Malapit ang kusina sa bintana.

to be

Breakdown of Malapit ang kusina sa bintana.

• sa: to
• bintana: the window
• malapit: near

Questions & Answers about Malapit ang kusina sa bintana.

Why is there no word for “is” in the sentence?

Filipino (Tagalog) doesn’t need a separate verb “to be.” Adjectives and other predicates can stand first and directly describe the topic. So Malapit functions as “is near,” and the link to ang kusina is implied.

Why does the sentence start with the adjective Malapit?

Predicate-first word order is the default in Filipino. Descriptions, locations, etc., usually come before the topic. Hence, Malapit (predicate) + ang kusina (topic) + sa bintana (location).

What does ang do here?

Ang marks the topic (often translated as “the”). It points out what the sentence is about: ang kusina = “the kitchen.” For plurals, use ang mga (e.g., ang mga kusina).

Why is it sa bintana, not ng bintana?

Sa marks locations, directions, and many indirect relations; ng usually marks non-topic actors, possession, or complements of certain relational nouns. With malapit (“near”), you use sa: malapit sa + place.

What if the thing is near a person’s name—do I still use sa?