Adjectives

Typically an adjective in Tagalog will start with MA + root word. There are actually a couple of ways these can be used and following that, some other words can be used to amplify the quality of the adjective. Let's look at the below examples:

Root: Ganda (Meaning: Beauty)

Ganda + Ma = Maganda – Beautiful

Ang magandang babae – A beautiful woman

Note: to connect maganda to babae, ng is added to the word. This is a common theme in Filipino grammar. It's so you know what is maganda. In this case it's the babae.

Another trick we can do with Tagalog adjectives is intensify the meaning of it, as below:

Ang ganda ng babae! – The woman is so beautiful (lit: How beautiful the woman!)

So in this example, the “ma” has been removed and “ang” (the focus marker) has been added. It's like we're very much focussed now on the beauty OF the woman rather than the beautiful woman herself.

We can go yet a step further and increase the quality of our adjective with the prefix “Napaka” which essentially means “very much” of the root.

Napakaganda ng babae – The woman is veeery beautiful

Finally, if we want to use the superlative form of an adjective, to say it is “the most” of something. We can add on the prefix “Pinaka” to the adjective as below:

Pinaka + Maganda – Pinakamaganda – The most beautiful

Ang pinakamagandang babae – The most beautiful girl