# ka, mo



## Jeffjohn

can you explain the rules as to when to use ka or mo in sentences such as the following;

huwag kang mahiya why isn't huwag mo mahiya correct?
huwag mo sabihin yan is correct but why isnt huwag ka sabihin yan ?
hindi mo sinabi sa akin why isn't hindi ka sinabi sa akin correct?

thanks.


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## rockjon

The use of ka or mo in this case is highly dependent on the nature of verb you are using.  Mahiya is consider to be a Tagalog active verb and sabihin is a Tagalog passive verb. However, the Tagalog passive is not the same as our English passive verbs.  It is almost always translated mostly into the English active.  

In Tagalog active verbs, the agent that is doing the action is defined by a certain pronouns which are ikaw, ako, ka, kami, kayo, sila, and personal markers which are si and sina(if plural). In Tagalog passive verbs, the agent that is doing action are ko, mo, ninyo, nila, namin, natin, and the personal markers ni and nina (if plural).  

Ex: 
Pumunta ako sa tindahan. (I went to the store) Pumunta from punta (to go) is a tagalog active verb.
Dinala ko yung regalo para kay Nena (I brought a gift for Nena) Dinala is a past conjugated form of dalhin, a tagalog passive verb.  

To answer your question directly, the reason why huwag kang mahiya (Do not be ashamed/shy) is correct "huwag mo mahiya" is not correct is because it mahiya is an active verb. If you put mo there, there is not the actor pronoun appropriate for that particular verb.  

However, what you can say if you change verb structure is:
Wag kang magsabi niyan sa kaniya.  (Don't (you) say that to her) Magsabi is the tagalog active form of the root word, sabi.


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## Jeffjohn

thanks for the detailed explanation.


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## rockjon

There might be a potential area where you might get confused with the passive verb.  Sometimes, some of the passive verb forms direct object is a person or a personal pronoun.  

Eg.
Nakita ko siya. (I saw her) ko is the agent, and person being seen is siya.

However, where you might get confused is if a tagalog speaker will sometimes drop the agent pronoun or personal marker associated with the passive verb.

Ex 1. Wag akong bigyan ng sibuyas. (Do not give me onions) 
The mo is dropped in this case. The ako classifies who will receive the onions in this form of this passive verb (and there are a lot of them) of bigay (give). If you asked why the mo or equivalent -ng/ni pronoun is dropped is because you know who you are addressing in your conversation.

Ex 2. Wag siyang palusutin. (Do not let her pass through)


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