Skip to content

maalala

to happen to remember

verb ma-a-LA-la AF VERB Common
Illustration of "maalala" (to happen to remember)

From root: alaala

Conjugations

Past (Completed)

naalala

na-a-LA-la

remembered

Present (Incomplete)

naaalala

na-a-a-LA-la

remembering

Future (Contemplated)

maaalala

ma-a-a-LA-la

will remember

Usage Note

Maalala is the most common way to say "I remember" in daily conversation. Note: Modern spelling often drops the middle 'a' of the root alaala.

Examples

Beginner

" Naalala ko na ang pangalan mo. "

Natural Translation

I finally remembered your name.

Literal Translation

Remembered I now the name your.

Intermediate

" Mahirap maalala ang pangalan niya. "

Natural Translation

It is hard to happen to remember his/her name.

Literal Translation

Hard to happen to remember the name of him/her.

Advanced

" Habang naglilinis ako ng aparador, bigla kong naalala ang lumang larawan namin nung bata pa kami. "

Natural Translation

While I was cleaning the cabinet, I suddenly remembered our old photo from when we were still kids.

Literal Translation

While cleaning I of cabinet, suddenly I remembered the old photo our when child still we.

Free · iOS & Android

Take Tagalog with you

The full course, a 12,500-word dictionary, and flashcards that make every word stick — free to start on iOS and Android.

Tagalog builds thousands of words from a few hundred roots.

How Tagalog words work

Word family

alaala has 9 related forms built from the same root.

See all

Explore Tagalog by topic

Free guides on grammar, vocabulary, and culture to take you past single-word lookups.