ngano

Cebuano word: ngano

1 Part of speech, meaning, and example sentences

• Part of speech: interrogative adverb / interrogative pronoun
• Core meaning: “why” — used to ask for a reason or cause

Example sentences

• Ngano ka diri? – Why are you here?
• Ngano man nahila-kan siya? – Why did she cry?
• Ngano wala ka mi-adto? – Why didn’t you go?

2 Learning points for interrogatives

• Ngano almost always appears at the very start of a direct question.
• Adding man softens the tone or means “so why”: Ngano man ka mouli karon?
• In indirect (embedded) questions, ngano shifts to the middle of the sentence: Wala ko kahibalo ngano na-late siya.
• Intonation rises slightly at the end of a ngano question; mastering this helps listeners distinguish a genuine request for reasons from a rhetorical remark.

3 Common collocations

• ngano man – so why / why then
• ngano kaha – I wonder why
• ngano diay – why, actually? (mild surprise)
• ngano pa man – why still / why even
• ngano gud tawn – why on earth (emphatic)

4 Typical sentence position

Direct question pattern:

Ngano (+ man) + verb/subject …
Ngano man nimo gipalit kini? – Why did you buy this?

Indirect question pattern:

main verb + ngano + clause
Nangutana siya ngano wala pa mi andam. – He asked why we were not ready yet.

5 Five frequently used conversational phrases

1. Ngano man ka nag-uol? – Why are you worried?
2. Ngano kaha nag­dali sila? – I wonder why they are hurrying.
3. Ngano diay nga mahal kaayo? – Why is it so expensive, actually?
4. Ngano pa man ka mo-balik? – Why will you come back again?
5. Ngano gud tawn nimo gi-buhat to? – Why on earth did you do that?

6 Five mini-dialogues (Cebuano ↔ English)

1. A: Ngano ka nag-katawa? – Why are you laughing?
   B: Na-hinumdum ko sa usa ka joke. – I remembered a joke.
2. A: Ngano wala ka ni-kuyog? – Why didn’t you come along?
   B: Naay trabaho nga tapuson. – I had work to finish.
3. A: Ngano man nag-ulan ug kalit? – Why did it suddenly rain?
   B: Tungod sa bag-ong low-pressure area. – Because of a new low-pressure area.
4. A: Ngano gusto ka mo-tuon og Cebuano? – Why do you want to study Cebuano?
   B: Para makasabot ko sa akong asawa. – So I can understand my wife.
5. A: Ngano pa man ta mag-hulat diri? – Why are we still waiting here?
   B: Naga-abot pa ang uban. – The others are still arriving.

7 Multiple-choice dialogue exercise

(Each numbered prompt is a declarative sentence. Pick the interrogative sentence with ngano that is grammatically correct. One option per set is right; the other two have the words in the wrong order.)

Q1. The supervisor wants to know the reason for the delay.
A. Ngano na-late ang report?
B. Report ngano na-late ang?
C. Ang ngano na-late report?

Q2. The child wonders about his friend’s sadness.
A. Ngano nasubo ang amigo niya?
B. Nasubo amigo ngano ang niya?
C. Ang ngano nasubo amigo niya?

Q3. The tourist asks why the museum is closed today.
A. Ngano man sirado ang museo karon?
B. Museo ngano man sirado karon ang?
C. Sirado karon ngano man ang museo?

Q4. Maria needs to know why the meeting was cancelled.
A. Meeting ngano gi-cancel ang?
B. Ngano gi-cancel ang meeting?
C. Ang ngano gi-cancel meeting?

Q5. Carlo is curious why the price suddenly increased.
A. Ngano diay misaka kalit ang presyo?
B. Presyo misaka ngano diay kalit ang?
C. Ang ngano diay misaka kalit presyo?

Answer key with brief explanations

• Q1 – Correct: A – Ngano begins the query, followed by verb + subject.
• Q2 – Correct: A – Proper order: Ngano nasubo ang amigo niya?
• Q3 – Correct: A – Ngano man at the front; verb phrase follows; subject ang museo at the end.
• Q4 – Correct: B – Standard pattern: Ngano gi-cancel ang meeting?
• Q5 – Correct: A – Ngano diay opens; verb misaka next; subject ang presyo last.

Why these are correct: In Cebuano direct questions, ngano must appear first (optionally with man or diay right after). The verb or ang + subject follows. Re-ordering these elements violates normal grammar, so the other choices are ungrammatical.