mayroon

Mayroon is the formal and emphatic version of the existential marker. In casual conversation, it is almost always shortened to meron.

1. Possession vs. Existence
Both may and mayroon serve two distinct functions in English: Possession ("to have") and Existence ("there is/are"). For example, Mayroon silang aso means "They have a dog" (Possession), while Mayroong aso sa labas means "There is a dog outside" (Existence).

2. The Linker Requirement and Verbs
When mayroon (or its casual form meron) is followed directly by a noun, adjective, or verb (to indicate the existence of an action, like Mayroong tumatawag), it requires the linker. Because 'mayroon' and 'meron' end in the letter 'n', you only need to add a '-g' to the end of the word, resulting in Mayroong pera or Merong pera. This is a major difference from may, which never takes a linker and can be followed directly by nouns, verbs, adjectives, numerals, or the plural marker mga.

3. Word Order with Pronouns
You can use either may or mayroon with Ang-case pronouns like ako (I) or siya (he/she), but the word order changes. With may, the pronoun comes after the noun (May libro ako). With mayroon, the pronoun comes immediately after it, followed by a linker, and then the noun: Mayroon akong libro. Note that the independent pronoun ikaw cannot be used here; it must change to the enclitic ka (e.g., Mayroon kang libro).

4. Enclitics and Word Order
Both may and mayroon can be used with enclitic particles (like na, pa, din, rin, ba, nga, po), but the word order differs. With mayroon, the enclitics must immediately follow it (e.g., Mayroon ba silang pagkain?). With may, the enclitics attach to the first lexical word following it, whether that is a noun, adjective, or verb (e.g., May pagkain ba sila?). Additionally, if preceded by the plural marker mga, the enclitic skips 'mga' and attaches to the noun (e.g., May mga pagkain ba sila?).

5. Adverbs of Place
Mayroon is required before adverbs of place like dito, diyan, and doon. You cannot use may directly before these words (e.g., Mayroon doon, not May doon).

6. Standalone Answers
Mayroon is the only form that can stand alone. If someone asks "Do you have money?" (May pera ka ba?), you answer "Mayroon" (I have/There is) or "Meron." You cannot simply say "May."

7. Negation
To negate mayroon or may, you must use wala (none / does not have). You cannot say "hindi mayroon" or "hindi may". Importantly, wala follows the exact same syntactic rules as mayroon: it can stand alone, it attracts enclitics, and it requires a linker (e.g., Wala akong pera, not Wala pera ako).

8. Emphasis
Using mayroon instead of may often adds a layer of formality or emphasis to the statement, making the existence of the item more explicit.