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I just started using the flash cards for the top 1000 Tagalog wo

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Author Photo by: Silverfoxdr
Jun 01 2019, 12:00am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
I just started using the flash cards for the top 1000 Tagalog words. This list of most common words is a big improvement over the order most books present words. However, verbs are not included.
 
I have come to understand that Tagalog verbs are a somewhat complicated subject, but how can one learn a language without knowing even common verbs and how to use them? Without that knowledge, I find that basically I cannot say most of the things I want to say.
 
Where can I learn the most common verbs and how to use them? A possibly related subject is the choice of different forms of pronouns, e.g. when do you use ka, or mo?
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Jun 01 2019, 12:00am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
@Silverfoxdr
Verbs are a complicated topic, and I would like to create a "Verbs" section for this website in the not-too distant future. At the moment we're working on building out a large set of example sentences for the verbs in our dictionary, which will be really helpful for students, and for use in future Lessons made here for verbs.
 
I would say verbs are the #1 biggest stumbling block for new Tagalog language learners. You have to learn how the different "focuses" work, which have no equivalent in English. This also relates to whether you use "ka" or "mo" as the subject (short version: Actor focus = ka, Object focus = mo). There are also a number of different ways verbs are conjugated, depending on the verb type (mag- verbs, -um- verbs, ma- verbs, -in verbs, maka- verbs, and many others).
 
( By the way, this website FilipinoLessons.com has the ONLY online dictionary that explicitly specifies verb accent location, verb focus, and verb conjugation type for the verbs...which is a big reason I started this website - this info is critical to learning the language properly. We also currently have ~1,250 example sentences for reference, and that will be growing a lot shortly! )
 
Anyway...in the current state of things, it's best to get a book like this one:
www.amazon.com/Basic -Tagalog-Foreigners- Non-Tagalogs-Downloa dable-ebook/dp/
...it has sections on verbs and will walk you through the first steps of conjugating and using those verbs. Most beginners start with Actor focused verb of Mag- and -Um- type. Once you get these, you'll move on to simple Object focused verbs, like -In- verbs, and after that the rest will be fairly easy to conjugate. The next big step is getting some experience on when to use which.
 
It can be complicated, but do one step at a time and it'll add up over time! And don't try to bite off more than you can chew at once (Ex: don't try to learn all focuses and conjugation types at once -- master them one at a time).
 
And, although it can seem a bit overwhelming, just by learning Actor focus verbs Mag- and -Um- can get you really far for communicating with Filipinos. It may not always be perfect grammar, but you'll be able to get your point across.
 
The "Flash Cards" section of this website also has flash cards under "Verb Conjugations" to practice conjugating those verb types. And the verbs listed in those Flash Cards were selected after I wrote a program to analyze ~ 24,000 pages of written Tagalog text to find the ones most commonly used. These verbs will give you the most bang for your buck in learning.
 
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Author Photo Silverfoxdr
Jun 01 2019, 12:00am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
Thanks for pointing out that there is a list of most commonly used verbs in the flash cards under "verb conjugations." Might I suggest that this section be labeled something like "commonly used verbs with conjugations?" The material presented in this site is certainly far superior to what is found in most Tagalog teaching materials, but sometimes needs more explanation of how to use the material.
 
Yesterday I went through a large amount of material by Googling "Tagalog verbs." Consistently the material is presented in just about the reverse of the order in which it is useful to a beginning student: first verb conjugation for tense (aspect) usually with a detailed description of the subtleties of meaning of the affixes; buried in that there is usually a reference to object or subject focus, and rarely whether to use direct or indirect case for subject and direct object with this class of verb (as if the student has somehow already learned that.)
 
I think the most helpful approach would be to teach early on the simple explanation that subject focus verbs take the direct case particles and pronouns for the agent and indirect case particles and pronouns for the direct object, then provide commonly used verbs in one aspect with the notation of whether they are subject or object focus (possibly with the reminder as to which case to use.)
 
The student can limp along with only one aspect of verbs, but is essentially paralyzed by not understanding which case markers to use. Other aspects of each verb could then be introduced as vocabulary items. Just as English has "is" and "was" -- some of the conjugations give words that are not immediately recognizable as being derived from the same root (a major difficulty in trying to look up words in most dictionaries.) The complexity of conjugating the verbs could be left for later - not presented as the first step.
 
In all my reading I noticed the frequent use of example sentences without giving the meaning of each individual word, apparently assuming we already know the vocabulary. There are a few very useful instances of giving word for word translations of the examples. There are also some very bewildering examples without giving the meaning of the sentence
 
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Jun 01 2019, 12:00am CST ~ 4 years ago. 
@Silverfoxdr
 
I think you have a lot of good input, and I agree with a lot of this.
 
In all my reading I noticed the frequent use of example sentences without giving the meaning of each individual word, apparently assuming we already know the vocabulary. There are a few very useful instances of giving word for word translations of the examples. There are also some very bewildering examples without giving the meaning of the sentence
 
Totally agree! Word-by-word literal translation, in addition to the "natural" translation is really important, and you'll see it's built into all of the example sentences in our dictionary -- you can put your mouse over each word (or tap it on mobile) to see the literal definitions for each.
 
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