# What is the difference between "malakas" and "lakas"?



## themoscioartist

I know they both mean the same thing, but when do you use on as opposed to the other? I saw one sentence that was "Ang lakas niya!" and another like "Siya ay malakas!"

((also, could you also say it as "malakas na siya"? Or "malakas ang siya"?))


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## mataripis

lakas= strenght/  malakas= powerful/with influence/ persuasive  (in special case)


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## Equinozio

*lakas *is the root meaning _strength _(as mataripis said), and *ma-* is an affix. See Tagalog roots and affixes.
The adjective affix ma- means _having a certain quality or having a lot of something_.

*lakas *= _strength, power, loudness_
*malakas *= _strong, powerful, loud etc._



> I saw one sentence that was "Ang lakas niya!"


In this case, *Ang lakas niya!* means _He/she's very strong!_
The *ang *is an adjective intensifier which is followed by the root of the adjective.

The person or thing described is expressed as a Ng phrase (a Ng pronoun or a word introduced by a Ng marker).
So instead of using *siya *(Ang phrase), you use *niya *(Ng phrase) after this kind of intensifier.

Other intensified examples:
*Ang lakas ni Jojo!* = _Jojo is very strong!_
*Ang lakas nito!* = _This is very strong!_
*Ang lakas ng ulan!* = _The rain is very strong! (It's raining really hard!)_



> and another like "Siya ay malakas!"


This sounds unnatural in conversation. More natural would be: *Malakas siya!* = _He/she is strong!_

The examples above, not intensified:
*Malakas si Jojo.* = _Jojo is strong._
*Malakas ito.* = _This is strong._
*Malakas ang ulan.* = _The rain is strong. (It's raining hard.)_



> ((also, could you also say it as "malakas na siya"? Or "malakas ang siya"?))


*Malakas na siya.* = _He/she is strong now. _(*na *= _now, unlike before_)

You cannot say "... ang siya".

You could say: *Siya ang malakas.* = _The strong one is he/she. (He/she's the strong one)_
In that case, *malakas *is an adjective used as a noun.


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