Verb Reference: tingin | Filipino Grammar

The root tingin connects looking, checking, examination, visual perspective, and personal judgment. Its most important verbal contrast is between actor-voice tumingin sa “look at” and patient-voice tingnan “look at/check a selected target.” Several highly frequent expressions—sa tingin ko, magpatingin, and pakitingnan—must be learned as complete constructions.

The core family

All unmarked forms below are (neutral). Standard careful spelling uses tingnan, with the first i absent. Tignan and forms such as tinignan are widespread (informal/conversational) variants, not evidence that the speaker does not know the language.

Family and usual function	Basic	Completed	Incompleted	Contemplated	Typical frame
Actor voice: look	tumingin	tumingin	tumitingin	titingin	ang looker + sa target/direction
Patient voice: look at, inspect, check	tingnan	tiningnan	tinitingnan	titingnan	ng/ni looker + ang selected target
Seek examination or professional consultation	magpatingin	nagpatingin	nagpapatingin	magpapatingin	ang patient/client + sa/kay professional
Exchange glances or look collectively	magtinginan	nagtinginan	nagtitinginan	magtitinginan	ang plural group

The first syllable of the base is reduplicated in contemplated magtitinginan. Do not confuse it with incompleted nagtitinginan: the mag- versus nag- contrast remains visible before the repeated ti-.

Tumingin sa: select the looker

Actor-voice tumingin makes the person who directs their gaze the pivot. The visual target, direction, or source of information follows sa.

Tumingin si Liza sa talaan bago pumirma.

Liza looked at the list before signing. (completed actor voice; neutral)

Tumitingin sa daan ang bata mula sa bintana habang hinihintay ang kaniyang ina.

The child is looking at the road from the window while waiting for his mother. (incompleted actor voice; neutral)

Titingin ako sa mapa kapag huminto na tayo.

I will look at the map once we have stopped. (contemplated actor voice; neutral)

English “look at the list” contains a preposition too, but learners still often replace sa with ang because they expect the viewed object to be the direct object. In Filipino, tumingin selects the looker; use patient voice when the target should be selected.

Tingnan: select what is examined

Tingnan selects the target of attention with ang/si. It commonly means look at, inspect, check, watch briefly, or consider. The actor takes ng/ni.

Tiningnan ni Liza ang talaan bago siya pumirma.

Liza checked the list before she signed. (completed patient voice; neutral)

Tinitingnan ng inhinyero ang bitak sa pader.

The engineer is examining the crack in the wall. (incompleted patient voice; neutral)

Titingnan ko ang badyet bago ako sumang-ayon sa plano.

I will review the budget before I agree to the plan. (contemplated patient voice; neutral)

The matched clauses Tumingin si Liza sa talaan and Tiningnan ni Liza ang talaan describe similar events but organize discourse differently. The first tracks Liza; the second tracks the list as a definite object being checked. This is the central actor-voice versus patient-voice distinction.

💡

Use the marker as a diagnostic: tumingin sa target selects the looker; tingnan ang target selects what is looked at or checked.

Tingnan and tignan

Careful standard writing favors tingnan, tiningnan, tinitingnan, titingnan. The reduced series tignan, tinignan, tinitignan, titignan is extremely common (informal/conversational) and occurs in contemporary public usage. Treat it as register variation, not as a different voice or meaning.

Tingnan mo kung nakasara nang maayos ang pinto.

Check whether the door is properly closed. (careful standard; neutral)

Tignan mo nga kung nandiyan pa ang dyaket ko.

Could you check whether my jacket is still there? (informal/conversational variant)

In edited prose, official communication, and learning materials, choose the tingnan series consistently. Quoted casual dialogue can preserve tignan when that register matters.

Magpatingin: seek examination or advice

Magpatingin is lexicalized as seeking an examination or consultation, especially from a health professional. The patient or client remains the actor-voice pivot; the professional takes sa/kay.

Nagpatingin si Carla sa doktor dahil ilang araw nang masakit ang kaniyang tuhod.

Carla consulted a doctor because her knee had been hurting for several days. (completed consultation use; neutral)

Magpapatingin ako kay Doktor Reyes sa Biyernes.

I will have a consultation with Doctor Reyes on Friday. (contemplated consultation use; neutral)

The construction need not specify a body part. When the concern matters, a reason clause is often clearer: Nagpatingin siya sa optometrista dahil lumalabo ang kaniyang paningin “She consulted an optometrist because her vision was becoming blurred.” Conversational nagpatingin ng mata is also heard, but the conventional sense of the whole verb matters more than a word-for-word analysis of pa-.

Requests: pakitingnan and patingin

Pakitingnan forms a polite request to check something. Patingin is very common (informal) and can mean “let me see” or “show me.” These are socially useful formulas, not interchangeable dictionary forms.

Pakitingnan po kung tama ang numerong nakalagay sa resibo.

Please check whether the number printed on the receipt is correct. (polite request; neutral/formal service interaction)

Patingin nga ng larawang kuha mo kanina.

Let me see the photo you took earlier. (informal)

The particle po raises respect; nga can soften the request in conversation. For more interactional detail, see softening requests.

Sa tingin ko: expressing an assessment

As a noun, tingin means a look, eyesight, view, or judgment. Sa tingin ko is the standard neutral expression “in my opinion / I think.” It frames a conclusion as one's assessment.

Sa tingin ko, mas ligtas kung aalis tayo bago dumilim.

I think it will be safer if we leave before dark. (personal assessment; neutral)

This differs from Iniisip ko, which usually means “I am thinking about” or “I am considering” something. English uses “think” for both opinion and mental activity; Filipino often divides them between sa tingin ko and forms of isip. Compare the isip verb family.

Questions and exchanged looks

Tiningnan mo ba ang petsa ng pagkapaso sa kahon?

Did you check the expiration date on the box? (interrogative completed patient voice; neutral)

Nagtinginan ang magkakapatid nang marinig nila ang kakaibang kalabog.

The siblings exchanged looks when they heard the strange thud. (completed reciprocal action; neutral)

Common Mistakes

Giving tumingin an ang-marked target

❌ Tumingin si Liza ang talaan sa dingding.

Incorrect — actor-voice tumingin requires sa before its visual target.

✅ Tumingin si Liza sa talaan sa dingding.

Liza looked at the list on the wall. (actor voice; neutral)

Keeping a si-marked actor with tiningnan

❌ Tiningnan si Liza ang talaan sa dingding.

Incorrect — patient-voice tiningnan requires ni for the personal-name actor.

✅ Tiningnan ni Liza ang talaan sa dingding.

Liza checked the list on the wall. (patient voice; neutral)

Inventing a regular -in form

❌ Tinginin mo ang iskedyul bago ka umalis.

Incorrect — the established standard basic patient form is tingnan, not tinginin.

✅ Tingnan mo ang iskedyul bago ka umalis.

Check the schedule before you leave. (neutral)

Using ng for manner

❌ Tiningnan niya ng mabuti ang kontrata.

Incorrect — mabuti describes how the contract was examined, so use nang.

✅ Tiningnan niya nang mabuti ang kontrata.

She examined the contract carefully. (neutral)

💡

Do not mark conversational tignan as impossible. Use standard tingnan in careful writing, and recognize tignan as widespread informal variation.

Key Takeaways

Tumingin sa selects the looker; tingnan ang selects the target being examined.
Standard careful forms are tingnan, tiningnan, tinitingnan, titingnan; the tignan series is widespread conversational variation.
Magpatingin means seek an examination or consultation, while pakitingnan makes a polite request to check something.
Sa tingin ko expresses an assessment and should not be translated mechanically as the ongoing mental activity iniisip ko.

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