Usage Note
Nanay is the everyday Filipino word for mother — warmer and more intimate than the formal ina. Used as both a direct address and a third-person reference, it is closely tied to Filipino family culture where maternal figures command great love and respect.
Examples
" Nasaan ang nanay mo? "
Natural Translation
Where is your mother?
Literal Translation
Where the mother your?
" Ang aking nanay ay laging nagluluto ng masarap na hapunan para sa amin. "
Natural Translation
My mother always cooks a delicious dinner for us.
Literal Translation
The my mother is always cooking of delicious that dinner for to us.
" Kahit pagod na pagod galing sa trabaho, lagi pa ring naghahanda ng pagkain ang aming nanay para sa amin. "
Natural Translation
Even when she's exhausted from work, our mother still always prepares food for us.
Literal Translation
Even tired very from work, always still preparing of food the our mother for to us.
Tagalog builds thousands of words from a few hundred roots.
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