Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.

Next year, we will travel with the family.

Breakdown of Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.

• kasama: with
• pamilya: the family
• sa: in
• kami: we
• susunod: next
• taon: year
• maglakbay: to travel

Questions & Answers about Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.

What does sa mean in sa susunod na taon? Is it like "in," "on," or "at"?

Sa is a very flexible preposition that can cover in, on, at, to, in the/at the depending on context.

In sa susunod na taon, sa is best understood as "in" (as in "in the next year").
Other examples:

• sa bahay – at home / in the house
• sa Lunes – on Monday
• sa Pilipinas – in the Philippines / to the Philippines

So sa + time expression is a common pattern to say "at/in/on [time]".

Why is there a na between susunod and taon? Why not just susunod taon?

Na here is a linker (also called a ligature). In Filipino, when you connect:

• an adjective to a noun
• or a descriptive word/phrase to the word it describes

you often need a linker: -ng or na.

Rules (simplified):

• If the first word ends in a vowel → add -ng
  
  • bago + araw → bagong araw (new day)
• If the first word ends in n → usually drop the n and add -ng
  
  • maganda + babae → magandang babae (beautiful woman)
• If the first word ends in a consonant (other than n) → use na as a separate word
  
  • susunod + taon → susunod na taon (next year)

So na just links susunod ("next/following") to taon ("year").

What is the structure of the verb maglalakbay? How is it formed?

Maglalakbay is built from the root lakbay (travel) plus an affix and reduplication:

1. Root: lakbay – to travel
2. Add the actor-focus prefix mag- → maglakbay
3. Reduplicate the first syllable of the root (lak-) to mark future / incomplete aspect
   mag- + (la)lakbay → maglalakbay

So:

• maglakbay – general/infinitive idea "to travel"
• maglalakbay – "will travel" / "going to travel"

This pattern (mag- + syllable reduplication) is common for future actions in mag- verbs:

• mag-aral → mag-aaral (will study)
• magluto → magluluto (will cook)

How do we know this sentence is future tense if there’s no separate word for “will”?

Filipino usually marks aspect (completed vs ongoing/future) inside the verb, rather than adding a separate word like “will.”

In maglalakbay:

• The reduplication (la in lalakbay) signals future / incompleted aspect for mag- verbs.
• There is no separate "will", because the verb form itself already shows the time.

Also, the time phrase sa susunod na taon ("next year") strongly supports the future meaning.

So the combination:

• maglalakbay (future form of the verb)
• sa susunod na taon (next year)

clearly gives the idea of "will travel next year."

Why is kami used and not tayo? Both can mean “we,” right?

Yes, both kami and tayo mean "we", but they differ in who is included:

• kami – we (excluding the listener)
  
  • "we, but not you"
• tayo – we (including the listener)
  
  • "you and I" / "all of us, including you"

In maglalakbay kami, the speaker is saying:

• We will travel (but you are not part of that group).

If the speaker wants to say "You and I (and maybe others) will travel", they would say:

• Maglalakbay tayo…

How would the sentence change if I want to include the person I’m talking to in “we”?

You would just change kami to tayo:

• Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay tayo kasama ang pamilya.

This now means:

• Next year, we (including you) will travel with the family.

What exactly does kasama mean? Is it like the English preposition “with”?

Kasama can function like:

• a preposition meaning "with" / "together with", or
• a noun meaning "companion" / "someone who is with you."

In this sentence:
maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya

kasama is functioning like "with" / "along with":

• We will travel *with the family.*

Other examples:

• Kasama ko siya. – I am with him/her.
• Sino ang kasama mo? – Who is with you? / Who is your companion?

So you can think of kasama here as "together with" the family.

Why is there no word for “our” before pamilya? How do we say “with our family” clearly?

Ang pamilya literally means "the family." In context, Filipino speakers often understand this as "our family" if it's clear who is being talked about.

If you want to be explicit:

• kasama ang pamilya namin – with our family (excluding the listener)
• kasama ang pamilya natin – with our family (including the listener)
• kasama ang pamilya niya – with his/her family
• kasama ang pamilya nila – with their family

So you could say, for example:

• Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya namin.
  Next year, we (not including you) will travel with our family.

Can the word order be changed, like putting the time expression later in the sentence?

Yes, Filipino word order is fairly flexible. All of these are grammatical, with slightly different emphasis:

1. Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.
   – Focus on next year at the beginning.

2. Maglalakbay kami sa susunod na taon kasama ang pamilya.
   – More neutral order; verb and subject first.

3. Maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya sa susunod na taon.
   – Slight emphasis on with the family, then time at the end.

The basic pieces:

• time phrase: sa susunod na taon
• verb: maglalakbay
• subject pronoun: kami
• “with” phrase: kasama ang pamilya

can be rearranged somewhat freely, as long as the grammar markers (sa, ang, kasama) stay connected to the right words.

Could I use another verb like magbibiyahe instead of maglalakbay? Are they the same?

You can say either maglalakbay or magbibiyahe; they’re very close in meaning, but with slight nuance:

• maglalakbay – to travel, to journey
  
  • Slightly more formal/literary or "journey"-like in feel.
• magbibiyahe (from biyahe, trip/ride) – to take a trip, to go on a trip
  
  • Very common in everyday speech, especially for travel by vehicle (bus, car, plane, etc.).

Examples:

• Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.
• Sa susunod na taon, magbibiyahe kami kasama ang pamilya.

Both are natural and understandable; choice depends on style and preference.

Is the comma after taon required in Filipino?

The comma in:

• Sa susunod na taon, maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.

is not strictly required by Filipino grammar, but it is common and considered good style when a time expression or introductory phrase comes first.

It helps show that sa susunod na taon is a separate introductory chunk.
You’ll also see it written without a comma:

• Sa susunod na taon maglalakbay kami kasama ang pamilya.

Both are acceptable; the version with a comma follows more standard punctuation conventions influenced by English and formal writing.