# negative vs. positive adjectives (ma- prefix)



## Gavril

Hello,

Is there any widespread pattern in Tagalog wherein positive or neutral adjectives contain the prefix *ma*- (_*ma*ganda _"beautiful", _*ma*haba _"long", _*ma*igsi_ "short", etc.), whereas negative/pejorative adjectives don't (_lisya_ "wrong", _sakim_ "selfish", _tamad_ "lazy", _pisak_ "one-eyed", _tanga_ "stupid" etc.)?

Of course, there are some negative adjectives that begin with _ma_- (_masama_ "bad", _mali_ "wrong" etc.) and some positive/neutral adjectives that don't (_bago_ "new"), but in my limited Tagalog studies, I've seen enough evidence to think that there could be a tendency in the other direction.

Thanks for any info


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## DotterKat

No. Adjectival affixes are neutral and only the adjective itself gives the  negative or positive connotation. For every maganda there is mapangit, mabango vs. mabaho, mabuti vs. masama, masaya vs. malungkot, matahimik vs. maingay, mapagbigay vs. maswapang, mapayapa vs. magulo, etc.

Take note: the _*ma-*_ prefix, which denotes an essential nature of something/someone as indicated by the adjective to which it is added, should not be confused with words that simply begin with the letters "ma", such as _mali_ which you mentioned in your text. The "ma" is not a prefix but an integral part of the whole word (i.e., "li" is not an adjective).


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## Gavril

Hi DotterKat,



DotterKat said:


> No. Adjectival affixes are neutral and only the adjective itself gives the  negative or positive connotation. For every maganda there is mapangit, mabango vs. mabaho, mabuti vs. masama, masaya vs. malungkot, matahimik vs. maingay, mapagbigay vs. maswapang, mapayapa vs. magulo, etc.



Several of these adjectives seem to have byforms without ma-: e.g., Tagalog-Dictionary.com lists the adjectives _pangit_, _baho _and _lungkot_ as having the same meaning as the _ma_- forms. (In fact, this dictionary doesn't even recognize _mapangit_ when I search for it, only _pangit_.)

Do you happen to know why the forms with _ma_- (mapangit, mabaho, malungkot) alternate with prefix-less forms?

Thanks

(And apologies for misanalyzing _mali_.)


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## DotterKat

_Pangit_, _baho_ and _lungko_t are root words to which affixes may be added. Dictionaries normally do not list all permutations of every word due to space limitations.
These same root (unaffixed) adjectives can be used in sentences that essentially express the same idea, albeit in slightly different ways. With the ma- prefix (as an attributive adjective), the structure would be something like:

*Maganda siya*.

The unaffixed word _ganda_ is used in an exclamatory sentence to express the same idea, although with a bit more emotion attached:

*Ang ganda niya!* OR *Kay ganda niya!*

There will be many other permutations for forming sentences expressing that essential nature of someone (her beauty), including the use of affixes like napaka- (*Napakaganda niya!*) or again using the root (unaffixed) form but intensified by duplication (*Ang ganda ganda niya!*).

So, generally speaking, the _*ma-*_ adjectival forms are used in the indicative mood and the root (unaffixed) forms, introduced by words such as *ang*, *kay*, *napaka*, _*anong*_ or intensified by duplication are used in an exclamatory sentence. It all depends on how you wish to express the sentence.


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## Gavril

DotterKat said:


> _Pangit_, _baho_ and _lungko_t are root words to which affixes may be added. Dictionaries normally do not list all permutations of every word due to space limitations.



OK, but I'm still a little puzzled by why the dictionary chooses to list a _ma_- form for some adjectives and an unaffixed form for others. (I'm not saying it's "wrong" to do this, I just don't understand the system behind it.)

Could it be that the unaffixed forms of _pangit_, _lungkot_ etc. are used far more often than the _ma_-forms? In other words, is it much less common to hear (for example) _Malungkot siya _than _Ang lungkot niya,_ _Napakalungkot niya_ or similar?

Thanks again


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## DotterKat

Gavril said:


> ....Could it be that the unaffixed forms of _pangit_, _lungkot_ etc. are used far more often than the _ma_-forms? In other words, is it much less common to hear (for example) _Malungkot siya _than _Ang lungkot niya,_ _Napakalungkot niya_ or similar?....



No. Again, I think it is simply because dictionaries especially the concise ones, need to prioritize their entries. Root words would take precedence and derivatives would be mentioned after the definition or be given a separate entry if space allows. There are some Tagalog dictionaries wherein affixed adjectives and even conjugated verbs occupy several pages and root words seem to appear occasionally, quite the opposite of your experience.
There is no way to quantitate the frequency of usage of affixed versus unaffixed Tagalog adjectives, but my estimation would be that the affixed forms are used more commonly, again the opposite of your hypothesis.
Using another dictionary might be helpful.


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