Actor Voice: Commands | Filipino Grammar

An actor-voice command selects the addressee as actor pivot: Pumasok ka, Magdala kayo ng tubig. The ordinary positive command uses the verb family's basic form, while ka/kayo or inclusive tayo expresses the actor through the ang-pronoun series. A patient remains ng-marked and a destination or recipient remains sa-marked.

The actor-voice command map

The basic form identifies the verb's voice and valency without asserting that the event is already completed. This matters especially with -um- verbs, whose basic and completed forms can look identical.

For the wider contrast between basic and contemplated-looking directives, see aspect in commands.

Command function	Pattern	Example
one familiar addressee acts	basic actor-voice verb + ka	Umupo ka.
several or respectfully addressed people act	basic verb + kayo	Pumasok po kayo.
speaker and addressee act together	basic verb + tayo	Maglakad tayo.
addressee acts on a non-pivot patient	verb + ka/kayo + ng patient	Magdala ka ng tubig.
negative command	huwag + kang/kayong + basic verb	Huwag kang tumakbo.

Umupo ka muna rito habang inihahanda ang silid.

Sit here for now while the room is being prepared. (actor voice)

Magdala kayo ng sapat na tubig para sa mahabang lakad.

Bring enough water for the long walk. (actor voice; plural addressee)

In the second sentence, kayo is actor pivot and ng sapat na tubig is non-pivot patient/theme. English has an unspoken you, but Filipino pronoun choice also distinguishes singular, plural, and respectful address.

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Use ka/kayo when the addressee is the actor pivot. If another participant is pivot and the addressee is a non-pivot actor, the command instead requires mo/ninyo.

Patients, destinations, and recipients keep their roles

An actor-voice command does not make every phrase after ka/kayo an object with one marker.

Bumili ka ng pandesal sa panaderya bago umuwi.

Buy bread rolls at the bakery before going home.

Magpadala kayo ng kopya sa tanggapan bago magtanghali.

Send a copy to the office before noon.

Ng pandesal and ng kopya are core themes. Sa panaderya is a location, while sa tanggapan is a destination. With a personal recipient, use kay/kina:

Mag-iwan ka ng mensahe kay Tiya Pacing kung wala ako sa bahay.

Leave a message with Aunt Pacing if I'm not home.

The verb's lexical frame still matters. Do not derive personal-patient marking by mechanically replacing common ng with ni.

Actor voice versus patient voice in a command

English translates both clauses below with an active imperative:

Magbukas ka ng bintana sa likod para pumasok ang hangin.

Open a window at the back so air can come in. (actor voice)

Buksan mo ang bintana sa likod para pumasok ang hangin.

Open the window at the back so air can come in. (patient voice)

The actor-voice command foregrounds the addressee's activity: ka is pivot and the window is ng-marked. The patient-voice command selects ang bintana and makes the addressee a non-pivot actor mo. Context may allow both for the same practical task, but they are not grammatically interchangeable versions of English active and passive.

Patient voice is especially natural when a particular affected item is already under discussion. Actor voice readily introduces an item or directs a broader activity. Specific patients can still occur under ng, so this is a discourse tendency rather than an article rule.

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A command's force does not decide its voice. Decide which participant will be pivot, choose the established verb form, and then assign ka/kayo or mo/ninyo accordingly.

Tayo proposes joint action

Inclusive tayo makes an actor-voice hortative: the speaker proposes that speaker and addressee act together.

Magpahinga tayo sandali bago ipagpatuloy ang pag-akyat.

Let's rest for a while before continuing the climb.

Kumain tayo sa labas pagkatapos ng pagpupulong.

Let's eat outside after the meeting.

Exclusive kami cannot mean inclusive “let's,” because it excludes the addressee. If a patient is selected instead, the corresponding inclusive non-pivot actor is natin: Ayusin natin ang mesa. English hides this voice-conditioned contrast behind one phrase, let's.

Pronoun omission, contrast, and respect

The actor pronoun may be omitted when the addressee is completely obvious.

Pumasok po at maghintay muna sa tabi ng pinto.

Please come in and wait beside the door for now. (respectful; understood addressee)

Adding kayo makes plurality or respectful address explicit: Pumasok po kayo. Po marks respect, while kayo can address several people or one respected person. Neither form by itself guarantees that a demand is socially considerate.

Full ikaw is contrastive rather than the neutral postverbal clitic.

Ikaw ang kumausap sa tagapangasiwa; ako ang tatawag sa mga magulang.

You be the one to speak with the administrator; I'll be the one to call the parents.

This identificational construction assigns contrasting responsibilities. The neutral command is Kumausap ka sa tagapangasiwa.

Basic and contemplated-looking command forms

The basic form is the safe choice for an ordinary one-time instruction.

Maglinis ka ng silid bago dumating ang mga bisita.

Clean a room before the guests arrive. (basic actor-voice command)

A contemplated-looking form can impose scheduled, habitual, or emphatic conduct.

Maglilinis ka ng silid tuwing Biyernes bago ka umuwi.

You are to clean a room every Friday before you go home. (standing or emphatic directive)

This is not simply a future tense. The repeated schedule and directive context give maglilinis ka its force, which can sound parental or authoritarian. Contemporary speakers also use the basic form with an explicit frequency expression, such as Maglinis ka tuwing Biyernes, for a more neutral standing instruction.

A polar question with contemplated aspect asks about a plan rather than issuing the neutral command.

Maglilinis ka ba ng silid bago ang ensayo?

Are you going to clean a room before rehearsal?

Prohibitions and softer requests

Use huwag, not ordinary hindi, for a direct negative command.

Huwag kang maglakad sa madilim na pasilyo nang mag-isa.

Don't walk through the dark corridor alone.

Particles adjust timing and interpersonal force: muna postpones the next step, na marks that it is time to act, and nga/naman depend heavily on tone. Respectful or indirect requests can use po, paki-, or puwede ba; they do not abolish voice and participant marking.

Puwede ka bang maghintay muna habang kinakausap ko ang doktor?

Could you wait for a moment while I speak with the doctor?

A short exchange

A: Ano po ang gagawin ko sa mga bagong aklat? B: Maglista ka muna ng sampung pamagat, saka tayo magpapasya.

A: What should I do with the new books? B: List ten titles first, then we'll decide.

The answer directs the addressee's activity with actor-voice maglista ka and an ng-marked patient. Tayo in the next clause includes both speakers in the later decision.

Common Mistakes

Using an ng-form actor pronoun with actor voice

❌ Magdala mo ng tuwalya para sa bata.

Incorrect — actor-voice magdala selects the addressee as pivot, requiring ka.

✅ Magdala ka ng tuwalya para sa bata.

Bring a towel for the child. (actor voice)

Giving the patient ang marking while keeping actor voice

❌ Magbasa ka ang paalala bago pumirma.

Incorrect — the actor is already the pivot of magbasa.

✅ Magbasa ka ng paalala bago pumirma.

Read a notice before signing. (actor voice)

To select a particular notice, use patient voice: Basahin mo ang paalala bago pumirma. The change requires both a new verb form and mo.

Using hindi for a neutral prohibition

❌ Hindi ka lumapit sa bukas na hukay.

Wrong for the intended direct command — this is interpreted as a negative statement about a completed action.

✅ Huwag kang lumapit sa bukas na hukay.

Don't go near the open pit.

Using exclusive kami for “let's”

❌ Mag-usap kami pagkatapos ng tanghalian.

Incorrect for an invitation to the addressee — kami excludes that person.

✅ Mag-usap tayo pagkatapos ng tanghalian.

Let's talk after lunch.

Key Takeaways

Ordinary actor-voice commands use a basic verb form and ka/kayo as actor pivot.
Core patients remain ng-marked; destinations and recipients commonly take sa/kay/kina.
Actor- and patient-voice commands may have the same English translation but package different participants as pivot.
Use inclusive tayo for joint action, huwag for prohibition, and natural particles or respectful forms to manage social force.
Contemplated-looking commands often express standing, scheduled, or emphatic directives rather than simple future tense.

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