Question: I'm trying to learn Tagalog and am strugging with sent

@xpusostomos It depends on the focus of the verb.For Actor focused verbs, it's the ANG pronoun doing the action. (ako, ka, kami, tayo, etc.)
For Object focused verbs, it's the NG pronoun doing the action. (ko, namin, natin, etc.)The order of the pronouns does not tell you anything about who is doing what. Pronoun order has some rules that make them jump around (mo, ko, and ka, for example, tend to move closer to the verb).

So..... are we saying that all Tagalog verbs are in one of two categories, actor focused or object focused? I had a quick look at a Tagalog dictionary and it didn't seem to indicate that for words... how to know which verbs are actor vs object focused?Rules for pronoun order... I was hoping that wasn't the answer that I have to learn some rules ;-( .... do you know anywhere it lists these rules. I've read some Tagalog introduction books but I don't think I came across that.

@xpusostomos No, there are actually other categories. These aren't usually indicated in textbooks and dictionaries so you have to really learn them from materials that include lessons on these. Here's one reference that explains focuses languagecrush.com/bo ok/3/213/chapter and there are more chapters in this e-book. I've also read more on a Facebook page for Tagalog learning.

@xpusostomos @DenC is right, there a bunch of others, I was trying to keep it simple as a starter to explain why the pronouns vary.

@xpusostomosAs “jkos” mentioned, the “ang” and the “ng” before a noun will usually indicate the subject and object of a sentence. However, when both the subject and object are represented by pronouns, knowing which is which can be confusing for learners of Tagalog. Your sentence, “Aasahan namin kayo” is an example of that.To add to the confusion, it is also possible to use the same pronoun more than once in a sentence, with each one functioning differently from the other two. For example:
AKINg libró ang hinirám ni Maria, at kasí AKIN ‘yun, dapat isaulì niya ‘yun sa AKIN.translates to:
It is MY book that Maria borrowed, and because it is MINE, she should return it to ME. Attached is a table of the Tagalog personal pronouns that you might find useful. The headings indicate the English classifications of the Tagalog personal pronouns based on their translations. In Tagalog, however, such classifications do not exist. We just refer to all of them as “panghalíp (pronoun)”. We savor complications. Please note the asterisks in the table. Their meanings and the explanations about the table’s other contents are:1. * - as adjectives/modifiers, the linker “na” is needed between the pronoun and the noun it modifies. Hence, “akin NA libro”, for example, becomes “akinG libro”.2. ** - the “<>” means that the form of the pronoun on the left is used when it is placed before the verb, and the form on the right is used when it follows the verb. Note that under the Subject pronouns, it is only the 2nd person “ikaw” that undergoes this change.3. The possessive pronouns “namin”, “natin”, and “ninyo” are indicated (red lines) in the examples under “amin/atin” and “inyo”. Normally, the linker “na” is attached, whenever possible, to the word before it. However, when the modifiers “amin/atin/inyo” follow the noun, the “na” may be attached to the beginning of the pronouns instead, i.e., they become “Namin/Natin/Ninyo”.

4. The yellow cells indicate the use of the same pronoun under 3 different English pronoun categories. (I illustrated this in the example sentence above.) 5. The “niya” and “nila” pronouns under 3rd Person Modifier/Adjective (blue lines), though they function as modifiers, when linked to a single noun, do not use the “na” linker. They are also placed only AFTER the noun. However, occasionally, they might be placed between 2 nouns or be followed by another adjective. In those cases, the linker “na” is used and they become “niyang/nilang”. For example, “anák niyáng lalakí (his/her male child)”, “anák niláng matalino (their intelligent child)”.If you want to use them as modifiers BEFORE a noun, use “kaniyang/kanilang” instead, e.g., “kaniyang/kanilang anak”.
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About “Aasahan namin kayo”:When you have a verb followed by 2 successive personal pronouns, 3 situations are possible:1. If both pronouns are under the Subject pronouns in the table, expect an “at (and)” between them. The verb is Subject-Focus, for sure. This situation is quite rare though because we have single words for such pairings – ikaw/kayo at ako = tayo; ako at siya/sila = kami; ikaw/kayo at sila = kayo; etc.. Mag-usap akó at ikáw. = Mag-usap TAYO. = Let US talk.2. If both pronouns are non-Subject pronouns, expect a “sa” between them. The verb is Object-Focus, with the first pronoun as the Actor and the second as the Indirect Object. The Direct Object may be before the verb, between the pronouns, after the pronouns, or understood based on context.Ibigáy mo SA AKIN. = (You) Give it TO ME.
Ang libro ay ibigay mo sa akin. = Give the book to me.
Ibigay mo ang libro sa akin. = Give the book to me.
Ibigay mo sa akin ang libro. = Give the book to me.
Nasaan ang libro? Ibigay mo sa akin. = Where is the book? (You) Give it to me.3. If one is a Subject pronoun and the other is not, the Actor is the non-Subject pronoun and the Subject pronoun is the object.Isipin MO sila. = (YOU) Think of them. The type of sentence you gave, “Aasahan namin kayo”, falls under situation 3.Aasahan NAMIN KAYO. = WE shall be/are expecting YOU (to be there). - This sentence is what we would usually say as parting words after inviting someone (formally)/a group to an event.Note: The pronoun “kitá” is a special Filipino pronoun and is not included in the table because it is just the combined form of “ko ikaw”. Any verb followed by “kita” is an Object-Focus verb. For example, “mahal kita” is “mahal ko ikaw” where “ko” is the actor and “ikaw” is the object/subject. The subject-predicate form of “mahal kita” is “ikaw ay mahal ko”. The infinitive verb of “mahal” is “mahalin”. Its conjugation is “minahál - minámahál - mámahalín”. “Mahal” is the shortened and much more often used form of the present “minamahal”. So, “mahal kita” is the short way of saying “Ikáw ay minámahál ko (lit. You are loved by me)”.

I want to speak Tagalog and Papamo

Hii! This is also something I've been struggling with, but I feel like I finally had a breakthrough a few weeks ago. From what I've learned: there are actor-focused sentences (the *boy ate the cake), object-focused sentences (ex. The *cake was eaten by him), and receiver-focused sentences (ex. The *company was sent a letter). There are probably more, but I haven't learned them yet. For basic sentence construction:
Verbs that can be categorized as MAG-, MA-, UM- are generally actor-focused verbs. Though it seems that verbs can often switch between different types, so this isn't a strict rule.Actor-focused verbs must be used with pronouns like: AKO, KA, SIYA, KAMI, TAYO, KAYO, SILA When these pronouns are present, it indicates that they are the focus of the sentence. These pronouns are usually used with articles like 'NG' and never/rarely with 'ANG' (because 'ANG' is used to indicate the focus of the sentence, so it is redundant, for example, to have SIYA + ANG together in the same sentence since you can only have one focus in a sentence). For example: Nagluto *ako ng pancit (I cooked pancit).
- Ako is the focus of the sentence. Magluto is a MAG- verb (generally actor-focused) so you know to use it with one of the pronouns above, and you use 'NG' instead of 'ANG' because there is already a sentence focus (ako).On the other hand, there are object-focused verbs like IN- verbs and I-verbs. There are also receiver-focused verbs like -AN verbs. For object-focused sentences like these, you need to use the possessive pronouns like: KO, MO, NIYA, NAMIN, NATIN, NINYO, NILA (because it's almost like whoever is doing the action "owns" the object being acted upon)For object-focused sentences, you need the article 'ANG' or 'YUNG' to indicate what is the focus. For example: Kinain niya yung cake (He ate THE cake) <- the cake is the focusThen there are the receiver-focused sentences, which tbh I don't quite understand yet. But the example my tutor gave me is: Receiver-focused: Bigyan mo *ako ng bola - You give the ball to ME (to me = receiver, the focus)
Object-focused: Ibigay mo sa akin *ang bola (ANG BOLA = the object, the focus)
^ In both the cases above, you can see that the actor was indicated by the possessive pronoun 'mo' because this is an object/receiver focused sentence. I am still early in my Tagalog journey but I found it super helpful when it was explained to me this way!

@gelaineyyy The way I see it, there are just 2 main focus-categories of Tagalog verbs – Subject and Object. All the rest are just sub-categories of those two. “Receiver-focus” is just another way of referring to the Indirect Object or the Receiver of the Direct Object, hence, it is an object-focus verb.
The “mag” and “um” affixes always form subject-focus verbs. It is only the prefix “ma” that is used for either subject- or object-focus verbs.MA – same root word
Subject-focus (mahuli): Nahuli siya ng pulis. = He was caught by the police.
Object-focus (mahuli): Nahuli nila ang magnanakaw. = The thief was caught by them. (They caught the thief.)MA – different root words, but written in the same way. The pronunciations are also different, but since the stresses are not normally indicated in the printed form, they can confuse a learner. Subject-focus (mabasâ): Nabasâ siya sa ulán. = We got wet in the rain.
Object-focus (mabasa): Nabasa niya ang libró. = The book was read by him. Just be aware that "ang" is the article "the" and " 'yung " is the demonstrative adjective "that (yonder)". So, " 'yung cake" is "that cake" and "ang cake" is "the cake". Also, "yung" is not a proper word, although it is commonly used in informal writing. It is "iyon + na", but when combined, it becomes "iyung". I think the "u" replaces the "o" so as not to confuse it with "iyong (your)". In formal writing, the omitted "i" is replaced by an apostrophe, resulting in " 'yung".“Bigyan mo ako ng bola” is under “situation 3” in my post, i.e., a verb followed by a Subject pronoun (ako) and a non-Subject pronoun (mo). The Actor then is the non-Subject pronoun “mo” – (You) Give me a ball. BTW, I failed to mention in my previous post that when the non-Subject pronoun is the Actor, in the English translation, its corresponding Subject pronoun replaces it – mo (your) → ikaw (you).“Ibigay mo sa akin ang bola [(You) Give the ball to me]” may also be stated as “Ang bola ay ibigay mo sa akin” or “Ibigay mo ang bola sa akin”. This is under “situation 2” above, where you have 2 non-Subject pronouns (mo and akin) with “sa” between them and the Direct Object (ang bola) may be placed before the verb, or between the pronouns, or after the pronouns. So, “mo”, the first pronoun is the Actor, “sa akin” is the Indirect Object (to me), and “ang bola” is the Direct Object.We can even take this a step further. “Ibigay mo sa akin ang bola” uses a noun (bola = ball) as its Direct Object. But suppose we change it into a pronoun. “Ball” becomes “it” and in Tagalog, that would be “siya” – Siya ay ibigay mo sa akin = Ibigay mo siya sa akin = Ibigay mo sa akin siya. The 3 pronouns will always be made up of 1 Subject and 2 non-Subject pronouns. The Actor (mo), Indirect Object (akin), and the Direct Object remain the same, except that the Direct Object is now "siya (ball)". "Ibigay mo siya sa akin" = (You) Give it to me.