sero

Cebuano word: sero — “zero” (digit 0)

1. Part of speech, core meaning, and example sentences

• Part of speech: numeral / noun-like determiner
• Meaning: the numeric value 0

Example sentences

• Ang resibo nag-pakita og “₱1 sero sero sero”. – The receipt shows “₱1,000”.
• Gi-round off nila ang balor ngadto sa sero punto singko. – They rounded the value to 0.5.
• Sa board exam, naa kay sero kung blanco imong tubag. – In the board exam, you get zero if you leave an answer blank.

2. Cebuano or Spanish?

• sero is Spanish-based (from cero).
• The native Cebuano equivalent for “zero / none” in everyday speech is wala.

3. How Cebuano- vs Spanish-based “zero” is used

4. Detailed usage notes

• Numeric reading: sero is spoken exactly where the written digit “0” appears (telephone numbers, meter readings, decimals).
• In decimals: sero punto siyam = 0.9.
• In money: Php sero punto singko (₱0.50).
• Time stamps: alas otso y sero (8:00).
• Never use sero for absence/negation; use wala: Wala ko’y kopya (“I have none”), not Sero ko’y kopya.

5. Five common pitfalls

1. Using sero instead of wala to mean “none / nothing.”
2. Forgetting to pronounce the rolled Spanish-style /r/—native stress is SE-ro.
3. Saying “sero percento” instead of serong porsyento / sero porsyento (no n).
4. Treating sero as a verb (✗ nag-sero ko).
5. Writing zero but pronouncing it with English /zi-ro/ in an otherwise Cebuano sentence (causes code-switch confusion).

6. Common collocations

• sero porsyento – zero percent
• sero punto ___ – 0.___ (decimals)
• numero sero – the number zero
• alas ___ y sero – clock time on the hour
• sero balance – ₱0 balance (banks / apps)

7. Typical learner mistakes & cautions

• Mixing sero with native classifiers (✗ sero ka libro – meaningless).
• Forgetting that sero cannot replace wala in quick negative answers.
• Writing sero percent (Tag-lish) instead of pure Cebuano sero porsyento.
• Over-using sero in idioms where wala is idiomatic.
• Misplacing stress (correct: /SE-ro/, not “se-RÓ”).

8. Five useful conversational phrases

• Sero na akong load. – My prepaid balance is zero.
• Sero balance ang akong account, boss. – My account shows a zero balance, sir.
• I-round off na lang sa sero punto usa. – Just round it to 0.1.
• Ang temperatura mi-baba ngadto sero degree Celsius. – The temperature dropped to 0 °C.
• G-dial niya ang sero sa una sa landline. – He dialed zero first on the land-line.

9. Five simple dialogue exchanges

1. A: Unsa ang una nga numero sa imong PIN?
   B: Sero ang una, dayon walo, siyam, duha.
   — “What’s the first digit of your PIN?” — “Zero, then eight, nine, two.”
2. A: Pila akong utang nimo?
   B: Sero na, bayad na man ka gahapon.
   — “How much do I still owe you?” — “Zero, you paid yesterday.”
3. A: Unsay reading sa water-meter?
   B: Sero sero uno otso.
   — “What’s the water-meter reading?” — “0018.”
4. A: Ang exam score nga sero, posible ba?
   B: Oo, kung blanco tanan tubag.
   — “Is a zero score possible in the exam?” — “Yes, if all answers are blank.”
5. A: Pag-set ug alarm sa alas diyes y sero.
   B: Sige, timer set for 10:00.
   — “Set an alarm at 10:00.” — “Okay, timer set for ten o’clock.”

10. Multiple-choice dialogue questions

Q1. Sero ba ang una nga digit sa imong numero?
A. Una sero ang nga digit numero sa imong.
B. Ang una nga digit sa imong numero sero.
C. Sa imong numero sero ang una nga digit.

Q2. Sero ba ang iyong balance karon?
A. Ang imong balance karon sero.
B. Balance karon sero imong ang.
C. Karon sero ang imong balance.

Q3. Sero ba punto lima ang reading?
A. Ang reading sero punto lima.
B. Punto lima ang sero reading.
C. Reading ang sero punto lima.

Q4. Sero ba ang score niya sa test?
A. Sa test score sero niya ang.
B. Ang score niya sero sa test.
C. Score sero sa test niya ang.

Q5. Sero ba ka minuto ka nag-hulat?
A. Nag-hulat ka sero ka minuto.
B. Sero ka minuto ka nag-hulat.
C. Ka minuto nag-hulat sero ka.

Answer Key

• Q1 – B Follows natural order: subject phrase then complement (sero). A & C scramble modifiers.
• Q2 – A Presents topic ang imong balance then predicate sero; others mis-order components.
• Q3 – A Correct declarative placement of measurement after verb/copula; B & C invert noun–number link.
• Q4 – B “Score niya” immediately followed by value sero is idiomatic; A & C split noun from predicate.
• Q5 – B Numeral phrase sero ka minuto precedes verb in reply; A & C separate adjective phrase or flip elements.