Day 7 of 135

Day 7: One Missing Ga in the Transcript

In a hallway of the Hall of Justice in Batangas City, Ignacio (A), a court interpreter from Lemery, stops Domingo (B), a Manila lawyer in a dispute over the sale of a fishing boat, before the hearing resumes.

How to study this lesson 3 steps
  1. Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
  2. Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense.
  3. Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Tagalog. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.

Dialogue

Audio for this lesson is coming soon. For now, read the dialogue and its translation.

Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day

  1. A

    Attorney, interpreter po ako rito. Iba po sa transcript ang narinig ko kanina.

    Attorney, I'm an interpreter here. What I heard this morning isn't what's in the transcript.

  2. B

    Ano pong mali? Malinaw po ang sagot ng kliyente ko: "Hindi ko alam na naibenta na ang bangka."

    What's wrong with it? My client's answer was clear: "I didn't know the boat had been sold."

  3. A

    Sabi po niya, "Hindi ko ga alam na naibenta na ang bangka?" May ga po.

    What he said was, "Didn't I know the boat had been sold, ga?" There was a ga.

  4. B

    Ga? Pasensiya na po, taga-Maynila ako, ano po ang binabago ng "ga"?

    Ga? Sorry, I'm from Manila. What difference does a "ga" make?

  5. A

    Ang "ga" po ay "ba" ng Batangas, kaya ang ibig niyang sabihin, "Alam na alam ko."

    "Ga" is how Batangas says "ba," so what he meant was, "Of course I knew."

  6. B

    Ibig sabihin po, alam ng sarili kong kliyente ang bentahan? Patay po ang kaso namin.

    So my own client knew about the sale? Then our case is dead.

  7. A

    Naiulat ko na po sa hukom, at ipinasasabi niya sa magkabilang panig bago ituloy ang hearing.

    I've already reported it to the judge, and the judge wants both sides told before the hearing resumes.

  8. B

    Salamat po. Alam nga niya, pero hindi siya pumayag, doon ko po itatayo ang kaso.

    Thank you. He knew, all right, but he never agreed, and that's what I'll build the case on.

  9. A

    Paalala lang po: sa Batangas, isang "ga" lang ang pagitan ng oo at hindi.

    Just a reminder: in Batangas, one "ga" is all that stands between yes and no.

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