No in Tagalog

People like those who are agreeable, but at some point everyone needs to say no. At times the decision

is easy, but at other times it might require more thought. The word “no” in Tagalog has several meanings

and we will look at some ways it can be used in Filipino (Tagalog); which is spoken in the Philippines.

In Tagalog, you can say no using the word “hindi.” The direct opposite of no is yes. To say yes in Filipino,

one can do so using “oo.” Although, the word “hindi” is used to say “no,” it is an informal way of saying no.

On the other hand, the phrase “hindi po” is the more formal and respectful way of saying no. If you want to

say “yes” in Tagalog, or are agreeing to something, then “oo” is the informal way of doing so while using

either “oo po” or “oo ho” is considered to be a formal or a respectful way to say “yes.”

“Hindi” can also be used to show ones displeasure or dislike for something and this is seen when

someone says “I do not like you” which is “hindi kita gusto” in Tagalog. The word “gusto” means “like”

and it is a word borrowed from Spanish.

A useful Tagalog phrase is the phrase “hindi ko maintindihan” which in English means

“I don’t understand.” Another phrase that can be used to express that are not joking is the phrase

“hindi ako nagbibiro” which let’s the person know that you are serious.

Another way that the word “no” can be used is when one wants to indicate “nothing” or “gone.”
The related word used in these cases to express the idea of “nothing” or “gone” is “wala.”

For instance if we want to say “there is no more water” then we could say “wala ng tubig,”

where tubig is the word for water. In another example, to say “there is no more sugar” the way

to say this is “wala ng asukal.”

Yet another way to use the word “no” in Tagalog is to use it to express the idea of “not.”

 Let’s say you want to use the word “not” in a sentence then you would just have to use

“huwag.” This word “huwag” is usually used when you want expression an objection,

usually to an action. The following are a few examples to clarify the use of the word

“huwag.” To say “do not eat inside the room” you would use the word “huwag” to show

your objection to the act of someone eating in the room. Therefore,

“huwag kumain sa loob ng silid” means: do not eat inside the room.

The word “no” only has two letters in it, yet, it conveys a very powerful message.

It can turn the meaning of a message 180 degrees with just a single use of it. Therefore,

you have to be mindful when using it because it can totally alter what you have to say.