Malayo ba ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?

Is the school far from your house?

Breakdown of Malayo ba ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?

• bahay: the house
• ba: question particle
• malayo: far
• paaralan: the school
• mula sa: from
• ninyo: your

Questions & Answers about Malayo ba ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?

What is the function of ba in this sentence?

ba is the yes‑no question particle in Filipino that turns a statement into a question. It typically attaches to the first word or phrase:

• Malayo ba ang paaralan…
• Bumili ka na ba?

There is no direct one‑word equivalent in English; it simply signals that you’re asking Is …?.

Why is malayo at the beginning instead of placing ang paaralan first?

Tagalog often uses predicate–subject word order, especially in statements and yes‑no questions. Here:

• malayo = predicate (far)
• ang paaralan = subject (the school)

The neutral statement is Malayo ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo.
A more formal variant with the linker ay is: Ang paaralan ay malayo mula sa bahay ninyo.

Why is ang used before paaralan?

ang marks the subject or topic of the sentence in the nominative case. It highlights paaralan as the focus. Without ang, the noun would lack the proper case marker:

• Ang paaralan → the school (subject)
• Ng paaralan → of the school (genitive)
• Sa paaralan → to/at the school (oblique)

What does mula sa mean, and why is it used here?

mula sa means from, indicating a starting point or origin. mula is the main preposition, and sa is the case marker. Together they form a compound prepositional phrase:

• Mula sa bahay → from the house
• Mula sa opisina → from the office

You’ll also hear galing sa in everyday speech, but mula sa is perfectly standard.

Why is it bahay ninyo instead of bahay mo, and how does it compare to inyong bahay?

• ninyo is the genitive pronoun for you (plural) or polite singular you.
• mo is the genitive pronoun for singular informal you.

So:

• bahay ninyo → your (pl./polite) house
• bahay mo → your (informal) house

Alternatively, you can place the pronoun before the noun:

• inyong bahay → your house (pl./polite)
• mong bahay → your house (informal, but this form is rare; usually you say bahay mo)

Note: When inyo precedes a noun, you add the linker -ng to form inyong.

Can you phrase the question differently or move ba to another position?

Yes. Filipino allows some flexibility in word order:

1. Malayo ba ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?
   (most natural)
2. Ang paaralan ba ay malayo mula sa bahay ninyo?
   (more formal; uses ay)
3. Malayo ang paaralan ba mula sa bahay ninyo?
   (less common; emphasizes ba)

Typically, ba follows the predicate or the word you’re questioning.

How do you ask how far in Filipino if you want more detailed information?

You can use Gaano kalayo for how far:

• Gaano kalayo ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?
  → How far is the school from your house?

Or ask for a specific distance:

• Ilang kilometro ang layo ng paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?
  → How many kilometers is the school from your house?

How can I make this sentence more polite or formal?

Add the polite particle po:

• Malayo po ba ang paaralan mula sa bahay ninyo?

You can place po either:

• Malayo ba po ang paaralan…?
• Malayo po ba ang paaralan…?

Both are polite and commonly used.