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Hindi v Wala

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Author Photo by: Fujishooter
Jun 19 2019, 12:51am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
Hindi v Wala
Is there a trick to remembering which word is applicable? I am currently working through the Hindi v Wala flash card set and struggling to apply the correct wordform within the sample sentences given without committing each individual sentence to memory. I try to apply logic around relative english words such as "not", "none" etc but its still a 50/50 shot for me to get the correct word. Maybe there 's an "unwritten rule" or else I'm simply not understanding the grammar rules that apply. Any help is appreciated. Cheers!
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Author Photo siOscar
Jun 19 2019, 2:28am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
I found that it's helpful to think of it this way:
Hindi > straight up No/Not.
Wala > more often/directly indicates the absence of something.
It can still be tricky because it won't always be obvious. For instance; the card corresponding to the phrase 'I don't care,' uses Wala. In that case it's helpful to translate the phrase more directly as in: 'I have no care', where care is actually a noun (the absence of caring), similarly with the card relating to 'I have nothing to say,' which if I remember correctly gives the alternate translation 'I am speechless'. likewise with the cards relating a person's presence, wala indicates their absence.
Hope that's helpful.
 
Also applies to 'Can't you do anything?' where it's more helpful to think of the phrase as 'is there nothing you can do.'
 
cheers.
 
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Author Photo Fujishooter
Jun 19 2019, 4:08am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
@siOscar Salamat po, very helpful. I am thinking along the same lines regarding the use of the word "care" as a noun. You "hit the nail on the head" (spot on) with regards to "It can still be tricky because it won't always be obvious.". That 's what it is to me. I can appreciate the general relationship between Hindi > no/not and Wala > absence of something but I still have trouble classifying the sentence/phrase into one group or the other. All being said, I'm glad I'm taking steps now to ask these questions.
Once again
Maraming salamat po
 
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Author Photo siOscar
Jun 19 2019, 5:03am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
Walang anuman. I'm still learning, myself. For me the main takeaway from that lesson was that in translating given phrases, we of course need to understand the essence of what is being said, but we should not lose sight of what the literal translation is because there is information to be gained from it as well.
 
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Author Photo Tagamanila Badge: SupporterBadge: Serious SupporterBadge: VIP SupporterBadge: Native Tagalog Speaker
Jun 19 2019, 6:17am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
@Fujishooter @siOscar
 
Yes, Fujishooter, the use of "hindi" and "wala" can be tricky at times. The suggestion given by siOscar is a very good way to identify which word applies.
 
Also, when it comes to verbs, "hindi" may be a case of not doing or able to do a specific action, while "wala" is not doing or not able to do any action at all.
 
Hindi ko iyon sinabi sa iyo. = I did not say that to you. (might have said some things, but not that one)
Wala akong sinabi sa iyo. = I did not say anything to you. (said nothing at all)
 
Hindi ko masabi sa iyo. = I am not able to say it to you. (can say some things, except a particular one)
Wala akong masabi sa iyo. = I have nothing to say to you/I am speechless. (able, but nothing to say)
 
Hindi ako nakikialam sa kaniya. = I don't interfere with him. (just not interfering)
Wala akong pakialam sa kaniya. = I don't care about him. (ignoring totally)
 
Hindi mo ba siya matutulungan? = Can't you help him? (maybe you can, but maybe you won't)
Wala ka bang maitutulong sa kaniya? = Can't you do anything to help him? (you may want to help, but there's nothing you can do)
 
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Author Photo Fujishooter
Jun 19 2019, 7:03am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
@Tagamanila maraming salamat po. This is a great help with examples that provide a pattern I can try to apply to my learning. I identify this as an area I will need to re-visit and re-visit across my excercises
 
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Author Photo talagangtagalog Badge: Native Tagalog Speaker
Jun 20 2019, 3:20pm CST ~ 4 years ago. 
Great explanations by siOscar and Tagamanila!
 
For me, it helps to know the larger context of the conversation or text as well. Knowing the question being asked helps me to differentiate between using hindi or wala.
 
For example:
Gutom ka ba? Are you hungry?
Opo, gutom ako. Yes ma'am/sir, I'm hungry.
OR
Hindi ho, hindi ako gutom. No ma'am/sir, I'm not hungry.
 
It's a simple question and answer, but knowing the question helps lead me to use hindi for a negative response, in the example above, because it's a direct yes or no question.
 
For a wala example, if someone is asking me a "nasa" question, and "nasa" indicates location:
Nasa mesa ba ang aklat? Is the book on the table?
Oo. Nasa mesa ang aklat. Yes. The book is on the table.
OR
Wala. Wala sa mesa ang aklat. No. The book is not on the table.
 
In this case, I use "wala" for the negative response because the book is not on the table or absent from the location specified.
 
Great question @Fujishooter! I have these type of questions myself. Hope this helps a little.
 
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