Learn Hardcore Filipino: Malapit na sanang umulan kanina, pero uminit na naman ang araw. - It was about to rain earlier, but then the sun became hot again.

malapit – near, close
na – already / now (a general aspect particle)
sanang – sana (would have / hopefully) + -ng linker
umulan – to rain (from ulan = rain, with um- verb affix)
kanina – earlier (earlier today)
pero – but / however
uminit – became hot (from init = heat/hot, with um- = to become hot)
na naman – again / once again (often with a “back to how it was before” or “oh, here we go again” nuance)
ang araw – the sun (or “the day,” but here it clearly means the sun)

So, very literally:

“It was already about to would‑have rained earlier, but the sun became hot again.”

Natural English:

“It was about to rain earlier, but then the sun got hot again.”

What does “malapit na” mean here?

Malapit na literally means “already near” or “getting close (to something)”.

In this context:

malapit na umulan ≈ “it is almost going to rain” / “it’s about to rain”

So malapit na + [verb] is a very common way to say “about to [verb]”:

Malapit na akong umalis. – I’m about to leave.
Malapit na siyang umiyak. – She’s about to cry.

In the sentence:

Malapit na sanang umulan = “It was about to rain (but didn’t in the end).”

What is “sana / sanang” doing in “malapit na sanang umulan”?

Sana is a particle that expresses:

hope / wish: “I hope…”
something desired or expected
often, something that did not actually happen (regret or unrealized situation)

When sana comes before a word that needs a linker (-ng), it becomes:

sana + -ng = sanang

In malapit na sanang umulan:

malapit na umulan – “it was about to rain”
malapit na sanang umulan – “it was just about to rain, but (unfortunately) it didn’t”

So sana adds the nuance:

it was expected / almost happening, but the event did not push through.

Without sana:

Malapit nang umulan kanina. – It was about to rain earlier. (more neutral) With sana:
Malapit na sanang umulan kanina. – It was just about to rain earlier (but in the end, it didn’t). (adds a slight feeling of “sayang” / “too bad / almost”)

Why is the verb “umulan” used, and not “uulan” or “umuulan”?

The root is ulan (rain), and the um- conjugations are:

uulan – will rain / is going to rain (contemplated aspect)
umuulan – is raining (incomplete / ongoing aspect)
umulan – rained / has rained (completed aspect)

In malapit na sanang umulan, the verb is in the completed form, but:

it’s inside the “malapit na sana…” structure,
which is describing something that was on the verge of happening but did not actually start.

Filipino often uses the completed form in certain fixed expressions with malapit na, muntik na, etc., to mean “almost did X”:

Muntik na akong madapa. – I almost tripped.
Malapit na kitang tawagan. – I was just about to call you.

So:

Malapit na sanang umulan – “It was about to (almost did) rain.”

You might also hear:

Malapit nang uulan. – It’s about to rain. (using uulan, also correct and common)

Both can be used; the choice can be stylistic or regional. The key is that malapit na gives the “about to” meaning.

What exactly does “kanina” mean, and how is it different from words like “noon” or “kahapon”?

Kanina means “earlier” but only within the same day.

Typical time words:

kanina – earlier today (a while ago, earlier this morning/afternoon/etc.)
kahapon – yesterday
noon – back then / at that time (a more distant or unspecified time in the past)
mamaya – later today
bukas – tomorrow

So in the sentence:

kanina = “earlier (today)”
“Malapit na sanang umulan kanina” – “It was about to rain earlier (today).”

You would not use kanina for something that happened yesterday or last week.

What does “uminít” mean, and how is it different from just saying “mainit”?

Root: init – heat / hot

mainit – hot (adjective, describes a state)
- Mainit ang araw. – The sun is hot.
uminit – became hot / got hot / warmed up (verb, describes a change)

The um- affix often turns adjectives or nouns into “become X” verbs:

uminit – became hot
umayos (from ayos) – got better / got fixed
umitim (from itim) – became dark

In the sentence:

pero uminit na naman ang araw – “but the sun became hot again.”

So:

mainit ang araw – describes the sun’s general state (it is hot).
uminit ang araw – focuses on the change: it wasn’t so hot, then it got hot.

What does “na naman” add to the meaning of “uminít na naman ang araw”?

Na naman is a very common combination:

na – now / already (aspect marker)
naman – again / on the other hand / (often) gives a slight emotional tone: repetition, contrast, sometimes mild annoyance or resignation

Together, na naman often means:

“again already”
“once again (back to how it was before)”

In uminít na naman ang araw:

literally: “the sun already got hot again”
natural: “the sun got hot again”
implied nuance: “the sun went back to being hot again (like before)” – possibly with a mild “oh, here we go again” feeling.

So the sentence contrasts:

It was nearly raining,
but instead, it went back to being sunny and hot again.

Why is it “ang araw” and not something like “yung araw” or a pronoun like “it”?

In Filipino:

ang marks the subject / topic of the clause.
araw can mean “day” or “sun”, and here it clearly means “sun” from context (talking about rain and heat).

So:

ang araw – literally “the sun” (as the subject)

About your alternatives:

yung araw
- yung is a colloquial form of iyong (“that”), often used like “the” in casual speech.
- Uminit na naman yung araw. – Also natural colloquial speech; very close in meaning to ang araw here.
Pronoun like “it”
- Tagalog in general doesn’t use a dummy subject “it” the same way English does.
- You just say uminit na naman ang araw, without any extra “it.”
- For weather, Tagalog typically uses verbs without a pronoun: Umulan, Umuulan, Lumalamig, etc.

So ang araw is just the normal way to mark “the sun” as the subject.

Why is there no word for “it” in “malapit na sanang umulan”? In English we say “it was about to rain.”

Filipino usually does not use a dummy pronoun like English “it” in weather expressions.

English:

It is raining.
It was about to rain.

Filipino:

Umuulan. – (Is raining.)
Uulan. – (Will rain.)
Malapit na sanang umulan. – (Was about to rain.)

There is simply no need for a subject pronoun there. The verb itself “umulan” handles the idea of “rain is happening” or “rain would happen.”

So:

“It was about to rain” = Malapit na sanang umulan.
No separate word for “it” is used or required.

Why is the order “uminít na naman ang araw” and not “ang araw uminit na naman”?

Both orders are possible, but the default neutral word order in Filipino is:

[Verb] + [Other elements] + [ang-phrase (subject/topic)]

So:

Uminit na naman ang araw. – very natural, neutral order.
Ang araw uminit na naman. – understandable, but marked / less natural in everyday speech; could be used for emphasis on “ang araw” in some contexts.

Some examples of the common pattern:

Umulan kagabi. – It rained last night.
Uminom ng tubig ang bata. – The child drank water.
Nagbago ang isip ko. – My mind changed / I changed my mind.

So verb-first is normal; subject-first can sound more emphatic or stylistically marked.

What’s the difference between “malapit na sanang umulan” and “uulan na sana”?

Both can suggest that it was going to rain but didn’t, but the nuance and structure differ:

Malapit na sanang umulan
- Literally: “Rain was already about to (would have) happen.”
- Focus on imminence / nearness in time – it was almost starting.
- Strong feeling of “almost but didn’t.”
Uulan na sana
- Literally: “It would have rained already” / “It was going to rain (I wish it had).”
- Focus more on the idea or expectation that it would rain.
- Still can imply it didn’t happen, but doesn’t highlight “it was right on the verge” as strongly as malapit na does.

Add kanina and you get:

Malapit na sanang umulan kanina – It was about to rain earlier (so close to starting).
Uulan na sana kanina – It was supposed to rain earlier / it would have rained earlier.

Both are acceptable; malapit na sanang umulan is more vivid about the “almost happening” feeling.

Can I rephrase the sentence to say the same thing in another natural way?

Yes. Some natural alternatives with almost the same meaning:

“Uulan na sana kanina, pero uminit na naman ang araw.”
– It was going to rain earlier, but the sun got hot again.
“Malapit nang umulan kanina, pero biglang uminit ulit ang araw.”
– It was about to rain earlier, but then the sun suddenly got hot again.
- (ulit = again; biglang = suddenly)
“Kanina, muntik nang umulan, pero uminit na naman ang araw.”
– Earlier, it almost rained, but the sun got hot again.
- (muntik = almost)

All of these keep the same basic idea:

there were signs of rain,
but instead, it went back to being sunny and hot.