Masakit ang ulo ko, kaya pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital.

My head hurts, so I will go to the doctor at the hospital.

Breakdown of Masakit ang ulo ko, kaya pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital.

• ako: I
• ay: to be
• sa: to
• ko: my
• pumunta: to go
• sa: at
• kaya: so
• masakit: painful
• ulo: the head
• doktor: the doctor
• ospital: the hospital

Questions & Answers about Masakit ang ulo ko, kaya pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital.

What does masakit mean here, and is it a verb or an adjective?

Masakit is an adjective meaning painful / sore / hurting.

In Masakit ang ulo ko, it literally means “My head is painful / sore.”

• It is not a conjugated verb like “hurts” in English.
• Filipino often uses adjectives for physical states, instead of verb phrases like “is hurting.”

Why is it masakit ang ulo ko and not masakit ako for “I have a headache”?

In Filipino, pain is usually expressed by saying that a body part is painful, not the whole person.

• Masakit ang ulo ko. = “My head is painful.” → understood as “I have a headache.”
• Masakit ako. is not natural; it sounds like “I (as a whole person) am painful,” which is odd.

So you highlight the body part (ulo/head, tiyan/stomach, likod/back, etc.), not the person.

What is the function of ang in ang ulo ko?

Ang is a marker that points out the grammatical focus/topic of the sentence.

• Ulo = head
• Ko = my
• Ang ulo ko = “my head” (as the main focus/topic)

In Masakit ang ulo ko, ang ulo ko is the thing being described as painful. Ang here works somewhat like “the” plus a topic marker: “The thing we’re talking about is my head.”

Why is it ulo ko (“head my”) and not aking ulo (“my head”)?

Both are correct:

• Ulo ko = “my head” (body-part + enclitic pronoun)
• Aking ulo = “my head” (possessive pronoun + noun)

Ulo ko is:

• More common in everyday speech
• Shorter and more natural-sounding in this kind of sentence

Aking ulo sounds:

• A bit more formal or emphatic
• Used more in writing or when you want to stress “my”

Could I also say Masakit ang aking ulo? Does it sound natural?

Yes, Masakit ang aking ulo is grammatically correct and natural.

Nuance:

• Masakit ang ulo ko. → Most common, casual, everyday.
• Masakit ang aking ulo. → Slightly more formal or careful, sometimes used in writing or polite speech.

Meaning is the same: “My head hurts / I have a headache.”

What does kaya do in this sentence? Is it “because” or “so”?

In Masakit ang ulo ko, kaya pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital, kaya means “so / therefore.”

• It connects a reason to a result:
  • Reason: Masakit ang ulo ko. (My head hurts.)
  • Result: Pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital. (I will go to the doctor at the hospital.)
• You can often translate kaya as “so / that’s why / therefore.”

If you wanted “because”, you would usually use dahil or kasi, and the order would change:

• Pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital dahil masakit ang ulo ko.
  “I will go to the doctor at the hospital because my head hurts.”

What does pupunta mean, and how is it different from pumunta and pumupunta?

All three are forms of the root punta (go):

• Pumunta – completed aspect → “went”
  • Pumunta ako sa doktor. = “I went to the doctor.”
• Pumupunta – incomplete / ongoing / habitual aspect → “go / am going / usually go”
  • Pumupunta ako sa doktor tuwing Lunes. = “I go to the doctor every Monday.”
• Pupunta – contemplated / future aspect → “will go”
  • Pupunta ako sa doktor. = “I will go to the doctor.”

In the sentence, pupunta clearly means “will go” (future intention).

Why is the word order pupunta ako and not ako pupunta?

Filipino commonly uses verb–subject order:

• Pupunta ako = “will-go I” → “I will go”

This V–S order is very normal and natural in Filipino, especially in simple statements.

You can say Ako ay pupunta sa doktor, but:

• It sounds more formal or old-fashioned.
• In everyday speech, people usually say Pupunta ako sa doktor.

What does sa mean in sa doktor sa ospital, and why is it repeated?

Sa is a very flexible marker that often corresponds to “to / at / in / on” depending on context.

In pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital:

• sa doktor = to the doctor
• sa ospital = at the hospital

The sa is repeated because these are two separate phrases:

• destination/person: sa doktor
• place/location: sa ospital

Each noun phrase normally gets its own sa:

• Pupunta ako sa doktor sa ospital. = “I will go to the doctor at the hospital.”

Is there a difference between sa doktor and kay Doktor Santos?

Yes, there is a difference in the marker:

• Sa doktor – sa is used for common nouns:
  • doktor = “a (or the) doctor”
• Kay Doktor Santos – kay is used for personal names / specific persons:
  • Doktor Santos = “Doctor Santos”

So:

• Pupunta ako sa doktor. = I will go to the (a) doctor.
• Pupunta ako kay Doktor Santos. = I will go to Doctor Santos. (specific named person)

Why is it doktor and ospital and not the English forms doctor and hospital?

Filipino has many loanwords from Spanish and English, and they are often adapted to Filipino spelling and pronunciation.

• Doktor – borrowed (via Spanish/English), but spelled the Filipino way.
• Ospital – from Spanish hospital, adapted to Filipino spelling.

Using doktor and ospital is standard and natural in Filipino.
Using doctor or hospital in the English spelling would look incorrect in a Filipino sentence.

How would I negate this sentence: “My head hurts, so I will not go to the doctor at the hospital”?

You negate the verb with hindi placed before it:

• Masakit ang ulo ko, kaya hindi ako pupunta sa doktor sa ospital.
  = “My head hurts, so I will not go to the doctor at the hospital.”

Structure:

• Hindi
  • ako
    • pupunta → “I will not go”

Is there another common way to say “I have a headache” in Filipino?

Yes, two very common patterns are:

1. Masakit ang ulo ko.
   – Literally: “My head is painful.”
   – Very common, simple, and natural.

2. Sumasakit ang ulo ko.
   – Uses the verb form sumasakit (ongoing/habitual “is hurting”).
   – Can feel more like “My head is hurting / keeps hurting.”

Both are understood as “I have a headache.”