In the last lesson, we learned that Tagalog adjectives are interchangeable, and that opened up more ways to describe a noun. Now, we’re going to explore how to negate.
This isn’t a lesson about antonyms, but rather about forming the ‘not [adjective]’ construction.
Vocabulary:
Nouns:
- batà → kid, child
- beterinaryo → veterinarian
- katrabaho → officemate, colleague
- aso → dog
- alagà → pet
Adjectives:
- matabâ → fat, chubby
- masayá → happy
- populár → populár, well-known
- mabaít → good, kind
- makulít → mischievous, naughty
Verbs:
- maneho → drive
- kagát → bite
💡BEFORE WE START: The term Tagalog used extensively in this guide refers to the variety spoken in Metro Manila. This variety is part of the broader Filipino/Tagalog umbrella that also includes Batangas and Quezon Tagalog, both of which retain more of the older, original Tagalog from history. This guide only covers the informal Filipino/Tagalog (or Taglish) used in everyday Metro Manila speech.
Negating Adjectives Used on Nouns
To negate an adjective, just add the word hindì before the adjective.
- Matabâ ang aso. → The dog is fat.
- Hindi matabâ ang aso. → The dog isn’t fat.
- Masayá si Kyle. → Kyle is happy.
- Hindi masayá si Kyle. → Kyle is not happy.
- Populár na alagà ang aso. → Dogs are populár pets.
- Hindi populár na alagà ang aso. → Dogs are not populár pets.
- Mabaít na katrabaho si Alex. → Alex is a kind colleague.
- Hindi mabaít na katrabaho si Alex. → Alex isn’t a kind colleague.
It works the same for inverted sentences.
- Ang aso ay matabâ. → The dog is fat.
- Ang aso ay hindi matabâ. → The dog isn’t fat.
- Si Kyle ay masayá. → Kyle is happy.
- Si Kyle ay hindi masayá. → Kyle is not happy.
- Ang aso ay populár na alagà. → Dogs are popular pets.
- Ang aso ay hindi populár na alagà. → Dogs are not popular pets.
- Si Alex ay mabaít na katrabaho. → Alex is a kind colleague.
- Si Alex ay hindi mabaít na katrabaho. → Alex isn’t a kind colleague.
Negating Adjectives Used on Pronouns
Here come the pronouns! When negating adjectives used with pronouns, just add hindì, but make sure the pronoun stays in the second position.
- Masayá ako. → I’m happy.
- Hindi ako masayá. → I’m not happy.
For inverted sentences, the structure stays the same.
- Ako ay masayá.
- Ako ay hindi masayá.
Negating Noun Phrases
This is where things get a bit more interesting. When negating noun phrases, the words juggle around a little to keep the pronoun’s second-place rule.
- Makulít siyang batà. → He/she is a naughty kid.
- Hindi siya makulít na batà. → He/she isn’t a naughty kid.
Notice how makulít moved after the negation? Let’s see that transformation step by step. We’ll replace the pronoun with a name first (Kyle):
- Makulít na batà si Kyle. → Kyle is a naughty kid.
- Makulít siya (na) batà. → He is a naughty kid. (the pronoun took the second place)
- Makulít siyang batà. (-ng is now attached to siya)
Now let’s negate it:
- Hindi makulít na batà si Kyle. → Kyle isn’t a naughty kid. (the word hindi is added right before the adjective)
- Hindi siya makulít na batà. → He’s not a naughty kid. (once again, the pronoun placed itself on second)
For inverted sentences, it’s the same structure.
- Siya ay mabaít na katrabaho.
- Siya ay hindi mabaít na katrabaho.
Negating Phrases Used as Adjectives
When negating phrases used as adjectives, it is important to use the Noun-Na-Phrase construction. Add hindì before the verb to negate it.
- Si Jane na nagmamaneho. → Jane, who is the one that is driving.
- Si Jane na hindi nagmamaneho. → Jane, who is the one that is not driving.
- Ang beterinaryong kinagat ng aso. → The vet who was bitten by a dog.
- Ang beterinaryong hindi kinagat ng aso. → The vet who was not bitten by a dog.
Do Not Use the Phrase-Na-Noun
This word order is unnatural in speech and can cause confusion.
- Hindi nagmamaneho na si Jane. ❌ → Not-driving Jane.
- Hindi kinagat ng aso na beterinaryo. ❌ → Wasn’t-bitten-by-a-dog vet.
Negating the Noun-Adjective Construction
In general, this construction is a lot less common in everyday speech. The adjective-na-noun construction is preferred.
- Asong matabâ si Brownie. ❌
- Matabâng aso si Brownie. ✅ → Brownie is a fat dog.
- Hindi asong matabâ si Brownie. ❌
- Asong hindi matabâ si Brownie. ❌
- Hindi matabâng aso si Brownie. ✅ → Brownie is not a fat dog.
However, when the sentence is inverted, the noun-na-adjective pattern can work. It sounds more formal and is used in plays, news, or literature.
- Si Brownie ay asong matabâ. → Brownie is a fat dog.
- Si Brownie ay hindi asong matabâ. → Brownie is not a fat dog.
- Si Brownie ay asong hindi matabâ. → Brownie is a dog that is not fat.
Conclusion
Negating adjectives in Tagalog is surprisingly simple. Hindi does most of the heavy lifting. Just put it before the adjective, and you’ve already said ‘not’. The only thing to watch out for? Tagalog pronouns. As we all know, pronouns love staying in the second position, and that will mess up our word order.
Now that you can say what something isn’t, it’s time to learn how to say what something belongs to. Up next: expressing possession in Tagalog!