Magbayad muna; huwag humiram.

Magbayad means to pay or, in a command, simply pay.

The root word is bayad, which is related to payment or paying. The prefix mag- is a common verb marker in Filipino. In this sentence, magbayad is the natural verb form used for pay.

So:

• bayad = payment / pay
• magbayad = to pay / pay!

Filipino often uses this same verb form for both the basic dictionary form and the command form.

Because Filipino verbs do not all use the same affix pattern.

Some roots commonly take mag-, while others commonly take -um-. Here:

• bayad → magbayad
• hiram → humiram

Both are normal verb forms, but they are built differently. This is very common in Filipino: you often have to learn which verb pattern goes naturally with each root.

So the difference is not because one is a command and the other is not. It is simply because bayad and hiram belong to different verb-forming patterns.

Muna usually means first, for now, or before anything else.

In Magbayad muna, it means:

• Pay first
• Pay before doing something else

In this sentence, it suggests a sequence: settle payment first, then think about anything else.

A useful extra point: muna can also make a command sound a little less abrupt, so it often feels slightly softer than a bare command.

Because huwag is the normal word used to make a negative command.

• huwag = don’t
• hindi = not / no, but for statements, not commands

So:

• Huwag humiram = Don’t borrow
• Hindi humiram would not be the normal way to say that

A simple rule:

• Use huwag for Don’t do X
• Use hindi for X is not... / did not... / is not true

Humiram comes from the root hiram, which has to do with borrowing or a loaned item.

The verb is formed with the infix -um-:

• hiram → h
  • um
    • iram → humiram

So humiram means to borrow.

This -um- pattern is very common in Filipino verbs.

It means borrow.

That is a very important distinction:

• humiram = borrow
• magpahiram = lend

So Huwag humiram means Don’t borrow, not Don’t lend.

Because Filipino commands often leave the subject unstated when it is obvious.

In English, commands also usually omit you:

• Pay first
• Don’t borrow

The understood subject is you.

If you want to include it in Filipino, you can:

• Magbayad ka muna; huwag kang humiram. = singular, informal
• Magbayad muna po kayo; huwag po kayong humiram. = polite and/or plural

So the original sentence is completely normal without an explicit you.

Yes. It is a pair of imperatives, meaning commands or instructions.

The two commands are:

• Magbayad muna = Pay first
• Huwag humiram = Don’t borrow

A useful pattern to remember is:

• positive command: verb form by itself
  
  • Magbayad
• negative command: huwag + verb
  • Huwag humiram

Usually, in a neutral sentence like this, muna comes after the verb:

• Magbayad muna

That is the most natural order here.

If you add a pronoun, the pronoun usually comes before muna:

• Magbayad ka muna
• Magbayad kayo muna is less natural than Magbayad muna kayo or Magbayad kayo muna depending on rhythm, but learners are safest with Magbayad ka muna and Magbayad muna kayo

Putting muna at the very beginning, like Muna magbayad, sounds marked or unnatural in ordinary speech unless there is a special emphasis.

Yes, in meaning they are the same.

• huwag = standard spelling
• 'wag or wag = common casual spelling

So:

• Huwag humiram
• 'Wag humiram

Both mean Don’t borrow. The first is more standard in careful writing.

Not really. It is mainly a writing choice.

The semicolon shows that the sentence contains two closely connected commands:

• Magbayad muna
• huwag humiram

In everyday writing, you could also see:

• Magbayad muna, huwag humiram.
• Magbayad muna. Huwag humiram.

In speech, you would simply pause between the two parts.

It sounds natural, but fairly direct.

Without pronouns or politeness markers, it sounds like a rule, warning, or firm advice:

• Pay first; don’t borrow.

If you want to sound softer or more polite, you can add po and/or a pronoun:

• Magbayad muna po kayo; huwag po kayong humiram.

If speaking to one person informally:

• Magbayad ka muna; huwag kang humiram.

So the original is natural, but the tone depends on context.