10 A unified account of the Tagalog verb

and adjective affix systems

RESTY M. CENA

1 Adjective as a Word Category in Tagalog

The status of adjective as a distinct word class has been a subject of discussion in many
languages (for Austronesian languages, see for example Dixon (1982, 2004), and Pearson
(2010)). The matter has not received wide attention among Tagalog linguists. The reason
likely has to do with the fact that Tagalog adjectives—in contrast with verbs—clearly
undergo different morphosyntactic processes. Below we show some processes that apply to
adjectives but not to verbs. , 1 2

First, the superlative affix pinaka- takes adjective roots and stems, but not verb roots and
stems.

(1) Adjective Verb

a. pinaka-sikat b. *pinaka-takbo
DEG.SUPER-buy DEG.SUPER-run
‘most popular’

(2) a. pinaka-ma-bait b. *pinaka-t-um-akbo

DEG.SUPER-ADJ-kind DEG.SUPER-ASP.PERF-run
‘kindest’

1
We prefer to use our data set, rather than the data in de Guzman (1996:311), where she also concluded that
adjective forms “still comprise a distinctive paradigm.”
2
Abbreviations used in this paper:
3pl = third person, plural contemp = contemplated aspect obj = objective voice, affix, or role
abs = absolutive cvr = consonant-vowel redup perf = perfective aspect
accom = accomplish mode deg = degree pred = predicate
adj = adjective; adjectivalizing affix delib = deliberate mode pwr = partial word redup
agt = agentive voice, affix, or role det = determiner rwr = root-word redup
appl = applicative voice, affix, or role dwr = derived word redup super = superlative degree
apt = aptative fin = the aspect feature ‘finished’ V = verb
asp = aspect gen = genitive vce = voice
AspP = aspect phrase intense = intensive degree vP = small VP
beg = the aspect feature ‘begun’ ip = inflection phrase vp = verb phrase
cause = causative mode lnk = linker v = small verb


Asia-Pacific Linguistics, 2014.
Copyright held by the authors, released under Creative Commons Attribution Licence (CC BY 4.0). 197

198 Resty M. Cena

Similarly the intensive affix napaka- takes adjective roots and stems, but not verb roots
and stems.

(3) Adjective Verb

a. napaka-bait b. *napaka-takbo
DEG.INTENSE-kind DEG.INTENSE-run
‘very kind’

(4) a. napaka-ma-pag-bigay --
DEG.INTENSE-ADJ-MODE.DELIB-give
‘very giving (of oneself)’

The special verb maging ‘to be, to become’ takes as its complement an adjective (or
noun) stem but not a verb stem.

(5) a. naging ma-bait b. *naging t-um-akbo

ASP.PERF-become ADJ-kind ASP.PERF-become ASP.PERF-run
‘became kind’

Baker’s (2005) third test for adjectivehood—that adjectives serve as resultative

predicates—holds as well for Tagalog. Verbs don’t serve as resultative predicates.

(6) p-in-a-laki-ng ma-bait (predicate)

MODE.CAUSE-ASP.PERF-grow-LNK ADJ-kind
‘reared/raised (to be) kind’

The following two derivations rely on derived verb and adjective forms as input. The
first example shows a derivation through stress shift from a fully formed derived verb
(sibak-ín) into an adjective (síbāk-in). The patient semantics of the derived adjective came
from the derived verb because the objective voice affix that gives rise to patient semantics
in the adjective form can only be inserted initially into a verb as part of voice morphology.

(7) sibák (root) > sibak-ín (V) > síbāk-in (ADJ)

chop chop-VCE.OBJ chop- ROLE.OBJ
‘to chop up’ ‘ready to be chopped up’

In the example below the derivation is from a fully formed adjective stem (ma-samá`)
into a verb (m-in-a-samá`; the grave accent represents the glottal stop).

(8) samá` (root) > ma-samá` (ADJ) > m-in-a-samá-ø-` (V)

bad ADJ-bad ASP.PERF-bad-VCE.OBJ
‘bad’ “to attribute the quality ‘bad’”
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 199

But whether adjectives are a distinct word class at the level of verbs, nouns,
prepositions , and the like, or whether adjectives and verbs are subclasses under a super
3

category, they undergo distinct morphosyntactic processes from verbs. We want to show
that at an abstract level, such seemingly category-defining processes have the same
morphosyntactic functions.

2 Verb affixation
Tagalog verbs carry voice and aspect affixes. These subcategories do not, however,
account for all of the affixes that occur in many derived verbs. Occasionally, when
providing the significance of a cluster of affixes, mention is made of “mode” but mode as a
true subcategory of verbs never attracted mainstream attention. Rather, descriptive work on
the verb affix system of Tagalog inevitably relies on listing affix combinations that include
voice-mode hybrids. Schachter & Otanes (1972) identified 162 simple affixes and complex
voice-mode affixes; examples are shown below. The affix ipa-, for example, consists of the
applicative voice affix i- and the causative affix pa-, and ipa- itself occurs in combination
with other affixes, for example, with the bound requestive affix -ki-as in ipaki-, or the
bound deliberative affix -ag- as in ipa+ag>ipag-.

Verb affixes

i-, -in-, -um-, -an, -in, pa-, ipa-, ipag-, ipang-, pa-…-an, pag-…-an, pang-…-an, ka-…-
an, pang-…in, mag-, ma-, mang-, maka-, ika-, ipaki-, ipakipag-, ikapag-, ikapagpa-,
ikapang-, ikapapang-, ipagpa-, ipapang-, ma...-an, makapag-, makapagpa-,
makapagpaka-, makapag-...-um-, makapang-, maki-, makipag-, makipagpa-, makipang-
…

As the (incomplete) list above shows, simple affixes like i-, pa-,-ka-, -ag-, -ang-, ma-
and others occur in many combinations. Thus -ag- is a part of pag- and mag-, and pag- in
turn occurs in ipag-, makipag-, ipakipag-, and so forth, suggesting a potentially unfactored
category. Wolfenden (1961) classified some of these segments under mode; however, he
also maintained a set of voice-mode combinations4. The present study completely separates
voice and mode. Also contributing to the perceived complexity of the verbal affix system
are voice-aspect portmanteau units, for example, the infix -um- is treated as a marker of
both the agent voice and the initiated aspect; we will show that these forms serve solely as
aspect markers. With three independent categories—voice, aspect, and mode—scaffolding
the verb affix system, a clean system emerges.

3
Gil (1995) downplayed the role of morphology in determining word classes: “…since in Tagalog there are
no distinct syntactic categories, morphological word classes are partly arbitrary and partly motivated by
semantic factors” (p. 81).
4
Wolfenden’s (1961) five mode affixes are ø (indicative), ka- (inversive, reciprocal), pa- (injunctive),
pang- (iterative, habitual) and pag- (comprehensive). The five voice-modes are objective (-in), locative (-
an), implicative (i-), aptative (-a-), and subjective, which has three forms: -ag- (comprehensive), -um-
(casual), and -ang- (iterative, habitual).




200 Resty M. Cena

2.1 Voice and aspect
Voice refers to the affix in the verb that imposes a thematic role reading on the subject;
‘subject’ here refers to the absolutive nominal. For example, the suffix -in in bilihin is
patient voice affix, which expects that the absolutively marked argument satisfies a patient,
theme, or goal reading. The following table shows the standard analysis of Tagalog voice
(Schachter & Otanes 1972, Ramos 1971).

Tagalog voice

Voice affixes Roles of the subject nominal Cover term

-um- agent, experiencer, force
ma-5, mag-, mang- agent agentive, actor
-in patient, theme, goal objective, object
-an location, directional (source, goal) locative
i- theme, benefactor, instrument, reason applicative

As can be seen, the agentive voice affixes are -um-, ma-, mag-, and mang-. These voice
affixes are also said to mark the initiation component of aspect. Initiation is indicated as
[±beg(un)], as shown in the table below. The second component of aspect is completion,
marked as [±fin(ished)] and expressed as CVR (reduplication of the first CV of the stem).
Presence of CVR means the action is finished, and its absence indicates the action is
unfinished.

Tagalog aspect

Aspect markers in the verb

Aspect name Nasal affixplusCV-reduplication of stem
Perfective -um-, -in-, na-, nag-, nang- [+beg] + ø (no CVR) [+fin]
Imperfective -um-, -in-, na-, nag-, nang- [+beg] + CVR [-fin]
Contemplative ø [-beg] + CVR [-fin]

For example:

(9) B-um-ibili si Pao ng niyog.

ASP.[+BEG]-ASP.[-FIN]-buy DET.ABS Pao DET.OBJ coconut
‘Pao is selling (some) coconuts.’

The nasal affixes occur in agentive voice forms, with the exception of the infix -in-,
which occurs in non-agentive verb forms (i.e., the objective, locative, and applicative
forms), as in b-in-ili ‘was bought’. We seize this opportunity to propose that the nasal
affixes have nothing to do with voice.
We propose that the nasal affixes, represented as the morpheme m-,expresses aspect,
where m-, with allomorph -um-, is [-beg] and n-, with allomorph -in-, is [+beg], as shown

5
This refers to the ma- actor focus affix (Schachter & Otanes 1972:288), for example, maligo ‘bathe’,
matuto ‘learn’, makinig ‘listen’.
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 201

in the following table. The underlined segments in ma-, mag-, and mang- we treat as part of
the stem, as will be discussed shortly.

Revised analysis of aspect affixation

Aspect markers
Nasal affix plusCVR of stem Example: Root word bili ‘buy’
Aspect (Non-agentive verbs) Objective Locative Applicative
Command/infinitive ø [-beg] + ø [-fin] bilih-in bilih-an i-bili
Perfective (-i)n- [+beg] + ø [+fin] b-in-ili b-in-ilh-an i-b-in-ili
Imperfective (-i)n- [+beg] + CVR [-fin] b-in-i-bili b-in-i-bilh-an i-b-in-i-bili
Contemplative ø [-beg] + CVR [-fin] bi-bilihin bi-bilh-an i-bi-bili

Aspect(Agentivem-verbs)Example: Root word bili ‘sell’

Command/infinitive (-u)m- [-beg] + ø [-fin] m-ag-bili
Perfective (-i)n- [+beg] + ø [+fin] n-ag-bili
Imperfective (-i)n- [+beg] + CVR [-fin] n-ag-bi-bili
Contemplative (-u)m- [-beg] + CVR [-fin] m-ag-bi-bili

Aspect(Agentive -um-verbs)Example: Root word bili ‘buy’

Command/infinitive (-u)m-, ø [-beg] + ø [-fin] b-um-ili, bili
Perfective (-u)m- [+beg] + ø [+fin] b-um-ili
Imperfective (-u)m- [+beg] + CVR [-fin] b-um-i-bili
Contemplative ø [-beg] + CVR [-fin] bi-bili

The aspect paradigm for non-agentive verbs and the active mag-verbs obey the pattern
for using the nasal affix and CVR to express the different aspect instances. The active-um-
verbs, on the other hand, disobey the alternation m-/n- ([-beg]/[+beg]) in that the forms b-
um-li ‘buy, bought’ and b-um-i-bili ‘is/was buying’ both express initiated action but yet are
marked for -um-. These two exceptional forms prevent the construction of a perfect
paradigm for aspect in -um-verbs with respect to initiation. This imperfection does not
obscure the overall tendency to use the nasal affix as aspect marker.
With no overt marker, the active voice is assigned the null voice form6. The voice affixes
and their corresponding roles are shown below.

Revised list of voice affixes

Voice affixes Voice and role labels Semantic roles of subjects

ø agent, agentive agent, experiencer, force
-in object, objective patient, theme, goal
-an location location, directional (source, goal)
i- applicative theme, benefactor, instrument, reason

6
The null verb voice affix is of course to be distinguished from the null form of the objective voice affix -in
in the perfective and imperfective aspect, for example: b-in-ili-ø ‘was bought’, b-in-i-bili-ø ‘is/was being
bought’.




202 Resty M. Cena

We assume that the forms -um- and m- are allomorphs of the nasal affix. They are
attached to the first vowel of the root or stem, likely in observance of the Sonority
Hierarchy, as shown below. Parallel processes apply to (-i)n-.

Aspect Stem (-u)m-+Stem

(10) -um- biyak b-um-iyak
(11) m- -agbiyak m-agbiyak

So far, we have simplified the inventory of voice and aspect affixes into two non-
overlapping categories. We will now propose that the rest of the affixes in derived verbs
belong to a third category: mode.

2.2 Mode
Verb mode relates to the manner of the action. In the first example below, mang-(k)uha,
qualifies the action with the meaning of, roughly, ‘extensive, intensive.’ The affix -ang-
represents this comprehensive action. The second form has no pronunceable mode
representation; this is the basic, ‘casual’ mode (Wolfenden 1961).

Voice Aspect Mode Root Derived word

(12) ø m- -ang- kuha ‘get, take’ > m-ang-uha
(13) ø -um- ø kuha‘get, take’ > k-um-uha

In the pair below, the affix -ag- in m-ag-biyak calls for deliberateness in the action, as
compared to the casual b-um-iyak “to split open”.

Voice Aspect Mode Root Derived word

(14) ø -um- ø biyak ‘split open’ > b-um-iyak
(15) ø m- -ag- biyak ‘split open’ > m-ag-biyak

The following is a list of mode affixes.

Mode affixes

Affixes Significance Examples Root

ø casual ø-b-um-ili, ø-b-in-ili bili ‘buy’
-a(ka)-7 stative m-a-tulog tulog ‘sleep’
accomplish (possibility, m-a-bilí, m-a-kúha8 bilí ‘buy’, kúha ‘get’
aptative, accidental/non- ma-ka-kuha
volitional)
-ag- deliberate ipa-ag-bili bili ‘sell’
m-ag-bigay bigay ‘give’

7
The enclosing hyphens in this and other similarly marked affixes in the list indicate that they are bound
prefixes, not that they are infixes, of which there are only two in the language: -um- and -in-.
8
‘Accomplish’ mode may also be expressed with stress shift, as shown in the continuatation of the table
below.
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 203

comprehensive nagtawan-an tawa ‘laugh’
-an9 reciprocal nagsuntuk-an suntok ‘hit with fist’
extensive ipagpasikat-an sikat ‘shine’
-ang- extensive across time(habitual, ipa-ang-tulog tulog ‘sleep’
reservational, instrumental);
or intensive in effort m-ang-isda isda ‘fish’
-ka- reason, motivation i-ka-bili bili ‘buy’
unexpected nag-ka-sakit sakit ‘ill’
-kang(da)- out of control mag-kangda-hulog hulog ‘fall down’
-ki- deferential, requestive pa-ki-kuha kuha ‘get, take’
-nga-10 simultaneous na-nga-ag11-uwian uwi ‘go home’
pa- injunctive, causative pa-kuha kuha ‘get, take’
‘caused by circumstances’ na-pa-iyak iyak ‘cry’
-sa- directional pa-sa-Maynila sa-Manila ‘to Manila’
-si-12 one by one, individually mag-si-kuha kuha ‘get, take’
-ti- resignedly, self-assistive magpa-ti-hulog hulog ‘drop’
-um-13 Energetic magt-um-akbo takbo ‘run’

Stress shift with the -ag- mode affix expresses intensiveness, as in the example below.
Stress shift with the -a- mode affix, which is accompanied by compensatory length of the
previously stressed vowel, expresses the ‘accomplish’ mode, as shown in the second row.
These stress-shifted accomplish forms are synonymous with the regular forms.

-ag-+Stress Shift intensive m-ag-kaín káin ‘eat’

-a-+Stress Shift accomplish (possibility, m-á-bilī, m-á-kūha bilí ‘buy’, kúha ‘get’
aptative, accidental/non-
volitional)

Some forms of eduplication also express mode.

Affixes Significance Examples Root

DWr conditional bumiling-bumili bili ‘buy’
PWr moderative mabusi-busisi busisi ‘annoy, disturb’
disapprobational bumili-bili bili ‘buy’
occasional bali-balitaan balita ‘news’
RWr continuative salita nang salita salita ‘speak’
DWr +Stress Shift ‘able to with much effort’ mábiling-mábili bili ‘buy’
PWr + Stress Shift regrettably mábili-bili bilí ‘buy’

9
If the suffix -an in the reciprocal naggupit-an “cut each other’s hair” is the mode affix, what is the
reciprocal form’s voice affix? One point of view is to treat -an as a simplification of the complex suffix -
anan in the putative form *naggupit-an-an > naggupitan, where the first -an is mode and the second is
voice. This will be the only instance where mode occurs in suffix position. Alternatively, the reciprocal
sentence may be a conflation of two instances of the locative-directional sentence, for example: Ginupitan
ni Ben si Og at Ginupitan ni Og si Ben ‘Ben cut Og’s hair and Og cut Ben’s hair’>Naggupitan sina Ben at
Og ‘Ben and Og cut each other’s hair’ where the reciprocity relation is a constructional meaning.
10
The affix -nga- is traditionally treated as a plural marker in the verb.
11
-nga- + -ag- > -ngag-
12
The affix -si- is traditionally treated as a plural marker in the verb.
13
An interesting form, in that the normally aspect affix -um- serves as a mode affix.




204 Resty M. Cena

Abbreviations: DWR = derived word reduplication, PWR = partial word reduplication, RWR = root word
reduplication. Partial word reduplication applies on derived words and it duplicates the first CVCV of the
root, which may be a partial of the root, as in bali-balitaan, or the full root, as in biling-bili.

As shown, mode affixes combine to form complex derived forms; the combinations and
the order of affixes are still not fully determined. Modes combine selectively with
particular verb root classes, again in ways that have not yet been worked out. Mode
produces lexemes, in contrast to voice and aspect, which produce word-forms.

2.3 Components of derived verbs

Again, here are the components of derived verbs.

Voice Aspect Mode Root

{ø, m-+ CVR {ø, -a-, pa-, -ag-, -an,-ang-, -ka-, -ki-, - bili ‘buy’,
-in, ti, -sa-, -kang(da)-, -si-,… } etc.
-an,
i-}

The voice affixes -in and -an are suffixes. The applicative voice affix i- occupies a
prefix position. For example:

(16) i-bili
VCE.APPL-buy
‘to buy’

(17) i-k-in-a-bili
VCE.APPL-ASP.[+BEG]-MODE.REASON-buy
“reason-‘ed’ to have bought”

The applicative voice i- allows the accomplish mode affix -a- to its left (the only voice affix
so allowed), to which in turn aspect m- attaches, as shown in (18)..The applicative voice
undergoes CVR to express incompleted aspect, as in (19).

(18) n-a-i-pa-bili
ASP.[+BEG]-MODE.ACCOM-ASP.[+FIN]-VCE.APPL-MODE.CAUSE-bili
‘was able to have caused (x) to buy (y)’

(19) n-a-i-i-pa-bili
ASP.[+BEG]-MODE.ACCOM-ASP.[-FIN]-VCE.APPL- MODE.CAUSE-bili
‘is being able to cause (x) to buy (y)’

Voice, Aspect, and Mode are heads of functional projections. Mode occupies the head
position of the shell vP (following Larson 1988). For example:
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 205

(20) [vP’ vMode VP]

There can be more than one vP, thus:

(21) [vP’ vMode [vP’ vMode VP]]

vP is merged under AspP’, and AspP’ is a component of IP, thus (in X-bar notation; see
Jackendoff 1977, Chomsky 1970):

(22) i-pa-pa-ag-bili
VCE.APPL-ASP.CONTEMP-MODE.CAUSE-MODE.DELIB-bili
‘will be caused to be bought’

The pa- in pa-ag- (>pag) is an internal (or ‘weak’) causative, which is not a valence-
increasing mode. The external (‘strong’) causative pa-, in contrast, increases valence; it
takes an agent nominal argument, for example:

(23) N-a-pa-uwi
ASP.[+BEG].ASP.[+FIN].MODE.ACCOM-MODE.CAUSE.come/go.home

ni Ampi si Ben.
DET.GEN.AGT Ampi DET.ABS.PAT Ben
‘Ampi was able to cause Ben to come home.’

Below is a complex derived word on the root sigaw ‘shout’. The abbreviations A, M, R,
and V refer to aspect, mode, root, and voice (in this gloss only), respectively. The -um-
infix in the stem s-um-igaw, normally an aspect affix, appears to have been ‘modalized’
and given the meaning of ‘exerting effort or energy’.

(24) n a i i ka pa ki pa ag s um igaw an
A M A V M M M M M M Root M
‘is being able to socially comprehensively shout off energetically’

Other roots that may be so derived are utot ‘fart’, ire ‘groan’, suka ‘throw up’, iyak ‘cry’,
dighay ‘belch’, and, indeed, roots that in the context of the utterance can be construed to
denote an activity that is performed socially and in an energetic matter!
In summary, we have simplified the nasal affixes -um-, ma-, mag-, mang- and -in- into
one form: m-, designated it as the initiation marker of aspect, and assigned -a-, -ag- and -
ang- to mode. We suggested that the actor voice affix takes the null variant form,
confirmed Wolfenden’s analysis of mode as an independent subcategory, separated mode
from voice-mode hybrids, and confined verb lexeme formation in mode derivation. We
noted that it has not yet been worked out which root classes take which mode affixes. We
also showed that a derived verb may have more than one mode affix, but that the allowable

206 Resty M. Cena

combination of modes and their order with respect to one another have not yet been
mapped out.
What are the functions of verb affixation? First, the existential function: a way of
creating verbs; this is accomplished by the affix voice. Then an anchoring function which
fixes the semantic role of the subject, also performed by the affix voice; a duration
function, which describes the extent of the action across time, expressed as aspect, and
finally a qualifying function, expressed as manner or mode of the action. We will show that
adjective affixation can be similarly analyzed.

3 Adjectives
Derived adjectives consist of a word category-forming affix and affixes that elaborate on
the quality expressed in the root, such as plurality, degree, number and, we will propose,
mode, thus:

The affix ma- is the major adjectivilizer. Ma- requires an absolutive/subject, thus:

(25) Ma-bait si Ben.

ADJ-kind DET.ABS-Ben
‘Ben is kind.’

A number of derived adjectives do not show the ma- prefix. They carry affixes that are
subcategories of the adjective class, enough credential to appear in adjective positions. For
example, the affix ka- in (a) below is a degree affix and sing- in (b) is a comparative affix.
Stress shift also creates an adjective; thus in (c), gápāsin ‘ready for harvest’ is converted
from the verb gapásin ‘to harvest’ through stress shift and compensatory length.

(26) a. Ka-bait ni Ben.

DEG.INTENSE-kind DET.GEN Ben
‘Ben is very kind.’

b. Ka-sing-bait ni Ben si Pao.

ADJ-DEG.INTENSE-DEG.COMPARE-kind DET.GEN Ben DET.ABS Pao
‘Pao is as kind as Ben.’

c. Gápas-in na ang palay.

harvest-MODE ADV DET.ABS rice
‘The rice is ready to harvest.’

Notice the parallel construction between derived verbs and derived adjectives in terms of
the requirement for a subject. Thus the presence of the category-forming affix null voice
affix ø and adjectivalizer ma- in (28-29) is accompanied by a subject.
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 207

Verb voice requires a subject

(27) B-um-ait-ø si Ben.
ASP.PERF-kind-VOICE.AGT DET.ABS Ben
‘Ben became kind.’

Adjectivalizer ma- requires a subject

(28) Ma-bait si Ben.
ADJ-kind DET.ABS Ben
‘Ben is kind.’

The absence of the word category markers of voice and adjectivalizer allows
constructions unmarked for subject, thus:

(29) Ka-u-uwi 14
nila.
ASP.[+BEG]-ASP.CVR -arrive.home 3PL.GEN
‘They just got home.’

(30) Ka-bait nila.

DEG.INTENSE-kind 3PL.GEN
‘They are very kind.’

But mere absence of the adjectivalizer ma-does not guarantee a subjectless construction.
In comparative constructions, as in (27b) above, the comparee is subject, and in adjective
predicates derived from verbal constructions via stress shift, as in (27c), the subject of the
verbal construction is carried over.
When both ma- and ka- appear in the same adjective derivation, the first affix in
sequence controls subjecthood. If ma- precedes ka-, as in (32) below, a subject is required.
Otherwise, no subject is required, as in (33).

(31) Ma-ka-ama si Ben.

ADJ-MODE-father DET.ABS Ben
‘Ben is close to his father.’

(32) Ka-ma-pag-mahal ni Ben
DEG.INTENSE.-ADJ-MODE-love DET.GEN-Ben
‘Ben is very loving.’

Plurality is expressed using CVR, though its presence is optional.

14
ka-u-uwi ‘just got home’ is an example of the so-called recent-perfective verb form (Schachter & Otanes
1972). This is a construction that is highly irregular. The form is used to express completed action, but its
use of CVR formally marks its action as incompleted. A completed action is additionaly marked by the
begun affix (n-), but this affix is missing in this form. ka- hardly qualifies as an aspect affix. There is no
voice nor mode marker. We make a distinction between the null voice allomorph in verb forms with fully
formed aspect, that requires a subject (as in bumili-ø), and its absence in the exceptional recent-perfective
form, which does not require a subject.




208 Resty M. Cena

(33) Ma-(ba)-bait sila.

ADJ-(CVR)-kind 3PL.ABS-they
‘They are kind.’

Degree indicates extent of the quality expressed in the root, as illustrated in the
following table.

Adjective Degrees

moderative /dimunitive mabait-bait ‘sort of kind’

positive mabait ‘kind’
equal degree (magka)singbait ‘as kind as’
unequal degree mas mabait kaysa ‘kinder than’
intensive (napa)kabait ‘very kind’
superlative pinakamabait ‘kindest’

A set of affixes elaborates on the quality expressed in the root; we call these mode
affixes. (P- in pag- and pang- is unaccounted for.)

Mode Affixes

Affixes Significance Example Root

-al- ‘partaking of the nature of’ malatenga teynga ‘ear’
-ka- ‘favoring, leaning towards’ maka-ama ama ‘father’
ka- ‘same as’ kamata mata ‘eye’
-ag- ‘intensively’ mapagmahal mahal ‘love’
-ang- ‘habitually’ mapanghiram hiram ‘borrow’
stress shift + -in ‘moderatively’, ‘tending to’ mahíyāin hiyá ‘shy’
stress shift + -an ‘intensively’, málakāsan, malakás ‘strong’,
‘intensively used for’ gulayán gulay ‘vegetable’
(gang)ga- ‘same dimension as’ gamunggo munggo ‘mongo’
pa- ‘purposely for’ padamit damit ‘cloth’

Stress shift on verbs suffixed with -in produces adjectives. For example:

(34) gápas + in > gapás-in (V) > gápās-in (A)

‘harvest’ ‘to harvest’ ‘ready to be harvested’

Some forms of reduplication indicate mode:

Significance Example Root

DWr ‘very’ masaganang-masagana sagana ‘abundant’
‘very abundant’
RWr ‘very’ saganang-sagana sagana ‘abundant’
‘very abundant’
biling-bili bili ‘buy’
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 209

‘eager to buy’
PWr ‘moderately’ masaga-sagana sagana ‘abundant’
‘moderately abundant’ bili ‘buy’
mabili-bili
‘moderately saleable’
Abbreviations: DWR = full derived word reduplication, reduplication, RWR = full root word reduplication,
PWR = partial word reduplication.

3.1 Structure of the derived adjective

Following our analysis of verb affixes as heads of functional projections, we treat the
adjectivalizer, mode, number, and degree affixes as heads of their own projections. As with
verb mode, which is a small verb and occupies the head of a vP position, adjective mode is
the head of a small adjective aP. Likewise, in simple derived adjectives, as in simple
derived verbs, mode is null, thus:

(35) ma-ø-bilis
ADJ-MODE.ø-fast
‘fast’
IP

DP

I aP
ma-
a AP
ø

A DP
bilis

Below is an example of an adjective with a non-null mode, in this case, the intensive
mode -an:

210 Resty M. Cena

(36) ma-bilis-an
ADJ-fast-MODE.INTENSE
‘intensified fast pace’

IP

DP

I aP
ma-
a AP
-an

A DP
bilis

All the adjective affix components (adjectivalizer, mode, number, and degree affixes)
are shown in the following form.

(37) ma-ag-ka-ka-sing-bait
ADJ-COMPREHENSIVE-NBR.[PLURAL]-DEG.INTENSE-kind
‘equally kind’

IP

DP

I aP
ma-

a NbrP
-ag-
Nbr DegreeP
ka-

Degree AP
kasing
A DP
bait

Below is a summary of the characteristics of verb and adjective affixation.

Verbs Adjectives
(i) Voice selects for subjects Adjectivalizer ma- selects for subjects
Bilih-in mo ang basi. Ma-bait si Ben.
(ii) Voiceless verbs are subjectless Null adjectivalizer requires no subject
Katatapos-øni Ben. ø-Kabait ni Ben.
(iii) Verb subcategories: Adjective subcategories:
mode, aspect, voice mode, number, degree
 A unified account of the Tagalog verb and adjective affix systems 211

(iv) Verb mode adds adverb-like property to Adjective mode adds adverb-like property to
action quality
(v) Verb mode is derivational, aspect and Adjective mode is derivational, number and
voice are inflectional degree are inflectional

On the last point above, we realize that there has been a discussion on whether verb
voice is inflectional (de Guzman 1997) or derivational (Starosta 2002), or the possibility
that they may be both (Reid 1992). We believe that voice is inflectional. When the complex
‘hybrid voice-mode’ (Wolfenden 1961) affixes such as ipa- magpaki-, maikapagpaki- and
such are stripped of the mode components, leaving the true voice affixes -an, -in, i- and ø,
the inflectional nature of these affixes become apparent.

4 Conclusions
Verbs and adjectives exhibit parallel structural properties that perform essentially similar
morphosyntactic functions. First, the existential function: a way of creating members of the
class verbs and adjectives, accomplished by the voice and adjectivalizer, respectively.
Second, an anchoring function, also performed by the voice affix and the adjectivalizer
affix, which ties the verb to an argument—the subject. This relation fixes the semantic role
of the subject of the verb, or of the attributee of the quality. Third, an “extent” affix
expressed in verbs as aspect-duration and in adjectives as degree of the attribute referred to.
Finally, a recursive mechanism for lexeme formation, in the form of a set of modification
or qualification affixes, expressed as mode of the verb action and of the quality of the
adjective.

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