kanus-a

Cebuano Word: kanus-a

1 Part of Speech · Meaning · Example Sentences

• Part of speech: interrogative adverb (also used as an interrogative pronoun)
• Core meaning: “when” — asks about a time, date, or occasion

Example sentences

• Kanus-a ka mi-abot? – When did you arrive?
• Kanus-a magsugod ang klase? – When will the class begin?
• Kanus-a man ang piyesta sa inyong lugar? – When is the fiesta in your town?

2 Learning Points for Cebuano Interrogatives

• Sentence-initial position: In direct questions kanus-a almost always comes first.
• Optional particle man: Adds a gentle tone or “so then” nuance: Kanus-a man ka mo-uli?
• Hyphen retention: Keep the hyphen; writing kanusa is considered informal.
• Indirect questions: kanus-a moves inside the clause: Wala ko kabalo kanus-a siya mo-balik.
• Rising intonation: A rising pitch on the final syllable clearly signals a question.

3 Common Collocations

• kanus-a ka – when will you / did you
• kanus-a man – when then / so when
• kanus-a pa – when else / when again
• kanus-a kaha – I wonder when
• kanus-a gyud – exactly when

4 Typical Position in a Sentence

Direct question:

Kanus-a + (optional particle) + verb/subject …
Kanus-a magsugod ang meeting? – When will the meeting start?

Indirect question:

main verb + kanus-a + clause
Gipangutana niya kanus-a mo-abot ang bisita. – He asked when the visitor would arrive.

5 Five Frequent Conversational Phrases

• Kanus-a ka libre? – When are you free?
• Kanus-a ta magkita? – When shall we meet?
• Kanus-a ang sunod nga bus? – When is the next bus?
• Kanus-a pa ka mo-balik? – When will you return again?
• Kanus-a kaha mahuman ni? – I wonder when this will finish.

6 Five Mini-Dialogues (Cebuano → English)

1. A: Kanus-a ka mo-uli? – When will you go home?
   B: Ugma sa buntag. – Tomorrow morning.
2. A: Kanus-a ta mag-dinner? – When shall we have dinner?
   B: Alas-siete sa gabii. – At seven in the evening.
3. A: Kanus-a sugod ang konsyerto? – When does the concert start?
   B: Alas-otso sa gabii. – At eight p.m.
4. A: Kanus-a nimo nadawat ang package? – When did you receive the package?
   B: Kagahapon ra. – Just yesterday.
5. A: Kanus-a mahuman ang proyekto? – When will the project finish?
   B: Sunod bulan pa. – Not until next month.

7 Multiple-Choice Dialogue Exercise

(Choose the interrogative sentence using kanus-a that is grammatically correct. Only one choice per item follows normal Cebuano word order.)

Questions with Answer Choices

Q1. The manager has to ask the exact start date of the event.
A. Kanus-a ang evento magsugod?
B. Kanus-a magsugod ang evento?
C. Evento kanus-a magsugod ang?

Q2. The guest wonders about the next train’s departure.
A. Mo-biya kanus-a ang tren sunod?
B. Sunod tren kanus-a mo-biya ang?
C. Kanus-a mo-biya ang sunod nga tren?

Q3. Ana needs to know when the library opens.
A. Kanus-a mu-open ang librarya?
B. Librarya kanus-a mu-open ang?
C. Ang kanus-a mu-open librarya?

Q4. The tourists want to ask the date of the local festival.
A. Kanus-a ang pista mahitabo?
B. Pista kanus-a mahitabo ang?
C. Ang kanus-a mahitabo pista?

Q5. Carlo should find out when the teacher will arrive.
A. Teacher kanus-a mo-abot ang?
B. Kanus-a mo-abot ang teacher?
C. Mo-abot kanus-a ang teacher?

Answer Key & Brief Explanations

Rule: In Cebuano direct questions, kanus-a must appear at the very beginning, immediately followed by the verb or by ang plus the noun. Re-ordering these elements makes the sentence ungrammatical, which is why the other options are wrong.