Tagalog Consonants

The following consonants are used in native Tagalog words.

consonant	corresponding sound in English
b	but
d	do
g	go
h	ham
k	cat
l	left
m	man
n	no
ng	ringing [IPA symbol: ŋ]
p	tip
r	run
s	sea
t	store
w	we
y	yes

Note:

1. /k/, /p/ and /t/ are not aspirated, that is, there is no puff of air after them.

To hear the difference between aspirated and unaspirated sounds, say kill and skill out loud. In most dialects of English, /k/ is aspirated in kill and unaspirated in skill. Similarly, /p/ and /t/ are aspirated in pill and till but not in spill and still.

2. /ng/ can also be found at the beginning of a word in Tagalog (e.g. ngayon – today, now). You can practise the initial /ng/ sound by saying ringing, ri…nging.

Please respect copyright. Learn more

Contents | Detailed Contents | Up ▲

See notes on Terminology and Pronunciation Marks

This grammar guide is part of the Learning Tagalog Course.
Do you want to speak Tagalog fluently?

Try the course