Tagalog Verbs Used as Nouns and Their Objects

The object of a verb that is used as a noun (p. 85) may be expressed as a Ng phrase (p. 59) or a Sa phrase (p. 59). Examples:

ang kumain ng mangga	the one who ate a/the mango
ang kumain sa mangga	the one who ate the mango
ang kumain nito	the one who ate this
ang kumain dito	the one who ate this (can also be understood as the one who ate here)

Exception: If the object of a verb that is used as a noun is a personal name* or a personal pronoun, it can only be expressed as a Sa phrase.

ang nakakita’ kay Grace	the one who saw Grace
ang nakakita’ sa kanya	the one who saw him/her

* Personal names are names that refer to specific persons, animals, cartoon characters or anything with a personality.