Learn Hardcore Filipino: Kung busog ka na sa karne, kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay. - If you are already full from meat, just eat fish and vegetables.

You could sometimes also translate it as “when” in English, but the idea is always conditional: the second part only applies if the first part is true.

A close synonym is kapag. Very roughly:

kung – often feels a bit more hypothetical (“if”)
kapag – often feels more like “when(ever)” in real or repeated situations

Here, kung fits well because it’s like suggesting an alternative if the person has already had enough meat.

What exactly does busog mean? Is it a verb or an adjective?

Busog is mainly used as an adjective meaning “full (from eating)” / “satiated”.

Examples:

Busog na ako. – “I’m already full.”
Busog siya sa kanin. – “He/She is full from (eating) rice.”

You can build verb forms from the same root (e.g. nabubusog, mabusog), but in this sentence:

busog ka na sa karne

busog is functioning as a descriptive state: “you are full (from meat)”.

Why is it busog ka na sa karne and not busog ka na ng karne?

With busog, the usual pattern is busog sa [food/drink], meaning “full from / after having [something].”

busog sa karne – full from meat
busog sa kanin – full from rice
busog sa tubig – (context‑dependent) full from drinking water

So:

busog ka na sa karne
literally: “you are already full from meat”

Using ng after busog would sound unnatural or would not convey the intended “full from X” meaning. Sa here marks the source/cause of your fullness.

A more generic phrase is:

Busog ka na sa pagkain. – “You’re already full from food.”

What does na mean in busog ka na sa karne?

In busog ka na sa karne, na is a particle that often translates as “already” or “now (at this point)”.

It suggests a change of state:

busog ka – “you are full”
busog ka na – “you are already full now (as opposed to before)”

So it implies that earlier you weren’t full, but now you are. English often uses “already” for this nuance, which fits nicely here:

“If you’re already full from meat…”

What does na lang add in kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay? Why not just say kumain ka ng isda at gulay?

Na lang combines two particles:

na – “now / already / at this point”
lang – “only / just / merely”

Together, na lang often carries the idea:

“just (do this) instead”
“might as well (do this)”
choosing the remaining or simpler option

So:

Kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay.

has a softer, more suggestive nuance like:

“Then just eat fish and vegetables instead.”
“You might as well eat fish and vegetables.”

Without na lang:

Kumain ka ng isda at gulay.

sounds more like a straightforward command or instruction: “Eat fish and vegetables.”
Na lang makes it feel less forceful and more like a gentle suggestion or alternative.

Is kumain ka a command, past tense, or something else?

Kumain is an actor‑focus form of the root kain (“to eat”).

By itself, kumain can be:

completed aspect (“ate”)
imperative (“eat!”), depending on context
infinitive (“to eat”) in some structures

In:

Kung busog ka na sa karne, kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay.

kumain ka is understood as an imperative / suggestion:

“(Then) eat fish and vegetables instead.”

So here it functions as a polite suggestion/command, not “you ate.” The conditional kung… and the na lang cue that this is telling the person what to do next, not describing the past.

Why is the pronoun ka after kumain and not before it? Could I say ka kumain?

In Filipino, the default word order is predicate first, so verbs usually come before the pronoun subject.

Kumain ka. – “You ate.” / “Eat.”
Kumain siya. – “He/She ate.” / “Eat (he/she).”

Ka is an enclitic pronoun, which strongly prefers to appear in second position in the clause, usually right after the verb or particle.

So:

✔ Kumain ka.
✖ Ka kumain. (incorrect/very unnatural in standard Tagalog)

The normal position in this sentence is verb + ka: kumain ka na lang…

What’s the difference between ka and ikaw here? Why is it busog ka na and not busog ikaw na?

Ka and ikaw are both second‑person singular (“you”), but they appear in different positions:

ikaw is used when the pronoun stands alone or is at the start:
- Ikaw ang busog. – “You are the one who’s full.”
ka is used after a preceding word (usually predicate/verb/particle):
- Busog ka na. – “You’re already full.”

In this sentence, busog is the predicate (“full”), and ka is the pronoun that follows it:

Busog ka na sa karne. – “You’re already full from meat.”

Busog ikaw na is ungrammatical in standard Tagalog; you need ka there, not ikaw.

Why do we need ng in kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay? Can I drop it?

In Tagalog, ng marks the direct object of many verbs, especially in actor‑focus constructions like kumain:

Kumain ka ng isda. – “You ate fish.” / “Eat fish.”
Uminom siya ng tubig. – “He/She drank water.”

So in:

kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay

ng isda at gulay is the thing being eaten.

If you drop ng:

✖ kumain ka na lang isda at gulay

this is ungrammatical or at least very unnatural. In standard Tagalog, you need ng here to properly mark isda at gulay as the object of kumain.

Why is it isda at gulay and not mga isda at mga gulay? Doesn’t Filipino usually mark the plural with mga?

Mga is the usual plural marker (“-s / -es”), but Filipino does not always need explicit plural marking, especially when talking generically.

isda – fish / fish in general
mga isda – (individual) fishes, multiple fish
gulay – vegetable / vegetables (as a category, or as a dish)
mga gulay – multiple kinds/pieces of vegetables

In this sentence:

kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay

we’re talking about fish and vegetables in general, not counting individual pieces. English would say:

“eat fish and vegetables”

not necessarily “eat fishes and vegetables.” So no mga is very natural.

You could say ng mga isda at gulay or ng isda at mga gulay, but that would slightly emphasize plurality, e.g. many different fish or vegetable pieces. The original is more neutral and common.

Can I rephrase this sentence with a different word order, like isda at gulay na lang ang kainin mo? Does the meaning change?

Yes, you can rephrase it using an object‑focus construction:

Kung busog ka na sa karne, isda at gulay na lang ang kainin mo.

Here:

kainin – object‑focus form of kain (to eat)
isda at gulay – marked by ang as the focus/topic
Rough sense: “If you’re already full from meat, let fish and vegetables be what you eat instead.”

Meaning:
The basic idea is still the same (eat fish and vegetables instead of meat), but:

The original kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay focuses more on the action “you (should) eat…”
isda at gulay na lang ang kainin mo focuses more on what should be eaten.

The rephrased version can sound a bit more directive/emphatic about fish and vegetables being the right choice, but context and tone matter a lot too.

Is this sentence formal or informal? How would I say it more politely?

As written, it’s informal / neutral and sounds like you’re speaking to someone you’re familiar with (friend, family, same age, etc.):

Kung busog ka na sa karne, kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay.

To make it politer (e.g. to an older person, stranger, or in service situations), you can:

Use kayo instead of ka (polite/plural “you”).
Add po (politeness particle).
Optionally phrase it more as a suggestion.

For example:

Kung busog na po kayo sa karne, kumain na lang po kayo ng isda at gulay.
- “If you’re already full from meat, you can just eat fish and vegetables instead.”

Or even softer:

Kung busog na po kayo sa karne, baka gusto n’yo pong kumain na lang ng isda at gulay.
- “If you’re already full from meat, maybe you’d like to just eat fish and vegetables instead.”

Could I use kapag instead of kung here? Would it change the meaning?

You can use kapag in this sentence:

Kapag busog ka na sa karne, kumain ka na lang ng isda at gulay.

The overall meaning is still:

“When/If you are already full from meat, just eat fish and vegetables instead.”

Nuance:

kung – often feels a bit more conditional/hypothetical: “if that happens…”
kapag – often suggests a more regular or expected situation: “whenever / when that happens…”

So:

Kung busog ka na sa karne… – If (in that case, when that happens)
Kapag busog ka na sa karne… – Whenever/when you’re already full from meat

In everyday conversation, many speakers will use them almost interchangeably, and both sound natural here.