Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod.

The dog is sad when the family leaves to go to the city.

Breakdown of Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod.

• ay: to be
• pamilya: the family
• kapag: when
• umalis: to leave
• aso: the dog
• lungsod: the city
• papunta sa: to
• malungkot: sad

Questions & Answers about Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod.

Why does the sentence start with Malungkot instead of Ang aso?

In Filipino, it’s very common to put the descriptive part (the predicate) first, and the thing being described (the subject) second.

• Malungkot ang aso
  literally: Sad is the dog → “The dog is sad.”

You could also say:

• Ang aso ay malungkot.

This is also correct, just a bit more formal or written-sounding. Everyday speech usually prefers the predicate–subject order: Malungkot ang aso.

What exactly does malungkot mean, and how is it different from similar words?

Malungkot is an adjective meaning “sad”.

Related forms you might see:

• malungkot – sad (a general state, like an adjective: “The dog is sad.”)
• nalulungkot – is getting sad / is feeling sad (progressive, more like “is becoming / is feeling sad”)
• nalungkot – became sad / was sad (completed aspect)

In your sentence, Malungkot ang aso describes a general or usual emotion of the dog in that situation, so the simple adjective malungkot works well.

What does ang do in ang aso and ang pamilya?

Ang is a marker that usually corresponds to English “the” (for the grammatical subject or topic of the sentence).

• ang aso – the dog
• ang pamilya – the family

In Malungkot ang aso, ang aso is the one being described as sad.
In umaalis ang pamilya, ang pamilya is the one performing the action of leaving.

Filipino uses markers like ang, ng, and sa instead of strict word order to show the role of a word in the sentence.

Why is it umaalis ang pamilya and not umalis or aalis ang pamilya?

All three are based on the root alis (to leave, to depart), but they show different aspects (similar to tense + kind of action):

• umalis ang pamilya – the family left (completed action; it already happened)
• aalis ang pamilya – the family will leave (future or still about to happen)
• umaalis ang pamilya – the family leaves / is leaving (ongoing, repeated, or habitual)

In your sentence:

Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya...
“The dog is sad when the family leaves...”

umaalis suggests this is something that happens regularly or generally: whenever the family leaves for the city, the dog is (usually) sad.

What’s the difference between kapag and kung? Could we use kung here?

Both kapag and kung can be translated as “when” in English, but they’re not identical.

• kapag – “when” used for real, actual situations, often habitual or conditional-but-realistic

  • Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya.
    “The dog is sad when the family leaves.” (It really happens.)

• kung – “if” (conditional), and sometimes “when” for uncertain or hypothetical events

  • Malulungkot ang aso kung iiwan ng pamilya.
    “The dog will be sad if the family leaves it behind.”

You could hear kung umaalis ang pamilya in casual speech, but kapag umaalis is the more natural choice here because it describes a regular, real situation.

Can we move the kapag clause to the beginning, like in English?

Yes. Both of these are correct and mean the same thing:

1. Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod.
2. Kapag umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod, malungkot ang aso.

Filipino word order is relatively flexible with clauses. Putting Kapag umaalis... first is very natural and feels close to English “When the family leaves for the city, the dog is sad.”

What does papunta sa lungsod literally mean?

Breakdown:

• punta – go
• papunta – going / headed (in the direction)
• sa – to / at / in (general location marker)
• lungsod – city

So papunta sa lungsod literally means “headed to the city” or “(in the process of) going to the city.”

The full part:

• umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod
  ≈ “the family leaves, going to the city” → “the family leaves for the city.”

Why not just say umaalis ang pamilya sa lungsod instead of papunta sa lungsod?

Umaalis ang pamilya sa lungsod would usually be understood as:

• “The family is leaving the city” (they are in the city and are going away from it)

That’s the opposite direction.

To express leaving for / going to the city, you use something like:

• umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod – the family leaves, going to the city
• pumupunta ang pamilya sa lungsod – the family goes to the city

So papunta sa lungsod is important to show they are headed toward the city, not leaving it.

What exactly does sa do in sa lungsod?

Sa is a very flexible location/direction marker. In sa lungsod, it functions like:

• to the city (direction) or
• in the city / at the city (location)

In this sentence, combined with papunta, it clearly means “to the city”:

• papunta sa lungsod – going to the city.

Is pamilya treated as singular or plural in Filipino?

Grammatically, pamilya is usually treated as singular:

• ang pamilya ay umaalis – the family is leaving

Even though it refers to multiple people, the word itself is a single unit (“the family”). Filipino often doesn’t mark plural clearly on the verb in the same way English does.

If you want to emphasize the multiple members, you can use:

• ang pamilya – the family (general)
• ang mga miyembro ng pamilya – the members of the family
• ang pamilya nila – their family

But in your sentence, ang pamilya as a singular group subject is completely natural.

What does lungsod mean, and can I say syudad instead?

Lungsod means “city”. It sounds a bit more formal or standard (and is used in official terms like Lungsod ng Maynila – City of Manila).

Syudad (from Spanish ciudad) also means “city” and is very common in everyday speech, especially in some regions.

Both are correct:

• papunta sa lungsod – going to the city (more standard/neutral)
• papunta sa syudad – going to the city (more colloquial/regional)

In most contexts, they’re interchangeable in meaning.

Why is it ang pamilya and not ng pamilya in umaalis ang pamilya?

Because in umaalis ang pamilya, pamilya is the subject / doer of the verb umaalis (“leaves”).

• ang marks the main subject/topic.
• ng often marks:
  • a non-topic actor (in some verb focuses), or
  • a possessor or object.

For example:

• Umalis ang pamilya. – The family left. (family = subject/topic)
• Iniwan ng pamilya ang aso. – The family left the dog.
  
  • ng pamilya – the family = doer (actor)
  • ang aso – the dog = object/topic

In your sentence, since we are describing what the family does (they leave), ang pamilya is correct.

Could this also be expressed with tuwing instead of kapag?

Yes, and it changes the feeling slightly:

• Malungkot ang aso kapag umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod.
  “The dog is sad when the family leaves for the city.”
  → states a real condition/situation.

• Malungkot ang aso tuwing umaalis ang pamilya papunta sa lungsod.
  “The dog is sad every time the family leaves for the city.”
  → emphasizes the repeated / every time nature.

Tuwing focuses more on “each time / whenever (repeatedly)”. Kapag is more neutral “when(ever)” for real, possibly habitual situations.