan nag-aral si Mr. Tolentino?
Answer: ______________ si _________________ sa ________________.
4. Question: Saan ka nagtatrabaho?
Answer: ____________________________________________________.
5. Question: Saan ka nag-aral?
Answer: ____________________________________________________.
6. Question: ____________________________________________________?
Answer: Nag-aral si Sarah sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas.
SENTENCE STRUCTURE AND GRAMMAR
Let us practice the verbs we have learned, using saan (where) and a new question word, kailan (when).
Study the following questions and answers.
| Saan ka nagtrabaho? | Where + you + worked? Where did you work? |
| Nagtrabaho ako sa Philippine Bank. | Worked + I + at + Philippine Bank.I worked at Philippine Bank. |
| Saan ka nagtatrabaho? | Where + you + work? Where do you work? |
| Nagtatrabaho ako sa Singapore Bank. | Work + I + at + Singapore Bank.I work at Singapore Bank. |
| Saan ka magtatrabaho? | Where + you + will work? Where will you work? |
| Magtatrabaho ako sa National Bank. | Will work + I + at + National Bank.I will work at National Bank. |
| Ano ang trabaho mo? | What + ang + work + your + job?What is/was your job? |
| Accountant ako. | Accountant + I. I am/was an accountant. |
| kailan | when |
| kailan ka nagtrabaho | when + you + worked |
| Kailan ka nagtrabaho sa Philippine Bank? | When + you + worked + at Philippine Bank?When did you work at Philippine Bank? |
| noon [no’on] | in the past (also used to mean in, on) |
| noong | in the past (contraction of noon + na) |
| noong 2012 | in 2012 |
| Nagtrabaho ako sa Philippine Bank noong 2012. | I worked at Philippine Bank in 2012. |
| ngayon | now; at present |
| Nagtatrabaho ako sa Singapore ngayon. | Work + I + Singapore Bank + now.I work at Singapore Bank now. |
| Naging abugado ako noong 2008. | Became + lawyer + I + in 2008.I became a lawyer in 2008. |
| Nag-master’s ako noong 2012. | Took a master’s degree + I + in + 2010. I took a master’s degree in 2010. |
| mula | from |
| hanggang | to |
| mula 2010 hanggang 2012 | from 2010 to 2012 |
| Nag-master’s ako mula 2010 hanggang 2012. | Took a master’s degree + I + from 2010 to 2012.I took a master’s degree from 2010 to 2012. |
Here are some useful grammar points:
1. Flexibility. Usually, there is more than one way of saying or asking the same thing. For example, If we want to ask someone what his job was in the past, we can say, “Ano ang trabaho mo?” (What is/was your job?) or “Ano ang trabaho mo noon?” (What was your job then?)
2. The Verb “to be.” There is no exact equivalent for the English verb “to be” (am, is, are) in Tagalog. Simply say “Accountant ako.” (literally, Accountant I).
3. Aspects and Tenses. Grammar point number 2 gives us a better understanding as to why some grammarians insist that there are no tenses (past, present, future) in Tagalog, and just aspects (completed action, incompleted action, and contemplated action). “I was an accountant” and “I am an accountant” can both be translated as “Accountant ako.”
4. Prepositions: The Tagalog words noon/noong (then; used to mean in) and sa (in, at) both mean the English preposition in. However, noon/noong is used only when the action has been completed. Here are some examples:
| Nagtrabaho ako sa Philippine Bank noong 2012. | Work + I + at + Philippine Bank in 2012.I worked at the Philippine Bank in 2012. |
| Magtatrabaho ako sa National Bank next year. | Will + work + I + National Bank + next year.I will work at the National Bank next year. |
Remember to use noon as a preposition for past action, and sa for future action.
QUESTION AND ANSWER PRACTICE
1. Question: Saan ka nagtrabaho noon?
Answer: ___________________
