Hello, hello! Welcome to another episode of Tagalog Time with Bat. This is episode 3 and we will be learning how to conjugate Tagalog verbs in the present tense. I encourage you to go back and watch episode 1 and 2 if you have not watched them yet. I have planned these episodes to kind of start from scratch.
So if you don't know any Tagalog at all, start with episode 1 to learn about just the fundamentals of Tagalog, learning about... basic phrases and everything like that. And then episode two will focus on how to use bol so that you can be respectful when you're speaking to adults or to authority. And then now episode three, this is more heavy on the grammar side so that we can start speaking more kind of simple sentences which you can use in a conversation.
So let's go ahead and jump right in. In Tagalog, have you ever wanted to say something like, I am eating, she is sleeping? They are cooking.
So basically anything in the present tense. If you've ever wanted to talk about what you are doing in this moment in time or talk about what someone else is doing right now, this is a good episode to watch so that you can learn how to make these sentences to describe what you are doing currently. And this is our agenda for today. We will start by talking about verb conjugation in general.
Then we will learn the Tagalog verb types. Then we will go into tagalog pronouns so that we can start making simple sentences. And then we will learn the verb conjugation patterns and then practice them in some example questions.
And then I will finish it off with a Taglish tip, which I think you will find very useful. So what is verb conjugation? First of all, a verb is an action word. So to run, to play, to jump. Any kind of movement or action that is a verb.
And to conjugate means to change into a different form. So when we speak, we are constantly conjugating verbs depending on what we're trying to say. If we are talking about something that happened yesterday, we conjugate the verb in the past tense.
If we are talking about what we will be doing tomorrow, we conjugate the verb in the future tense. So to conjugate just means to change into a different form. And I like to take the time to kind of explain what conjugate means because one time in a class, I had a student ask, what does conjugate mean?
And here I was just throwing the word around thinking everyone knew what it meant. So I like to just kind of go start at the basics and just explain what a verb is and what it means to conjugate it. Now, there are many different types of verb tenses. In English specifically, there's a whole bunch.
The most common ones are the present tense, like what you're doing right now. Past tense, what you did yesterday or last week. Future tense, what you will be doing tomorrow or next month.
Then in English, there are also lots of other tenses, like the present perfect tense, like I have been to his house before. So that means like something happened in the past, but it's still kind of related to the present. Then there's the pluperfect tense. I had eaten lunch.
So that's something that happened in the past, it's done, it happened at a specific moment in time. And then there are just so many more verb tenses out there, especially in English. But in today's class, we will focus on how to conjugate verbs in the present tense.
Alrighty, so in Tagalog, there are five main types of verbs in Tagalog. Mag, ma, um, in, and i verbs. Now what makes them different? is that some verbs are actor-focused and some are object-focused, and some are both.
So what does that mean? An actor-focused verb means that the subject is doing the action. For example, the boy is playing. Here, the subject is the boy, and he is doing the action. He is playing.
Whereas in an object-focused verb, the action is being done to the subject. For example, wash the dishes. Here, the subject are the dishes, and they are being washed. So the action is being done to the subject. So that's the difference between an actor and an object-focused verb, and the difference between them will be important when we are determining the type of sentence that we're going to make.
So we'll see that more in the examples later on. Alrighty, so speaking of subjects, let's learn some subject pronouns. Aku means I. Ka means you singular, so it's just you by yourself, one person.
Sha means he or she. And I want to point out that sha is gender neutral. That means you have to listen for the context of the sentence to determine who that person is talking about. And also, take a look at the spelling.
It looks like it should be pronounced sia, but it's actually pronounced sha, sha. There are some regions in the Philippines that might pronounce it siya, but for the most part in the central Luzon Tagalog speaking areas, it's pronounced sha, sha. Next, sila is they, tayo is we inclusive, kami is we exclusive.
So in Tagalog, it's interesting. There are two types of we. In English, we just say we. And then you have to kind of distinguish who you're talking about, like we who.
So in Tagalog, if everyone is included, that's tayo. So you and me and everyone in the room, we are all eating, kumakain tayo. That's inclusive because everyone is doing the action. Whereas if it were me and my husband Chris, we are eating, that would be kumakain kami.
That's exclusive because you're not included. I'm just kind of telling you about it. Kumakain kami, we are eating.
And then lastly, kayo is you plural. So you all, that's you plural, kayo. Okay, now the simplest sentence structure is verb plus pronoun.
If we take a look at the verb to cook, in Tagalog it's magluto. So if you want to say I am cooking, it's nagluluto ako or you could say nagluluto ka you are cooking nagluluto siya he or she is cooking nagluluto sila they are cooking nagluluto tayo we are cooking inclusive again that's you and me and everyone in the room we are all cooking together everyone is included nagluluto tayo versus nagluluto kami, me and my husband Chris, we are cooking, that's exclusive. And then nagluluto kayo, you all are cooking. Maybe you all as a class, nagluluto kayo.
Alright, so all of these examples just show the simple sentence structure, verb plus pronoun. So the verb goes first, and then the pronoun goes afterwards. It's the opposite of English, where the pronoun goes first. Like, I am cooking, I is the pronoun, and then it's the verb cook.
So in Tagalog, it's the opposite, verb plus pronoun. All right, so one important thing about Tagalog verbs is that they all have a root word. And then something is added to them to conjugate it to a different tense. So an affix or an infix is added to the word to change it into a different tense. For example, let's take a look at the word magluto, to cook, again.
You could say, nagluluto ako, I am cooking. That's the present tense. Past tense, nagluto ako, I cooked.
Future tense, magluluto ako, I will cook. So I underlined here all of the root words. So luto is the root word.
And then there's the affix that goes before the root. And that will determine the tense. And what I want you to get from this slide is that if you can pick out the root word in a conversation, then that will really help with the translation of Tagalog for you. So if I heard someone say, oh, nagluto ako kahapon.
Then I would say to myself, okay, I know luto means to cook. Now I have to use context clues to figure out are they talking about... Something that happened yesterday, or are they cooking right now, or are they going to cook tomorrow? So if you can pick out root words when you're listening to Tagalog, that will really help with the translation and understanding of the language. Alrighty, so let's go ahead and jump right into these conjugation patterns.
We will start with the mag verbs. They are usually actor-focused, and they are the most common type of verb in Tagalog. Here are some examples.
Maglakad to walk, magluto to cook, magbasa to read. Now, in the present tense, if you want to conjugate a mag-verb in the present tense, here is the pattern. It's the affix nag, then it's the repeated first syllable, and then it's the root. For example, maglakad becomes nag-la-lakad. Here's the affix nag, then there's a repeated first syllable, and then the root.
Naglalakad ako. I am walking. Naglalakad sila. They are walking.
Alrighty, let's take a look at magluto, to cook. In the present tense, it becomes naglu-luto. Here's the affix nag, then there's the repeated first syllable, and then the root. Nagluluto sila. They are cooking.
Nagluluto. Lastly, magbasa, to read. It becomes nag-ba-basa. Here's the affix nag. Then there's a repeated first syllable.
And then the root. Nagbabasa ako. I am reading.
So that is how you would conjugate a mag-verb in the present tense. Let's take a look at ma-verbs. They are very similar in their pattern.
These are usually actor-focused. And here are some examples. Maligo to shower. Matulog to sleep. Manood.
to watch. In the present tense, if you want to conjugate a ma-verb, here's the pattern. Now the affix is na, then it's the repeated first syllable, and then the root.
So maligo, to shower, will be na-li-ligo. Naliligo ako. I am taking a shower. Naliligo siya. He is taking a shower.
You jot it down on your paper. What do you think matulog? And manood will be in the present tense.
And feel free to pause the video if you need. Alright, matulog in the present tense to sleep is going to be natutulog. The affix is na, then there's a repeated first syllable, and then the root.
Natutulog ako. I am sleeping. Natutulog.
Manood to watch will be... Na-no-no-od. Na-no-no-od sila.
They are watching. Affix is na, then there's a repeated first syllable, and then the root, na-no-no-od. So mag and ma verbs have a very similar pattern.
The only difference is that affix in the beginning. Now let's take a look at um verbs. These can be actor or object focused, depending on the context. And here are some examples. Cain is to eat, takbo is to run, tawa is to laugh.
Now you might be wondering, why are these um verbs? Um doesn't appear in the word at all. It's because um is the infix that goes into the word when you are conjugating it. So in the present tense, to conjugate an um verb, the infix um goes between the first and second letter, and then it's the root at the end. So for example, kain, to eat, becomes kumakain.
Um goes between the first and second letter, and then you add the root at the end. Kumakain ako. I am eating. Kumakain ako. Next, takbo means to run.
In the present tense, it would be tumatakbo. Tumatakbo siya. He is running. Um goes between the first and second letter, and then it's the root at the end.
Tumatakbo. You jot it down. What do you think tawa will be in the present tense? And just use the pattern we learned.
In the present tense, tawa, to laugh, will be tumatawa. Um goes between the first and second letter, and then the root goes at the end. Tumatawa sila.
They are laughing. Tumatawa. Alrighty, now let's move on to in verbs. These are also object focused.
And here are some examples. Gamit means to use. Walis means to sweep. It has a very similar pattern to um verbs. The only difference now is that the infix in goes between the first and second letter.
And then it's the root. So gamit. to use in the present tense becomes ginagamit.
In goes between the first and second letter, and then it's the root. Ginagamitko. I am using something. Ginagamit.
What do you think walis will be in the present tense? Remember to just use the pattern and plug everything in. Walis in the present tense is, we now walis.
So in just goes between the first and second letter. And then the root goes at the end. We nawalis ko yung sahig.
I am sweeping the floor. We nawalis. Lastly, i-verbs. These are object-focused.
Some examples are isara, to close. Ibigay, to give. Itago, to hide.
And now the pattern is the infix in goes between the second and third letter. And then it's the root. So, isara, to close, becomes isinasara.
Isinasara. So, in goes between the second and third letter, and then the root goes at the end. Isinasaraku yung pinto.
I am closing the door. You jot it down. What do you think ibigay and itago will be in the present tense?
In the present tense, ibigay, to give, will be Ibinibigay. Ibinibigay. In just goes between the second and third letter, and then it's the root at the end. Ibinibigay.
So, ibinibigay ko, I am giving something to someone. Lastly, itago, to hide, in the present tense will be, itinatago. Itinatago. The in just goes between the second and third letter. And then the root goes at the end.
Iti na tago. Alright, so those are the conjugation patterns for the five different types of verbs in Tagalog. So as you can see, there are some similarities among the patterns.
You just kind of have to figure out what type of verb it is and then go from there. So I always get asked, how are verbs categorized? Why are some verbs mag, some are ma, some are um, some are in, some are i?
And I've looked it up, and honestly, I have not found a consistent answer for that question. I think it goes back to by buying the ancient Philippine script. And back in the day, all of these verbs were just organized into these categories. And it was passed down throughout the years. And as Tagalog has evolved over time, all of these verbs have just been accepted into these categories.
Unfortunately, there is no rhyme or reason that I know of to explain why magluto is a mag verb, whereas matulog is a ma verb. I'm not quite sure why they were organized like that. But my biggest tip is to really listen when a native Tagalog speaker is conjugating these verbs, and then make a note of that so that you can conjugate it that way in the future. So it's just a matter of acquiring more vocabulary, and then... using the verbs in those ways in the future.
Now, if anyone does know the answer to that, like why are verbs organized in these groups, please let me know because I would love to share it. I have not been able to find a consistent answer to explain why they are the way they are. All right, so now let's go ahead and practice.
I'm going to go ahead and turn my video off so that I can use the whole screen. All right, so in this top left corner are the verbs. Verb patterns that we just learned.
Under that are the subject pronouns we learned. Ako is I. Ka is you.
Sha is he or she. Sila is they. Tayo is we, inclusive.
Kami is we, exclusive. Kayo is you, plural. Then here is the simple sentence structure, verb plus pronoun. And then here are some vocabulary terms to indicate present tense. So ngayon means right now.
Ngayong araw means today. And here are some examples. So number one, I am cleaning right now.
Maglinis means to clean. Number two, she is eating. Kain means to eat.
Number three, you all are cooking. Magluto means to cook. Number four, we are walking. Maglakad, inclusive.
Number five, they are sleeping, matulog. And number six, we are watching TV, manood exclusive. So let's do number one together just so we are all on the same page.
Remember our sentence structure here, verb plus pronoun. So the verb for to clean is maglinis. In the present tense, it's nag-li-linis. So mag verbs, remember the pattern is affix nag, then there's a repeated first syllable, and then the root. Naglilinis, then I, the subject pronoun for I is ako.
And then right now, ngayon. Naglilinis ako ngayon. I am cleaning right now. Naglilinis ako ngayon.
You take a minute and do the last five questions and then we'll go over it. And feel free to pause the video now if you think you'll need more time. Alright, so let's go ahead and do number two. She is eating. Kumakain siya.
Remember, kain is an um verb. So the pattern for um verbs is the infix goes between the first and second letter. And then it's the root.
Kumakain siya. Number three, you all are cooking. Nagluluto kayo. Nagluluto kayo. Number four, we are walking.
Naglalakad tayo. So remember, inclusive means everyone is doing the action. Tayo is the inclusive form of we. Number five, they are sleeping. Natutulog sila.
Natutulog sila. And lastly, we are watching TV. Exclusive.
Nanunood kami ng TV. TV. So not everyone is doing it.
It's just me and someone else. Nanunood kami ng TV. So the TV just goes at the end.
Nang means some or a thing. We are watching some TV. Now I want to take a look at this phrase, she is eating.
Kumakain siya. Kain is a good example of a verb that can be actor or object focused. So we just learned. Kumakain siya. She is eating.
But you could also say, Kumakain siya ng kanin. She's eating some rice. Or, Kumakain siya ng saging. She's eating a banana. So, ng can mean some or a thing.
And in all of these examples, kain is being conjugated as an um verb. But you could also say, Kinakain niya yung cake. She is eating the cake.
Or, kinakain niya yung pandesal. She's eating the pandesal. Pandesal is like a sweet bread that's usually eaten for breakfast. So these last two examples, kain is being conjugated as an in verb.
What's the difference here? When kain is being conjugated as an um verb, it is an actor-focused verb. So in these examples, It's like asking, what is she doing?
Oh, she's eating. She's eating some rice. She's eating a banana.
What is she doing? Versus when it's an object-focused verb, it's almost like you're asking, what is she eating? Oh, kinakain niya yung cake. She's eating the cake.
Or kinakain niya yung pandesal. She's eating the pandesal. So when it's an actor-focused verb, it's more, answering the question, what is she doing? In an object-focused verb, it's like answering the question, what is she eating?
So there you can kind of see the shift in the focus of the sentence. Is it more focused on what the subject is doing or focused on what the subject is eating? So I think that's very interesting how the verbs can take on a different kind of focus depending on the context of your sentence. Alright, so let's go back to the examples we just did.
If you look closely, you'll notice that all of these examples are mag, ma, or um verbs. That is because they are all actor-focused, meaning you can use a subject pronoun like we were using. However, if you want to use an in or e verb, now you have to actually use a possessive pronoun. And the idea here... is that for en or e verbs, since the object is the focus of the sentence, it's almost like you are in possession of that object.
So you have to use these possessive pronouns. So let's take a look down here in the bottom left corner. Here are possessive pronouns.
Gol means my or I. Mo means your or you singular. Nya means her or his, he or she.
Ni la means there or they. Na tin means our or we inclusive. Na min means our or we exclusive. Ni nyo means your or you plural.
So you might be wondering, how can it mean my or I, your or you? Because you can use these pronouns in different ways. So you could say like, ba hai ko, my house. Or ba hai mo, your house.
So when you're attaching it to an object, it takes on the possessive quality of like my or your or his or her. But when you're using it in a sentence with an object-focused verb, then it takes on the translation of I, you, he or she. So now this is the sentence structure we will be using when we use an in or e verb.
Verb plus pronoun like we were just doing. Then it's the word jung. And then it's the noun.
A very similar word is ang, A-N-G. That also means the. However, yung is specific. It's like that thing.
So for our purposes, let's just use yung because it's a little bit more specific to the examples we will be going over. And then again, here are some vocab words to indicate present tense. Ngayun means right now. Ngayung araw means today.
And here are some examples. I am using the car and I gave you some vocabulary words. Gamit means to use. Koche is car.
Number two, he is closing the door. Isara means to close. Pinto means door. Number three, you all are sweeping the floor.
Walis means to sweep. Sahig means floor. Number four, they are hiding the toys. Itago means to hide.
Mangalaruan means toys. So this is interesting. If you want to make a noun plural, you have to add the word manga in front of it. It's not like in English where you just add an S at the end. To make a noun plural, you have to add this word manga.
So let's do the first one together just so we're on the same page. Keep an eye on your new sentence structure here, verb plus pronoun. Then yung.
than the noun. So I am using the car. Gamit is to use.
In the present tense, it's ginagamit. Remember the in just goes between the first and second letter and then it's the root. Ginagamit.
And then the pronoun I in the possessive pronoun is ko. And then yung car is koche. Ginagamit ko yung koche.
I am using the car. Gina gamit go jung koche. So as you can see, we just kind of plugged everything into this sentence structure. And then we also used the pattern that we learned for these different types of verbs.
So go ahead and take a minute. You do the last three examples and then we'll go over it. Feel free to pause the video if you need. All right, let's do number two.
He is closing the door. Isinasara niya yung pinto. Isinasara niya yung pinto.
So the pattern for e-verbs, the e just goes between the second and third letter and then it's the root. He, as a possessive pronoun, is niya yung pinto, the door. Number three, you all are sweeping the floor.
Winawalis nyo yung sahig. Winawalis nyo yung sahig. And then lastly, they are hiding the toys.
Itinatagot nila yung mga laruan. Itinatagot nila yung mga laruan. So it really is just a matter of plugging everything into the sentence structure and then using the patterns that we learned for these different verbs. And the trickiest part really is trying to remember that For actor-focused verbs like magma and um verbs, you can use subject pronouns. But then for in and e verbs, you have to use possessive pronouns.
And again, it's because it's almost like you or the subject are in possession of that object. Alrighty, so let's take a look at this verb walis. This is another example of where it can be an actor or object-focused verb. We learned, we na walis ko yung sahig. I am sweeping the floor.
That's an in verb. The focus is on the object, sahig. What are you sweeping? I'm sweeping the floor.
Winawalis ko yung sahig. But you could also say, nagwawalis ako. I am sweeping. Now the focus is on me, the subject. I am sweeping.
What are you doing? I'm sweeping. So here, when it's an in verb, it's an object-focused sentence.
Versus when it's a mag verb, it's an act. actor-focused sentence. So very interesting there. Alrighty, let's finish it off with this Taglish tip.
Taglish is Tagalog and English together. And I am a big supporter of using Taglish. There are people out there who might say, oh, don't use Taglish.
That's a bad way to learn a new language. On the contrary, I think it's a great way to learn a language because you can use it as a stepping stone while you get more vocabulary. So you don't want to rely on Taglish forever.
The idea is that hopefully over time you can get more vocabulary and learn how to say the whole phrase in Tagalog. But in the meantime, let's learn this Taglish tip, and I think you can use it every day. So let's take a look at these examples. I am driving.
She is swimming. They are jumping. We didn't learn how to say to drive, to swim, or to jump. We didn't learn those verbs. But...
You could always turn them into a mug verb. So mug plus the English verb. And then you could just conjugate it in the present tense using the pattern we learned.
Affix is nug. Then there's a repeated first syllable and then the root. And then use the subject pronouns like we learned. So what if for number one I said, I am driving and I told you to use the verb mug drive.
Now you could conjugate it as nag de drive ako. So you see there's the affix nag. Then there's a repeated syllable, more like a repeated sound.
And then there's the root. Nag de drive ako. I am driving. Nag de drive ako.
I know it's kind of funny. It's like, is this even allowed? But honestly, I hear this phrase a lot. It's like, oh, sorry, I can't pick up the phone right now. Nag de drive ako.
I am driving right now. Next, she is swimming. What if I told you to use the verb mag swim? How would you say that in Taglish? In Taglish, you could say, nag siswim sha.
So the affix is nag, then there's the repeated first syllable, and then the root. Nag siswim sha. Lastly, they are jumping. What if I told you to use the verb mag? jump, how would you write they are jumping in Taglish form?
In Taglish, you could say, nagja jump sila. They are jumping. Nagja jump sila. So the affix is nag, then there's a repeated first syllable or sound, and then the root.
Nagja jump sila. So I think this tip is useful, but again, Try to go back later on and try to figure out what that word is in Tagalog so that you can say the whole phrase in Tagalog. So to drive in Tagalog is magmanejo.
So nagmamanejo ako. I am driving. To swim in Tagalog is lumangoy.
So lumalangoy siya. She is swimming. And then to jump in Tagalog is talon. Tumatalon sila. They are jumping.
So try using Taglish whenever you can because I think it's a great way to practice using the sentence structure. You also get to practice using the different pronouns, and also it's a way to practice the conjugation patterns that we learned. And then also of course it's a good way to gain vocabulary when you go back and look up what these words actually are in Tagalog.
Alrighty, so here's just a quick recap of everything we learned today. We went over a lot of information. First, we talked about what it means to conjugate a verb.
Then we talked about the five different types of Tagalog verbs, mag, ma, um, in, and i verbs. Then we talked about different Tagalog pronouns, so subject pronouns for actor-focused verbs, and then possessive pronouns for object-focused verbs. Then we learned the different conjugation patterns for all of these verbs and even did some practice questions.
And then we finished it off with a taglish tip, which I hope you can start using in a conversation. I encourage you to go back and re-watch this video if you would like, because I know it will take some time to kind of learn and understand the different patterns and how they are used throughout a conversation. Maybe go back and try doing the practice questions again. And then, of course. try using the Taglish tip that I taught you so that you can start using a little bit of Tagalog every day.
And if you would like some more Tagalog resources, please find me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. I post shorter videos throughout the week that will help you learn Tagalog on the go. Also check out my Stan store because sometimes I have group classes going or other resources on there that might be helpful to you. Lastly, feel free to check out my Amazon storefront because I have a whole list of Tagalog learning books that I think are very useful.
There are some in there that are very comprehensive with some practice quizzes and assessments. And then there are some that are quick and easy reads that will help you learn Tagalog very quickly. So feel free to check out those other resources that I put together for you.
Thank you so much for spending some time with me today. Keep an eye out for the next Tagalog lesson. where I will be teaching how to conjugate verbs in the past tense and the future tense.
And I think it will go a little bit quicker if you were able to follow along with this lesson, because now it's just a matter of learning a new pattern and learning new infixes and affixes. Wherever you are in your Tagalog learning journey, I am here to support you. So thank you so much. I'll see you in the next episode. Paalam!