Affixes play their part in the Filipino language by helping carry out the meaning of the

words they are attached to. There are many affixes used in Filipino attached either at
the beginning, a prefix, or at the end of a word, a suffix. And, of course, an affix
squeezing itself in the middle of the word is an infix.

Affixes in Filipino/Tagalog are called mga panlapi. They can turn a noun into an
adjective, indicate tenses of verbs, and help indicate the sentence's focus. Some affixes
show relationships when used with nouns and affixes indicating an action isn't
intentional. It sounds complicated, so let's unveil some of the most used
Filipino/Tagalog affixes, or mga panlapi, with easy-to-follow examples.

Tagalog affixes mostly used.

hubber

Ma

When attached to a noun, ma turns the noun into an adjective. It is also a prefix used in
some verbs to create the infinitive and future tense forms.
 Noun Ma + noun Adjective

lakas (strength) ma + lakas malakas (strong)

ganda (beauty) ma + ganda maganda (beautiful)

ingay (noise) ma + ingay maingay (noisy)

kulay (color) ma + kulay makulay (colorful)

dumi (dirt) ma + dumi madumi (dirty)

bango ma + bango mabango (fragrant)

(fragrance)

talino ma + talino matalino (intelligent)

(wit/intelligence)

"Ma" as a prefix forming infinitive and imperative, as well as future tense.

Infinitive &
Root Verb Imperative Future Tense With Ma-
Example

tulog (sleep) Matulog/Matulog Matutulog siya. (She's going to sleep.)

ka. (Go to sleep.)

ligo (bath) Maligo/Maligo Maliligo ako. (I'm going to take a bath.)

ka. (Take a bath.)

Most adjectives have the prefix ma-, but some don't have that prefix, such
as pogi  (handsome) and singkit  (having chinky eyes).

Pa

A prefix used to ask a favor without being in the form of a question, -pa allows you to
ask a favor or make a request subtly without sounding bossy or using the imperative
form.
 Pa +
Pa Meaning
Verb

pa pa + letting someone know you want to borrow their phone to send a text message
text =
patext

pa pa + when asking for a hitch

sakay =
pasakay

pa pa + when visiting a home and you want to join in a meal or asking for food
kain =
pakain

Pa is a prefix to some root verbs that indicates that the action is about to be done, or the
actor is just about to do the action. It also gives direction on how to specifically do a
certain action—patagilid (sideways) and patayo (in a standing position) are two
examples.

Pa +
Root
Root Meaning
Verb
Verb

alis paalis just about to go or leave

(leave)

sakay pasakay just about to ride

(ride)

punta papunta just about to go

(go)

Pa is also used as a contraction of paki or please.

Paabot/Pakiabot
 Kindly hand me over (item).
 Paabot ng baso. (Kindly hand me over the glass.)
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Pabasa/Pakibasa

 Please read/Kindly read

 Pabasa ng mensahe.  (Please read the message.)

Pasabi/Pakisabi

 Please tell/Kindly tell

 Pasabi kay auntie kilala ko si Angel. (Kindly tell auntie I know Angel.)

When not being used as a prefix, pa is used to indicate that the action is still "ongoing"
or "currently happening," along with a verb in the present tense.

In addition, it is also the Tagalog equivalent of the English "yet." More about using pa as
an untranslatable Tagalog word can be found in the video below.

Na

Na- can mean "now" or "already," but it is also used as a prefix to indicate that an action
is unintentional.
 Na +
Meaning/Unintentional
root Intentional
Action
verb

na + (something) was thrown away itinapon

tapon = and wasn't intentional
natapon

na + got wet (unintentional) binasa

basa =
nabasa

na + broke (unintentional) binasag

basag =
nabasag

na + when you sinalo

salo = (unexpectedly/unintentionally)
nasalo caught something (a ball, a
vase, a glass, a key etc.)

In and An

An -an suffix attached to a root word indicates the purpose of the word or what the word
is for. The suffix -in, when attached to root verbs, forms the imperative form or
command pertaining to the verb it was attached to. But this is not always the case. The
meaning of the word changes depending on which suffix is used.

Also, if a root verb ends in the letter o, the o needs to be changed to the letter u before
attaching the suffix. The same goes with nouns—the letter o needs to be changed to the
letter u when the following and last letter is a consonant.
 Root
Root Root Verb
Verb Example
Verb + An
+ In

kain kainan (a kainin Kainin mo 'yan. (Eat that.)

(eat) place (to
specifically eat)
for eating)

luto lutuan (a lutuin Gusto kong lutuin mo ito. (I want you to cook this.)
(cook) place or (to
appliance cook)
specifically
for
cooking)

In is also used as an infix to form the present tense of an in verb.

Root verb:  kain (eat)

Kinakain (eating)

Root verb:  sabi (say)

Sinasabi (saying)

Root verb:  gawa (do)

Ginagawa (doing)

Notice how the infix in squeezes itself between the first consonant and the vowel. If the
root verb starts in a vowel, infix in becomes a prefix.

Root verb:  isip  (think)

Iniisip (thinking)

"In" verbs are object-focused verbs.

When -an is used as a noun suffix, it creates a word with a new meaning—it often
denotes an area or place that specifically relates to the noun it is attached to.

Noun +
Noun Meaning
An

palay palayan rice field

(rice)

mais maisan corn field

(corn)

saging sagingan banana farm

(banana)

gulay gulayan vegetable garden/farm

(vegetable
)

manok manukan chicken/poultry farm

(chicken)

niyog niyugan coconut farm

(coconut)

damit damitan closet/a spot or place at home where the clothes are
(clothes)

Mag and Nag

Mag is used with some Tagalog verbs to form the infinitive, its future tense, and the
imperative (giving an order); nag is used in forming the present tense.
 Future
Root Infinitive &
Tense Present Tense Example
Verb Imperative Form
Example

luto Magluto/Magluto Magluluto Nagluluto ako. (I'm cooking.)

(cook) ka. (You cook) ako. (I'm
going to
cook.)

linis Maglinis/Maglinis Maglilinis Naglilinis ako. (I'm cleaning.)

(clean) ka. (You clean.) ako. (I'm
going to
clean.)

There are verbs where either the prefix  in- or infix um can be used, depending on the
focus of the sentence. Some verbs can only use one of the prefixes, such as the
infix in but never the prefixes mag- or um-. And there are verbs where mag- and um- can
be used but not the in infix.

How do you use the prefix mag- in verb conjugation? More on Tagalog verb formation is
explained in the video lesson below.

Prefix Mag + Nouns

The affix mag is also used as a prefix with nouns to show relationships.

Meanin
Noun Mag + Noun Meaning
g

kapitbahay neighbor magkapitbahay neighbors

Pinsan cousin magpinsan cousins

kaibigan friend magkaibigan friends

Ina mother mag-ina mother and daughter/son

For nouns starting with a vowel, such as ina, a hyphen is used between the affix and the
noun. (See the last example in the table above.) You can learn more about the
affix mag in the video below.

Um

Um is another infix used in forming the present and past tenses of Tagalog verbs. Like
mag, the infinitive form and imperative form are the same.

Root Infinitive & Present

Past Tense
Verb Imperative Tense

kain Kumain/Kumain Kumakain Kumain ako. (I ate.)

(eat) ka. (You eat.) ako. (I'm
eating.)

tawa Tumawa/ Tumatawa Tumawa siya. (He laughed.)

(laugh) Tumawa ka. (You siya. (He's
laugh.) laughing.)

The prefix "mag-" and infix "um" are both used with actor-focused verbs.

Pala

Pala- is a prefix that, when attached to a noun, implies that the word it is attached to is
frequently done or habitual, also creating an adjective.

Pala +
Word Meaning
Noun

pala + palaihi a person who tends to always use the restroom (urinate)
ihi
(urine)

pala + palangiti a person who always smiles

 Pala +
Word Meaning
Noun

ngiti
(smile)

pala + palatawa a person who always laughs

tawa
(laugh)

pala + palakaibigan friendly

kaibiga
n
(friend)

pala + palabiro a joker; a person who always have a joke to tell

biro
(joke)

pala + palautang a person who has the habit of asking to be lent money
utang
(debt)

Using the word by itself and not being used as an affix can mean pala (shovel).
Intonation matters as it can mean something else as well.

Pala is also used to express being surprised by information different from what the
speaker is expecting.

Mala

Mala- is a prefix used with nouns to make a description. Whatever is being described
has the characteristic, likeness, or resemblance of the noun that the prefix is attached
to.
 Mala +
Noun Meaning
Noun

anghel malaanghel angelic

(angel)

palasyo malapalasyo a home large enough to be a palace/a home that is similar to a palace
(palace)

hayop malahayop animal-like

(animal)

ibon malaibon bird-like

(bird)

Pang

Pang- is a prefix used with items. Pang- indicates that the use of a specific item is
specifically for the noun pang- is attached to.

Pang +
Item Meaning
Noun

sabon pangkamay Soap for the hand/Hand soap.

(soap
)

sabon pangligo Soap for taking a bath/Bath soap.

(soap
)

As to how to know which affixes to use with Tagalog verbs, there's no clear rule on that.
The best course of action is to familiarize yourself with the verbs, starting with the most
commonly used ones.