Intensity: 'napaka-', 'sobrang', and 'masyado' — Filipino Grammar

Tagalog has several ways to say "very", and they are not interchangeable. Some are neutral, one is strongly negative, and one of them changes the marker on the following noun in a way that catches learners out.

'napaka-' — Very, Attached to the Root

glues onto the front of the adjective root — not the form. Take , strip the , and prefix .

→ (very beautiful)
→ (very delicious)
→ (very big)

The trap: a predicate takes before the noun, not .

Napakaganda ng bahay.
The house is very beautiful.
Napakasarap ng kape.
The coffee is very delicious.

Saying is a classic learner error. Remember: pulls .

'sobrang' — Extremely

is a separate word placed before the adjective. It is very common in speech and slightly stronger than .

Sobrang sarap ng kape.
The coffee is extremely delicious.
Sobrang init ngayon.
It is extremely hot today.

'masyado' — Too Much (and It Is a Complaint)

does not mean "very". It means too, in the sense of excessive and unwelcome. Using it where you meant a compliment will send the wrong message.

Masyadong mainit.
It is too hot. (a complaint)
Masyadong mahaba ang pelikula.
The movie is too long.

Compare: is an observation; is a grumble.

'talaga' — Really, Truly

emphasises that something is genuinely the case. It can go before the adjective with a linker, or after the phrase.

Masarap talaga ang kape.
The coffee is really delicious.
Talagang mabait siya.
She is truly kind.

'ang' + Adjective — the Exclamation

Put in front of a bare adjective root and you get an exclamation: "How ...!" The noun that follows takes , just as with .

Ay! Ang bigat ng bag mo.
Wow! Your bag is so heavy.
Ang ganda ng bahay!
What a beautiful house!

This is extremely common in everyday speech and is often the most natural way to react to something.

One at a Time

Use a single intensifier per adjective. is not idiomatic. For extra force, Filipinos repeat the whole word instead: , or lengthen the vowel in speech.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Filipino course

35 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 84. A few of them, with the words “Intensity: 'napaka-', 'sobrang', and 'masyado'” is about in bold:

Nandito ako sa palengke. Napaka-abala rito.
I am at the market. It is very busy.
Lesson 249
Mayroon kang dalawang napakagandang anak. Ilang taon na sila?
You have two very beautiful children. How old are they?
Lesson 264
Tingnan niyo ang kusina. Napakaliit nito.
Go and check out (pl.) the kitchen. It is so small.
Lesson 322

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