pila

Cebuano Word: pila

1 Part of Speech · Meaning · Example Sentences

• Part of speech: interrogative pronoun / interrogative adjective
• Core meaning: “how many” / “how much” (synonyms: “how numerous,” “how large an amount”)

Everyday examples

• Pila kini? – How much is this?
• Pila ka tao ang mi-abot? – How many people arrived?
• Pila na ka tuig ka diri? – How many years have you been here?

2 Learning Points for Cebuano Interrogatives

• Pila heads direct questions and is followed by either a noun (pila ka…) or the focus marker ang (pila ang…).
• Use ka between pila and a counted noun: Pila ka libro?
• Combine with measure words: Pila ka litro? – How many liters?
• In money questions, context alone often drops the noun pesos: Pila ni? – How much (does this cost)?
• In indirect questions, pila shifts inside the sentence: Wala ko kabalo pila ang presyo. – I don’t know how much the price is.

3 Common Collocations

• pila ka + noun – how many …
• pila ang presyo – how much is the price
• pila na – how many already / so far
• pila kabuok – how many pieces
• tag-pila – how much each

4 Typical Position in a Sentence

• Direct question: Pila + (optional particle) + ang / ka + noun / number phrase Pila ang bayad sa jeep? – How much is the jeepney fare?
• Indirect question: main verb + pila + clause Gipangutana niya pila ka bata ang mosalmot. – He asked how many children would join.

5 Five Conversational Phrases

• Pila ni tanan? – How much is this altogether?
• Pila ka oras ang biyahe? – How many hours is the trip?
• Pila ang sobra? – How much change is left?
• Pila pa ka minuto? – How many minutes more?
• Pila ka beses ka mosulay? – How many times will you try?

6 Five Mini-Dialogues (Cebuano → English)

1. A: Pila ang plite sa bus? – How much is the bus fare?
   B: Trenta pesos ra. – Only thirty pesos.
2. A: Pila ka estudyante ang naa sa klase? – How many students are in the class?
   B: Mga katloan kabuok. – About thirty.
3. A: Pila ka kilo ang imong paliton? – How many kilos will you buy?
   B: Duha ka kilo lang. – Just two kilos.
4. A: Pila na ka tuig ka nagtrabaho diri? – How many years have you worked here?
   B: Lima na ka tuig. – Five years already.
5. A: Pila pa ka adlaw hangtod sa deadline? – How many days until the deadline?
   B: Upat pa ka adlaw. – Four more days.

7 Multiple-Choice Dialogue Exercise

(Select the interrogative sentence with pila that uses correct Cebuano word order. Only one option per item is right; the other two are deliberately scrambled.)

Q1. The cashier must ask the total amount of the bill.
A. Pila ang kantidad tanan?
B. Kantidad pila tanan ang?
C. Ang pila kantidad tanan?

Q2. The teacher wonders about the number of absent students.
A. Pila ka estudyante ang walay klase karon?
B. Estudyante pila ka walay klase karon ang?
C. Ang pila ka estudyante walay klase karon?

Q3. A traveler wants to know the cost of the ticket.
A. Pila ang tiket bayad?
B. Bayad pila tiket ang?
C. Tiket pila ang bayad?

Q4. The cook should ask how many eggs are needed.
A. Pila ka itlog ang gikinahanglan?
B. Itlog pila ka ang gikinahanglan?
C. Ang pila ka itlog gikinahanglan?

Q5. The organizer needs to ask the number of chairs required.
A. Pila ka bangko ang kinahanglan?
B. Bangko pila ka ang kinahanglan?
C. Ang pila bangko kinahanglan ka?

Answer Key & Simple Explanations

• Q1 — Correct: A – Pila first, then focus marker ang, then noun phrase kantidad tanan (“total amount”).
• Q2 — Correct: A – Pattern pila ka + noun + ang + rest creates “how many students …”.
• Q3 — Correct: C – For cost questions, pila can be followed by the verb phrase ang bayad after the noun.
• Q4 — Correct: A – Pila ka itlog (“how many eggs”) correctly precedes the verb.
• Q5 — Correct: A – Standard order: pila ka bangko ang kinahanglan (“how many chairs are needed”).

Why these are correct: In a Cebuano direct question, pila must lead, followed by ka + count noun or by ang + noun. Moving pila elsewhere or misplacing ang/ka breaks normal grammar, so the other options are ungrammatical.