Question: Meron versus May: are there any general rules as to wh

"May" precedes nouns, verbs, and adjectives
Example:
May aso dun sa kanto. (There's a dog at the corner.)
May tinda pa sila dun. Bili. (There's still some being sold. Hurry.)
May mga magagandang chix dun pre. (There are some beautiful girls there man.)"Meron" is a verb, I think (because of state verbs). It describes the presence or absence of something. Meron in its root form can be used to answer questions.
Example:
May tinda ba sila dun? Meron yan. (Do they have these for sale? Yes they do.)Meron can also be followed with adverbs.Meron ngayon nagbabarilan sa may kabilang barangay. (There is a firefight currently happening at the nearby district.)
- may ngayon won't make anysense"Meron" can be modified with affix -g, and the word_na_
Merong nagbabarilan sa may kabilang barangay. (There is a firefight at the nearby district)
Ayoko merong angswang dun. (I don't want to there's a ghoul(?) there.)
- merong and may can be used interchangeably
Meron na namang nakalampag sa bubong, kunin mo yung itak. (There's a banging on the roof again, get the bolo.)
- in this case may could be use with meron but you have to move the adverb na naman.
May nakalampag na naman sa bubong, kunin mo yung itak. (Something's banging on the roof again, get the bolo.)"May" could be interchange with meron if added with -roon.
Mayroong may gusto sayo. (Someone's got a crush on you.)I'm not a linguist by any means but these are the things that I have observed as someone speaking the language.

@averagebot thanks so much! This will really help me out!

@averagebot @Nick Just some additions to what @averagebot posted...- "Meron" and "Mayroon" are the same word..."meron" is just an abbreviated version of the other.- "May" and "Mayroon/Meron" are considered "pseudo-verbs," meaning they act like verbs, but they're not conjugated. Other pseudo verbs include "puwede," "kailangan," and a couple others.

@averagebot Additonally:
(1) "May" is the short form of "mayroon" and is normally used in an informal or conversation situation. The location of a pronoun doer/subject may vary when substituting one for the other. Examples:
May bagong balita ako sa iyo. vs Mayroon akong bagong balita sa iyo.
(Both translates as "I have a piece of news for you.")
(2) As mentioned in a reply, "mayroon" requires the linker "g." The linker does not always attach to the word. Linkers are movable. They are attached to the word that immediately precedes the word they are linked to. Examples:
Mayroong tao sa labas. vs Mayroon bang tao sa labas?
Notice how the linker in the second sentence has moved to the entlitic "ba." In both sentences "mayroon" links with "tao." But because of the intervening word "ba" in the second sentence, the linker has moved to that word.
(3) "May" and "mayroon" are not pseudo-verbs. They are regular but non-conjugable verbs. Pseudo-verbs, by definition, requires a "real" verb. Example:
Puwedeng umuwi na?
Kailangang umuwi na.
Notice the linkers with the pseudo-verbs.

Tagalog Pseudo Verbs : Gusto(nais,ibig), Ayaw, Maaari(pwede),Kailangan,Dapat,Kaya. A pseudo verb doesn't doesn’t need a verb next to it .

@Desmond Yeah, I guess my shorthand definition of pseudo-verb was something that acts kind of like a verb but isn't conjugated. I guess I don't know the technical reason why may/mayroon is not also labeled a "pseudo-verb" (anyone have a good explanation?)...but I'm content to let the grammarians argue that one.And @PinoyTaj is correct...may/mayroon don't necessarily need a verb.
Ex: Mayroon siyang lapis.
Ex: May pera din ako.

@jkos Right. (1) May/Mayroon are the verbs themselves. (2) And they are not pseudo-verbs because pseudo-verbs need another verb to go with them. When a pseudo-verb does not have another verb with them, they are not considered pseudo-verbs but regular verbs. Examples.
Gusto ko nito. (not a pseudo-verb)
Gusto kong umuwi sa Pilipinas sa isang taon. (pseudo-verb, infinitive verb "umuwi" required)
Kailangan namin ng ulam. (not pseudo-verb)
Kailangan naming bumili ng ulam. (pseudo-verb, infinitive verb bumili))

@Desmond
This just doesn’t match the explanation of any of the literature about pseudo-verbs I’ve seen (and I did look up 4 different sources to double check). Please post a source if you have one. Regardless…we agree that whatever you want to call them, May and Mayroon are not conjugated.

I never wrote that "may" and :"mayroon" are anything but verbs. And I also wrote that they are conjugated. Also, they can translate 3 different ways. Depending on the context and/or use.

*they are NOT conjugated

@Desmond This is not correct. All of those are psuedo-verbs even when they stand alone without a linked verb.Please post your source if you insist. Thank you.

Right. They are all pseudo-verbs, by definition. However, without a verb in the infinitive, they are USED as regular verbs. (Example: Gusto ko ng mansanas.) They are USED as real pseudo-verbs when there is another verb in the infinitive form in the sentence. (Example: Gusto kong bumili ng mansanas.) I should have clarified the dual function (USE) of the pseudo-verbs in a more explicit manner.

Zzzzz 😴😴😴💤🛌

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Two other differences (and I apologize if these are already mentioned above - I didn't find them):One is that 'meron' can be a sentence by itself, unlike 'may'. So you can ask either:May kotse ka ba?orMeron ka bang kotse?But as an answer to that question, someone can say:Meron.but not:May.The second difference has to do with the placement of clitics, these short words like 'ka' and 'ba'. Those attach to 'meron' (so you say 'meron ka bang kotse?'), but they don't attach to 'may'; they attach to whatever's after it (so it's 'may kotse ka ba?' rather than 'may ka ba kotse?')hope that's useful

 

Norvin