Filipinos have a reputation for not being able to refuse or say no to a request. Some see this as a negative trait, but one reason Filipinos generally avoid saying no is because they view it as rude. Others attribute this habit to the Filipino culture of hiya (sense of shame) or the avoidance of losing face. But it’s also probably because Filipinos are just that amicable.

Despite that, Filipinos do have a word for “no,” and yes, they know how to use it and make a refusal if they feel like they’re being taken advantage of. In relation to that, this article is all about Filipino negation and how to say no in Tagalog. 

You’ll learn…

• …the most common words used in Filipino negation.
• …how to formulate a negative response to a question.
• …more Tagalog words and phrases used to form negative sentences in Filipino.

I know you’re excited, so let’s get to it!

Hindi. Hindi ako yun. (“No. That wasn’t me.”)

Table of Contents

1. Filipino Negation: The Basics
2. Negating a Sentence in Filipino
3. Giving a Negative Response to a Question
4. More Negating Filipino Words and Phrases
5. Learn About Filipino Negation and Much More with FilipinoPod101

1. Filipino Negation: The Basics

Before we discuss the rules for negating a statement in Filipino, let’s first talk about common Filipino negation words and expressions.

1 – Hindi 

The most common word used in negation in English is “no” or “not.” The equivalent word in Tagalog is hindi.

A: Gusto mo bang mag-alaga ng pusa? (“Do you want a cat as a pet?”)
B: Hindi. (“No.”)

A: Napanood mo yung laro kanina? (“Did you see the game earlier?”)
B: Hindi. (“No, I didn’t.”)

2 – Wala

Another common word used in negation is “none,” or in Filipino, wala.

• Pautang naman. May pera ka ba diyan? (“Why don’t you lend me some money. Do you have some cash?”)

There are a few ways you can respond to this:

1. Wala. (“I don’t.” / “I have none.”)
2. Wala akong pera. (“I don’t have any money.”)

→ Learn how to say “not” and “don’t have” with this practice lesson on FilipinoPod101.com. 

3 – Huwag

The third most common word for negation is “don’t,” which in Tagalog is translated as huwag.

• Huwag mong gawin yan. (“Don’t do it.”)
• Huwag kang magkalat dito. (“Don’t make a mess here.”)

Pasensya na, pero wala akong pera. (“I’m sorry, but I don’t have any money.”)

2. Negating a Sentence in Filipino

Negating a sentence in Filipino is quite simple. In most cases, we just follow the standard Filipino word order/sentence structure with only a few minor considerations. Here’s an example:

Positive Sentence	Negation
Naiintindihan kita. (“I understand you.”)	Hindi kita naiintindihan. (“I do not understand you.”)

In this case, we simply add the appropriate word for forming the negative version of the sentence, which is hindi or “do not.” Take note that in Filipino, the word of negation is almost always placed at the beginning of the sentence, unlike in English where it usually comes after the subject. 

Also take note that, when used in this context, hindi comes right before the dual personal pronoun kita, which is a combination of the subject ko (“I”) and the object ka (“you”). That explains why it has changed places with the verb naiintindihan (“understand”) in the sentence. 

Literally, Hindi kita naiintidihan is “Do not I-you understand.”

Let’s take a look at another example:

Positive Sentence	Negation
Sasamahan kita. (“I will accompany you.”)	Hindi kita sasamahan. (“I will not accompany you.”)

Here are more examples, this time using the negation word wala.

Positive Sentence	Negation
May pagkain dito. (“There is food here.”)	Walang pagkain dito. (“There is no food here.”)

Positive Sentence	Negation
May sasabihin ako sa iyo. (“I have something to tell you.”)	Wala akong sasabihin sa iyo. (“I’ve got nothing to say to you.”)

And finally, here are a couple of examples using the negation word huwag.

Positive Sentence	Negation
Dalawin mo kami bukas. (“Come visit us tomorrow.”)	Huwag mo kaming dalawin bukas. (“Don’t visit us tomorrow.”)

Positive Sentence	Negation
Kalimutan mo siya. (“Forget about her.”)	Huwag mo siyang kalimutan. (“Don’t forget about her.”)

Again, you’ll notice that the negation is placed at the beginning of the sentence, right before the pronoun mo (“you,” “your”). Meanwhile, the verb exchanges places with the pronoun siya (“he,” “she”).

Literally, Huwag mo siyang kalimutan is “Do not you her forget.”

Huwag mo siyang kalimutan. (“Don’t forget about him.”)

→ Also, here are fifteen things you shouldn’t forget when learning Filipino.

3. Giving a Negative Response to a Question

Filipinos are friendly by nature. They love to talk and aren’t afraid to start a conversation. When you’re meeting a Filipino for the first time, be prepared to answer tons of questions. You can’t expect to answer every question with an affirmative, though, so it would help if you knew the basics of giving a negative response in the Tagalog language. It’s a good thing that responding with a “no” or making a refusal in Filipino is pretty simple.

For instance, when you’re asked, 

• Marunong ka bang mag-Tagalog? (“Do you know how to speak Tagalog?”)

You respond with, 

• Hindi ako marunong mag-Tagalog. (“I don’t know how to speak Tagalog.”)

To be more polite, you can add pasensya (“sorry”) at the beginning of the sentence.

• Pasensya, pero hindi ako marunong mag-Tagalog. (“I’m sorry, but I don’t know how to speak Tagalog.”)

Or, when you’re asked, 

• Sa iyo ba ito? (“Is this yours?”)

You could answer by saying, 

• Hindi sa akin iyan. (“That is not mine.”)

In most cases, a simple hindi or “no” is enough.

What if you’re asked if you want something or not? Let’s say, 

• Gusto mo bang pumunta doon? (“Do you want to go there?”)

You could answer this question by saying, 

• Ayaw kong pumunta doon. (“I don’t want to go there.”)

Here, we use the negation ayaw, a word used to express dislike or refusal. In most cases, the contraction for ayaw ko is used—ayoko.

• Ayoko ng baboy. (“I don’t like pork.”)
• Ayoko nang magmahal. (“I don’t want to fall in love anymore.”)

Just as with the case of hindi, a simple ayoko (“I don’t like”) is also enough most of the time. In formal situations, however, the more polite way to answer is with a complete sentence instead of a single word or expression.

Hindi ako kumakain ng karne ng baboy. (“I don’t eat pork.”)

→ Learn how to refuse politely with this lesson from FilipinoPod101.

4. More Negating Filipino Words and Phrases

Hindi pa tayo tapos, mga kaibigan.
We’re not done yet, friends.

Aside from the ones we’ve already covered, there are still a few more words and expressions we can use to form negative sentences in Filipino. Let’s take a look at some of the most common words for Tagalog negation.

1 – Hindi pa

Hindi pa is the Tagalog equivalent of “not yet.” You can use this to express that something needs to be done or is currently being done, but has not yet been completed.

A: Tapos ka na bang magtrabaho? (“Are you done working?”)
B: Hindi pa. Matagal pa ‘to. (“Not yet. This is going to take a while.”)

A: Nakapunta ka na ba ng Norway? (“Have you been to Norway?”)
B: Hindi pa. Pero gustong-gusto ko makapunta doon balang-araw. (“Not yet. But I really want to go there someday.”)

2 – Walang may

The English equivalent of this expression is “no one” or “there is none.” Here, wala means “none,” while may generally refers to something being existent. Literally, walang may is “none have” or “none there is.” Let’s take a look at how we can use this in a sentence.

• Walang may gustong kumupkop sa aso. (“There is no one who wants to adopt the dog.”) Or: (“No one wants to adopt the dog.”)
• Walang may ganang tumulong sa kanya. (“No one cares about helping him.”)

3 – Hindi kailanman

Kailanman is the Filipino word for “ever.” Combined with the negation word hindi or “no,” it can be translated as “never.” This expression is never used in normal conversations, though, and is only used in writing.

• Hindi kailanman nabigo ang pag-ibig. (“Love has never failed.”)

Depending on the structure of the sentence, the two words can be separated with kailanman placed at the end of the sentence,

• Hindi sila nagkalayo kailanman. (“They have never been apart.”)

Or at the beginning,

• Kailanman ay hindi sila nagkalayo.

4 – Hindi maaari / Hindi pwede

The Filipino words maaari and pwede are synonyms and both refer to something being possible. We pair it with the negation word hindi to express that something is impossible, cannot be done, or should not be done.

• Hindi pwedeng magkamali ang mahal na hari. (“The king cannot/does not make a mistake.”)
• Hindi ka pwedeng magmaneho ngayon. (“You can’t drive right now.”)

5 – Ayaw na / Hindi na

Both ayaw na and hindi na could be translated as “no longer.” The word na here acts as an emphatic marker denoting that something is to be cancelled or discontinued.

• Ayaw na nilang maglaro. (“They no longer want to play.”) Or:  (“They don’t want to play anymore.”)
• Hindi na ako aasa sa kanila. (“I will no longer rely on them.”)

6 – Wala na

Wala na literally means “none already.” You can use this expression when you want to say that something no longer exists or has already run out.

• Wala na tayong bigas. (“We’ve run out of rice.”) Or: (“We have no more rice.”)
• Wala na silang nagawa pa. (“There was nothing they were able to do.”)

What if you wanted to emphasize the fact that you don’t want something or are strongly denying something? In Filipino grammar, this is achieved through reduplication. The following three expressions could all mean “Absolutely not.” 

7 – Hinding-hindi

You could use this reduplication of hindi or “no” if you never want to do something (or do it ever again).

• Hinding-hindi ako mahuhulog sa kanya! (“I will never fall for him!”)
• Hinding-hindi na ako iinom ng alak! (“I will never drink alcohol again!”)

8 – Ayaw na ayaw

Ayaw is an expression of dislike. You say ayaw na ayaw if you don’t like someone or something very much, or if you’re disgusted about something.

• Ayaw na ayaw ko sa mga pusa! (“I really don’t like cats!”)
• Ayaw na ayaw kong may gumagamit ng tsinelas ko! (“I really don’t like it when someone else uses my flip-flops!”)

9 – Huwag na huwag

You’ve learned that huwag is the equivalent of “do not.” By saying huwag na huwag, you’re saying that you strongly disagree about someone doing something.

• Huwag na huwag mo nang uulitin ito! (“Never do this again!”)
• Huwag na huwag mong ipagsasabi ang sikreto ko ha? (“Don’t you ever tell anybody about my secret, okay?”)

Huwag na huwag mong ipagsabi ang sikreto ko ha? 
(“Don’t you ever tell anybody about my secret, okay?”)

→ Get to know more ways of forming a negative sentence in the Filipino language with this lesson.

Learn About Filipino Negation and Much More with FilipinoPod101

Saying no, making a refusal, or denying something is not always easy but oftentimes necessary. It can be even more challenging when you’re learning how to do it in a foreign language. You miss one word or you get the tone wrong, and you end up coming out as rude or impolite. But then that’s why FilipinoPod101 is here. 

With FilipinoPod101, you’ll learn more than just Filipino negation. You’ll learn the proper way to construct a sentence, pronounce Tagalog words, make conversations, and more via a lesson path that’s tailored to your learning preferences.

By signing up for a free account today, you’ll be given access to free learning resources, including vocabulary lists, audio recordings, and various lessons on the Filipino language that correspond to your current skill level. All this is designed to help you become fluent in Tagalog! 

But that’s not all. One of the most exciting things about joining FilipinoPod101 is that you can even have your own personal tutor with our Premium PLUS MyTeacher service. This feature will help you learn Filipino through a guided learning system where you get to receive real-time feedback from a real Filipino teacher, providing you with the assurance that you’re constantly progressing.

That’s all for this entry! If you feel that there are any important words or expressions we missed, don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments section! Enjoy learning here at FilipinoPod101.com!