Tagalog pronouns: the full chart
21 cells. Three forms of every pronoun, chosen the same way Tagalog chooses between ang, ng, sa, plus the two different words for we.
The grid
| Who | angdoing it | ngwhose it is | sato or for |
|---|---|---|---|
| I / me | akoPlay | koPlay | akinPlay |
| you, one person | ikaw / kaPlay | moPlay | iyoPlay |
| he / she | siyaPlay | niyaPlay | kaniyaPlay |
| we, counting you | tayoPlay | natinPlay | atinPlay |
| we, not counting you | kamiPlay | naminPlay | aminPlay |
| you, several people (or one person, politely) | kayoPlay | ninyoPlay | inyoPlay |
| they | silaPlay | nilaPlay | kanilaPlay |
There are recordings on this page. 21 of them are a synthetic fil-PH voice. A learner is owed the knowledge that the thing they are copying is not always a person; human recordings replace the synthetic ones from the top of the list down.
The three columns are the same three cases as the marker chart, which is the point: once you know why a sentence wants ng rather than ang, you already know which column of this grid to reach into.
The two words for we
Tagalog has two words for we. Use tayo when the person you are talking to is included: tayo na to a friend means let's go, you and me. Use kami when they are not: kami na means we are leaving and you are not coming.
English has no way to make this distinction and no habit of noticing it, so it is the mistake every learner makes and keeps making. Drill it until it is automatic: tayo Play includes the person you are talking to, kami Play does not.
Politeness lives in this chart too
The row marked you, several people (or one person, politely) is the plural you, and it does a second job: addressing one person with kayo Play rather than ikaw / ka Play is a step up in respect. Older people, strangers, anybody serving you. It costs nothing to use and it is noticed when it is missing.
Every cell in a sentence
The grid is a lookup table until you have heard each cell in use. All 21 of them:
| What you mean | Which form |
|---|---|
| I am tired | akoPlay |
| my book | koPlay |
| give it to me | akinPlay |
| you are tired | ikaw / kaPlay |
| your book | moPlay |
| give it to you | iyoPlay |
| he is tired | siyaPlay |
| his book | niyaPlay |
| give it to him | kaniyaPlay |
| we are tired (you too) | tayoPlay |
| our book (yours too) | natinPlay |
| give it to us (you too) | atinPlay |
| we are tired (not you) | kamiPlay |
| our book (not yours) | naminPlay |
| give it to us (not you) | aminPlay |
| you are tired (all of you) | kayoPlay |
| your book (all of you) | ninyoPlay |
| give it to you (all of you) | inyoPlay |
| they are tired | silaPlay |
| their book | nilaPlay |
| give it to them | kanilaPlay |
The frequency ordering on this site is an informed estimate, not a corpus count. There is no published frequency count for conversational Tagalog, so it prints a rank and never a percentage. When a real count exists, the order changes and this line changes with it.
It teaches Tagalog as spoken around Manila, which is not the same thing as Filipino and is not the whole country. Cebuano and Ilocano are different languages, not accents.
Nothing is drilled until a native speaker has checked it. What has been checked, by whom, and what is still owed is written down on the sources page.
- Phrase lookupSearch a word, see what lives next to it.
- Why Duolingo has no TagalogThe real reason, and what to do instead.
- Basic Tagalog phrasesThe ones you will actually hear, in frequency order, with audio.
- All the phrasesThe whole list this app drills, on one page.
- ang, ng, saNine cells that decide the shape of every Tagalog sentence.
- Pronunciation and stressWhy buhay and buhay are different words, and how to hear it.
- Where this comes fromEvery source, every licence, and who checked the Tagalog.
- Tagalog vs FilipinoDifferent names, mostly the same language. What actually differs.
- Is Tagalog hard?Honest answer: the grammar is strange, the spelling is free.
- Tagalog greetingsHello, good morning, and what you say back.
- Hello in TagalogKumusta, and the formal version, with audio.
- Thank you in TagalogSalamat, salamat po, and the reply.
- Po and opoThe respect particle, and the mistake foreigners make with it.
- Mahal kitaI love you, and the word that also means expensive.
- Tagalog and SpanishThousands of shared words, and not one shared grammar rule.
- Is Tagalog tonal?No. But stress changes meaning, which trips people the same way.
- Tagalog for travelThe jeepney word, the haggling word, and where the bathroom is.
- Learn Tagalog freeWhat is actually free, what is a trial, and where to start.
- Tagalog numbersTwo whole systems, and when each one is used.