The two focus types the intermediate course never reached — and the full six-way system
At B1 you learned four focuses: actor (-um-/mag-), object (-in), locative (-an), and benefactive (i-). That was enough to speak. It is not enough to read. Filipino writing, and careful Filipino speech, uses two more: instrument focus (ipang-) and causal focus (ika-).
This lesson completes the inventory — and gives you the Tagalog names for the roles, so that from here on you can read about Tagalog in Tagalog.
Every focus type spotlights one participant. Here is the whole set, with the terms a Filipino grammar book would use:
| Role (English) | Tagalog term | Focus affix | Example verb |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doer / actor | tagaganap | -um- / mag- | humiwa (cut) |
| Thing acted on | layon | -in | hiwain (be cut) |
| Place of the action | ganapan | -an | hiwaan (be cut on) |
| Recipient | tagatanggap | -an | bigyan (be given to) |
| Beneficiary | tagatanggap ng pakinabang | i- | ihiwa (cut for someone) |
| Instrument / tool | kasangkapan | ipang- | ipanghiwa (cut with) |
| Cause | sanhi | ika- | ikatuwa (be glad because of) |
Instrument focus puts ang on the tool. The doer drops to a ng-pronoun, exactly as in Lesson 1 of the intermediate course.
| Aspect | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | ipanghiwa | to use for slicing |
| Completed | ipinanghiwa | was used for slicing |
| Incompleted | ipinanghihiwa | is being used for slicing |
| Contemplated | ipanghihiwa | will be used for slicing |
The pattern: ipa → ipina (completed), with reduplication of the root's first syllable for the two ongoing/future aspects. It is the i- conjugation you already know, carried over onto a pang- stem.
Ipinanghiwa ko ng karne ang kutsilyo. — The knife is what I cut the meat with.
Ipinambayad niya ang huling pera niya. — His last money is what he paid with.
Ipangsusulat ko ang bagong panulat. — The new pen is what I will write with.
Compare the actor-focus version of the same event: Humiwa ako ng karne gamit ang kutsilyo — "I cut meat using the knife." Both are correct. The ipang- version is what you use when the conversation is about the knife.
From one root, Tagalog builds both a verb and a tool-name:
| Root | ipang- verb (use it to…) | pang- noun (the tool) |
|---|---|---|
| hiwa (slice) | ipanghiwa | panghiwa — a cutting implement |
| sulat (write) | ipangsulat | panulat — a writing implement, a pen |
| bura (erase) | ipambura | pambura — an eraser |
| bayad (pay) | ipambayad | pambayad — the money for paying |
Causal focus puts ang on the cause: the thing that produced a feeling or an outcome.
| Aspect | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | ikatuwa | to be the cause of gladness |
| Completed | ikinatuwa | was the cause of gladness |
| Incompleted | ikinatutuwa | is the cause of gladness |
| Contemplated | ikatutuwa | will be the cause of gladness |
Ikinatuwa ko ang balita. — The news is what made me glad.
Ikinagalit niya ang sinabi ko. — What I said is what angered him.
Ikinalungkot namin ang pag-alis mo. — Your leaving is what saddened us.
Ikinabuhay ng pamilya ang maliit na tindahan. — The little shop is what the family lived on.
ika- verbs cluster around emotion and life outcome. The common set is small and worth memorising whole:
| Root | Completed form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| tuwa | ikinatuwa | was gladdened by |
| galit | ikinagalit | was angered by |
| lungkot | ikinalungkot | was saddened by |
| takot | ikinatakot | was frightened by |
| matay | ikinamatay | died of / because of |
| buhay | ikinabuhay | lived on / made a living from |
The rule has not changed since B1: put ang on whatever the conversation is about. There are simply more options now.
One event, six tellings — a man slices meat with a knife for his mother, and it makes her happy:
Humiwa siya ng karne. (doer) · Hiniwa niya ang karne. (thing) · Hiniwaan niya ang lamesa. (place) · Ipinanghiwa niya ang kutsilyo. (tool) · Ikinatuwa ng nanay niya ang ginawa niya. (cause)
Give the Tagalog term for the role in focus — tagaganap, layon, ganapan, kasangkapan, or sanhi:
Give the completed ipang- form:
Give the pang- noun for the tool:
Give the completed ika- form:
Choose the focus affix — write ipang- or ika-:
The focus system is now complete. Nothing in the rest of this course will introduce a seventh focus, because there isn't one — everything else you meet will be a combination or a register choice built on these six. What comes next is the machinery underneath pang-: why sulat gives panulat and bili gives mamili. That is Lesson 2, and it turns a long list of memorised forms into three short rules.