Tagalog Kita

When—

  • the speaker is the non-POD doer (p. 52) of the action (ko), and
  • the listener is the POD (p. 30) and the object of the action (ka),

the combination ko–ka (I as doer–you as object) is replaced by kita.

Examples:

Nakita’ kita.

I saw you.

Lit. You were seen by me.

Mahal kita.

I love you.

Lit. You are loved by me.

Compare with:

Nakita’ ko si Fred.

I saw Fred.

Lit. Fred was seen by me.

Nakita’ ko siya.

I saw him/her.

Lit. He/she was seen by me.

Mahal ko si Fred.

I love Fred.

Lit. Fred is loved by me.

Mahal ko siya.

I love him/her.

Lit. He/she is loved by me.

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Tagalog grammar book

From Essential Tagalog Grammar by Fiona De Vos
Part of Learning Tagalog: Fluency Made Fast and Easy
Want to speak Tagalog fluently? Learn more

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