# Masbateño language

Masbateño or Minasbate is a member of Central Philippine languages and of the Bisayan subgroup of the Austronesian language family spoken by more than 724,000 people in the province of Masbate and some parts of Sorsogon in the Philippines. Masbatenyo (sometimes written as Masbateño) is the name used by the speakers of the language and for themselves, although the term Minásbate is sometimes also used to distinguish the language from the people. It has 350,000 speakers as of 2002, with 50,000 who speak it as their first language. About 250,000 speakers use it as their second language.
Masbatenyo is closely related to Capiznon, with 79% lexical similarity, and Hiligaynon, with 76% lexical similarity. Waray language is closely related and significantly similar to Masbatenyo as well. It is also closely related to Waray Sorsogon language, the language of Sorsogon. This is because Masbate was once part of Sorsogon Province and was governed from Sorsogon City until the 1920s. It has three major dialects: the western dialect centered around the town of Balud on the western coast which is close to Capiz, the southern dialect centered about the town of Cataingan in the southeastern part of Masbate, and the northern dialect covering the whole northern half of Masbate and centered on Masbate City.

## Etymology

There are several accounts on the origins of the word Masbate. One account says that it came from the words masa 'to mix' and batî 'to beat'. The other account says it came from mas batî 'heard better' as in Lumúsad kamó kag umapíke agúd mas batî an íyo ginasábi 'Get down here and get closer so that we can hear better whatever you're saying.' Another account further says that it came from the term that Cebuano migrants used to describe the place, mas batí, which means 'a place where living condition is worse'.
According to a certain Fray Martin de Rada, Masbate took its name from Masbat or Basbat which means 'having many gold mines'. Another claims that the name Masbate came from Masbad. The term Masbad possibly originated from Masbaranon, a barrio that used to be part of the jurisdiction of the Municipality of Placer but is now under the Municipality of Esperanza. This barrio used to be called Surosimbahan because it looks like a church. Its name was then changed Agoho from the tree called agoho. Then, for the third time, its name was changed to Masbaranon because of the supposed abundance of small fish called masbad.

## Dialects

Wolfenden identified three major dialects of Masbatenyo: the western dialect centered around the town of Balud on the western coast which is close to Capiz, the southern dialect centered about the town of Cataingan in the southeastern part of Masbate and the northern dialect covering the whole northern half of Masbate and centered on Masbate City, the capital.
Language and/or Dialect Used in the Municipalities of Masbate :
| Municipality | Language and/or Dialect Used |
| Burias Island, First Congressional District ||
| Claveria | Masbatenyo |
| Claveria | Masbatenyo with strong Cebuano influence |
| Claveria | Masbatenyo with Bikol influence |
| San Pascual | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| San Pascual | Bikol with Masbatenyo influence |
| San Pascual | Masbatenyo with strong Cebuano influence |
| Ticao Island, Second Congressional District ||
| Batuan | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| Monreal | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| San Fernando | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| San Jacinto | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| Second Congressional District ||
| Aroroy | Masbatenyo |
| Baleno | Masbatenyo |
| Balud | Hiligaynon with Masbatenyo influence |
| Mandaon | Masbatenyo with strong Hiligaynon influence |
| Mandaon | Hiligaynon with Masbatenyo influence |
| Masbate City | Masbatenyo |
| Milagros | Masbatenyo |
| Mobo | Masbatenyo |
| Third Congressional District ||
| Cawayan | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Cataingan | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Cataingan | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| Cataingan | Masbatenyo with strong Cebuano influence |
| Dimasalang | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Dimasalang | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| Dimasalang | Masbatenyo with strong Cebuano influence |
| Dimasalang | Masbatenyo |
| Esperanza | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Palanas | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Palanas | Masbatenyo with strong Waray influence |
| Palanas | Masbatenyo with strong Cebuano influence |
| Palanas | Masbatenyo |
| Pio V. Corpuz | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Placer | Cebuano |
| Uson | Cebuano with Masbatenyo influence |
| Uson | Masbatenyo with strong Cebuano influence |
| Uson | Masbatenyo |

## Masbatenyo and its neighboring languages

Wolfenden reported that although Sorsogon (the southernmost province of Bicol) and Masbate are very much closer to Bicol Peninsula, Sorsoganon and Masbatenyo shared the same grammatical systems which are rather closer to those of Waray and Hiligaynon, the trade languages in the Visayas, rather than that of Bicol.
The presence of competing grammatical and lexical subsystems in the language is the most striking characteristic of Masbatenyo. This has probably been brought on by the influx of settlers from surrounding major language groups who mixed in elements of their language with and alongside of the Masbatenyo. This results to a number of semantic concepts that can be expressed by two to five alternate different words for a single concept.
This led Wolfenden to think that Masbatenyo is unique in the sense of its being a mixed-up language. Speakers of the language often thought that their language is just a mixture of its neighboring languages which are Bikol, Waray-Waray, Cebuano, Hiligaynon and Tagalog. There are still who refer to their own speech as 'Bisaya'.
Masbatenyo shares different types of mutual intelligibility with its neighboring languages. Speakers of Masbatenyo can easily and conveniently converse with speakers of the neighboring languages using their own language. However, speakers of Cebuano, Waray or Hiligaynon would sometimes find it difficult to understand Masbatenyo because of its lexicon. Furthermore, Zorc considered Masbatenyo, together with Kinaray-a, Bulalakaw, Hiligayon, Waray, and Surigaonon, as "linking dialects" because they serve as "centers of dialect complexes".
McFarland presented different views on the classification of the language spoken in Masbate. One view excluded Masbate and the southern part of Sorsogon from the Bikol area on the grounds that the language spoken in these areas was not Bikol. The other view considered the language as dialect of Bikol.
Other claim on the language of Masbate was that 'the language and dialects of Masbate are basically Visayan, with the major influence being Cebuano.' Zorc made a subgrouping and reconstruction of the Bisayan dialects and included Masbatenyo in his work. He stated that while it is true that there are immigrants from the areas that speak Bikol, Cebuano and Hiligaynon languages, the "native dialect" throughout the island is Masbatenyo.
Zorc presented four types of intelligibility among the Bisayan languages and dialects: a) natural or primary intelligibility, where speakers of different dialects can communicate freely, even they never hear the other dialect before (e.g. Bulalakawnon and Ratagnon, Capiznon and Hiligaynon); b) learned or secondary intelligibility, where speakers can adjust to another dialect in a matter of time (e.g. Bulalakawnon and Aklanon); c) sesquilingualism, whereby a speaker is fluent in his native language (dialect), but can only understand (not speak) another (Waray and Cebuano, where speakers of both languages can understand both perfectly but speakers of Cebuano understand Waray poorly); and d) one-way intelligibility, whereby A understands B but B does not understand A.
Masbatenyo speakers in the town of Masbate belong to the fourth kind. The residents of the town can readily understand the speech of the outsiders but the outsiders cannot understand the speech of the local residents. Speakers can understand Sorsoganon, Capiznon, Hiligaynon, and Cebuano but the latter experience varying degrees of difficulty in understanding Masbatenyo.
Regarding the duration of the Bisayan occupancy of the Central Philippines, Zorc reported that there are no pre-Hispanic writings that would account for their existence in the area. Zorc stipulated that current speakers of many of the Bisayan languages and dialects could have given up their original languages long ago in favor of an intrusive or more prestigious language, or in favor of the language already spoken in the region that they invaded and conquered.

## Orthography

In 2016, researchers from the Dr. Emilio B. Espinosa Sr. Memorial State College of Agriculture and Technology (DEBESMSCAT) together with the members of newly established Minasbate Language Society, composed of various stakeholders from Masbate, developed a working orthography on the language based on the discussions in the 1st Minasbate Orthography Congress.
The Minasbate Working Orthography distinguishes between the native Minasbate orthography and the extended working orthography.

### Native Minasbaté Orthography

* The following symbols are used in the native Minasbaté orthography:
    Aa, Bb, Dd, Gg, Hh, Ii, Kk, Ll, Mm, Nn, NGng, Pp, Rr, Ss, Tt, Uu, Ww, Yy, ` (for glottal stop)
* Minasbaté has three phonemic vowels (V): Aa, Ii, Uu and 16 consonants (C): Bb, Dd, Gg, Hh, Kk, Ll, Mm, Nn, NGng, Pp, Rr, Ss, Tt, Ww, Yy, ` (for glottal stop).
* The glottal stop is a distinct consonant sound in Minasbaté and part of its alphabet. The grave accent ( ` ) will be used to represent the glottal stop.
** The glottal stop may occur between a C and V, e.g pus`on, bag`o
** It may also occur in the final position of the word, e.g. túro`, pakó`
** The glottal may also occur between two V, e.g. ti`il, di`in, gu`ol,
** The glottal stop is also the obligatory onset of the written syllable that begins with a vowel. It will be symbolized when the word begins with a vowel, e.g. `adlaw, `ako, `amó`
* The syllable pattern of Minasbaté words is CV and CVC, e.g. ba.láy = CV.CVC.
** All Cs can occur in the beginning of a word (onset) or ending (coda). Examples: pahá` 'thirsty,' dakóp 'to catch'
** All Vs are used to form a syllable nucleus. Examples:ba.láy, `a.kó
* In writing stress or accent, the acute accent ( ' ) above the V is used, e.g. buháy, 'alive', dakó`, 'big', ribók 'noise'.
** A stressed non-final syllable is usually lengthened. For example, in the case of búhay 'life' vs buháy 'alive', the syllable bú in 'life' is longer than the syllable bu in 'alive'.
** It is possible to have more than one stress in a word, e.g. hámabáw, `ámamáknit.
** The stress is symbolized by the acute accent ( ' ) if it falls on the last syllable, e.g. hubág, sulód. The stress may not be symbolized if it falls on the penultimate syllable, e.g. gab`i 'night', kiray 'eyebrow'.

### Extended Orthography

The inclusion of borrowed terms in native Minasbaté vocabulary has resulted in the change in the structure of the language. There is a need to develop an extended orthography to accommodate these words.
* The extended orthography will consist of the following:
    Aa "ey", Bb "bi", Cc "si", Dd "di", Ee "I", Ff "ef", Gg "ji", Hh "eych", Ii "ay", Jj "jey", Kk "key", Ll "el", Mm "em", Nn "en", Ññ "enye", NGng "en ji", Oo "o", Pp "pi", Qq "kyu", Rr "ar", Ss "es", Tt "ti", Uu "yu", Vv "vi", Ww "dobol yu", Xx "eks", Yy "way", Zz "zi", ` (for glottal stop)
* All Minasbaté words (native and borrowed) use a, i, e, o and u. The "i" and "e" are indistinct and alternate in written native words and so are/do "o" and "u." The alternation rules are explained below. The "i" and "e" are distinct in borrowed words (e.g. misa vs. mesa).
* The use of the back vowels "u" and "o":
** If the word has only one back vowel sound that occurs in the ultimate position, o is used. Examples: pitó, lisód, li`og, didto, `amó, itóm, nano, ka`aralo. Exceptions: kun
** If the word has more than two back vowels, u is used in the second or third to the last syllable and o is used in the final syllable. Examples: kudkód, bukbók, gu`ól, pumuluyo`, burubaruto, `uru`adlaw, alu`alo, tudló`, katuninungan
** O in borrowed words is retained in writing. Example: ospital, obra, oro
* The use of front vowels "i" and "e":
** All Minasbaté words with an "i" sound will be written as i. Examples: kilmi`, di`ín, didí, silhig, `ikog, tindog, `iní, sin
** e in borrowed words will be retained in writing. Examples: eroplano, ahente, karné, `onse, dose, nwebe, kwento; i will be used to represent the front vowel ("i") that is added in the original form of borrowed words. Examples: `istorya for storia, `isponsor for sponsor, `ismagol for smuggle
* The hyphen will be used in the following instances:
** Reduplication of full words, e.g. tawu-tawo 'toy', balay-balay 'little house', kalan-kalan 'improvised stove'
** Compound words, e.g. tagúm-matá 'conjunctivitis', supa`-tulon 'very easy', atras-abante 'indecisive'
** Affixation of borrowed words that are proper names, e.g. pa-LBC, pa-Manila
** Time expressions, e.g. `alas-dose, `ala-una, `alas-diye
* The hyphen will be used in the following instances:
** Partial reduplication of the word, e.g. burubaruto, not *buru-baruto; burubugsay, not *buru-bugsay
** Affixation of native root words, e.g. ginaka`on, not *gina-kaun; ginsusog, not *gin-susog
** Affixation of borrowed verbs and nouns, e.g. magtext, not *mag-text; pamerkado, not *pamerkado
** Linkers, duha ka bilog, not duha ka-bilog.
* In writing borrowed words, the equivalent sounds in the native Minasbaté will be used to represent the borrowed sounds. The following symbols are used to represent the borrowed sounds:
| Borrowed letters | Minasbaté letters | Examples |
| c when followed by o, u, or a | k | kwarto for cuarto |
| c when followed by i or e | s | sentimo for centimo |
| ch | ts | tsokolate for chocolate |
| f | p | pyesta for fiesta |
| j | h | Hulyo for Julio |
| ll | y or ly | lyabe for llave |
| ñ | ny | Hunyo for Juño |
| q | k | kwestyon vs question |
| v | b | lyabe for llave |
| x | ks | taksi for taxi |
| z | S | sigsag for zigzag |
8. Consonant clusters exist in both native and borrowed words in Minasbaté.
   * In representing the off-glides or the sequence of u and w, and i and y, the vowels are dropped and the w and y are used, e.g. pwede instead of puwede, sya instead of siya, kwento instead of kuwento.
| Consonant Clusters | Examples |
| pl | plato |
| pr | prito |
| pw | pwerta |
| py | pyano |
| tr | trapo |
| tw | twerka |
| ty | tyán |
| kl | klaro |
| kr | krus |
| kw | kwento |
| bl | blangko |
| br | braso |
| bw | bweno |
| by | Byernes |
| dr | drama |
| dw | dwende |
| dy | dyis |
| gl | glorya |
| gr | grasya |
| gw | gwapo |
| my | myintras |
| sw | swerte |
| sy | sya |
| hw | hwebes |
9. The apostrophe symbol ( ' ) is used in contracted words. The particles san and sin are often contracted to the immediately preceding word if it ends in either a glottal or vowel sound. The unstressed vowel can also be deleted in fast speech.
    damó` sin kwartadamo'n kwarta wara` sin tawowara'n tawo darahándar'hán nano manna'man `idto `an`idto'n sadto sansadto'n `ina` `an`ina'n

## Phonology

Masbatenyo has 19 segmental phonemes: 16 consonant sounds /p, t, k, b, d, g, m, n, ŋ, l, r, w, j, s, h, ʔ/ and three vowel sounds /a, ɪ, ʊ/. Post-alveolar sounds /ʃ, tʃ, dʒ/ are also present as a result of loanwords. /ɪ/ has the mid front unrounded, lax vowel [ɛ] (written orthographically as e) as its variant; /ʊ/ has the mid back rounded lax [ɔ] (written orthographically as o) as its variant. The sound [ɛ] only appears in loan words from English and Spanish and occurs in free variation with [ɪ]. Similarly, the sound [ɔ] is a variant of [ʊ] and its occurrence might have been brought by the interaction with the Tagalog language and the incorporation of Spanish and English loan words in Masbatenyo language.
The glottal stop /ʔ/ is the conventional onset of the orthographically vowel-initial words, thus vowels cannot occur in initial position. They only occur in medial and final position.
There are two major syllable patterns in Masbatenyo, namely, open syllable /C(C)V, (C(C)VC)/ and closed syllable /CVC/. Most root words in Masbatenyo are disyllabic (they are composed of two syllables) and follows the CV(C).CV(C) pattern. There are monosyllabic words; however, most of them are functors that have no lexical meaning. Most of the disyllabic words contain an affix, reduplicated or compound.
Masbatenyo also has a suprasegmental phoneme, the stress, which is characterized by vowel length. The acoustic analysis of stress correlates using Praat showed that duration is the most consistent factor that characterizes stress. Stressed syllables are longer than their unstressed counterparts.
The diphthongs in Masbatenyo are: [aw] in sabaw 'soup', [ɪw] in agiw 'soot', [aj] in balay 'house', and [ʊj] or [ɔj] in baboy 'pig'.
Consonant clusters are non-native to Masbatenyo phonology. Their occurrence in the language is brought by the entry of borrowed words from Spanish and English.
The form of a morpheme can change when they are combined to form words or phrases. Such changes are called mophophonemic changes. Among these changes are: vowel deletion; contraction of particles san and sin, assimilation, metathesis, epenthesis and degemination.

## Grammar
### Word formation

Masbatenyo provides support for the claim that root words are pre-categorial or neutral by themselves. Take the following examples: Dakó 'big (size, abstract)' is a root which can express a property or state, as seen in: Dakó an baláy niya 'His house is big'. But it can also be combined with certain affixes to form a process verb in: Nagdaragkó na an atáman 'His pet has grown already.' It can also combine with a determiner, an, to form a noun in the context: Dilí ko nakita an pagdakó san báta niya 'I didn't see his child growing up.'
Dalágan is considered a verb when used in command form: Dalágan! 'Run!' But it can be analyzed as a noun in forms such as Malúya an dalágan san trak niya. 'His truck runs slowly.'
Masbatenyo employs the following operations in deriving new words:
* Affixation, the process to which an affix is attached to a root or an 'intermediate stem; e.g. karaút + m- > maraút 'ugly';
* Reduplication, the repetition of word or part of word to form a new word; e.g., barúto + PWr reduplication > baru-barúto 'mini boat';
* Stress shift, e.g., báyad 'pay' > bayád 'paid'
However, the existence of bare root forms of modifiers (adjectives and adverbs) in Masbatenyo can also provide evidence that root forms also have lexical properties. Examples of this are lab`as 'fresh (fish)' versus lúb`ok 'rotten', hilaw 'raw' versus lutô 'cooked'.

### Noun and noun phrases

Proper and common nouns are distinguishable from each other because they have their respective determiners; proper nouns are marked by si/sinda, ni/ninda, and kan/kanda while common nouns are accompanied by an, san/sin, and sa.
In Masbatenyo, there is a subgroup of common nouns that can be inflected as imitative. The imitative affix can be the reduplicative or the Curu- 'imitative/diminutive'. The reduplicative affix – the reduplication of the whole word – is applicable to a stem that is disyllabic and has open penult (CV). Regardless of the original position of the stress, the stress of the reduplicated form is always in the penult, such as in táwu 'man' > tawu-táwu 'toy'
The Curu- is attached to a stem that has more than two syllables. It also attaches to a stem that has a close penult (CVC). The stress does not shift after reduplication. An example of this is barúto 'boat' > burubarúto 'mini-boat'
Temporal nouns can also be reduplicated and affixed with Curu-. The meaning, however, is no longer imitative. It means 'every …' as illustrated in adláw 'day' > uru`adláw 'everyday'.
Nouns can also be derived from other word classes by adding nominalizing morphemes or voice affixes.
Nominalizing morphemes :
| Affix | Base | Meaning of Derivation | Examples | Root/Stem |
| -ero | N, V | occupation/profession | tindéro 'vendor' | tindá 'to sell' |
| ka- | V | reciprocal action | kaúpod 'companion' | upód 'accompany' |
| | N | result of the action | kautód 'piece' | utód 'cut' |
| para- | N, V | one who regularly does the action occupation/profession | paralába 'laundry washer' paratukdó 'teacher' | labá 'wash (laundry)' tukdó 'teach' |
| pagka- | N, V | nature, essence of ... | pagkatáwo 'human-ness | tawó 'human' |
| pag- | V | abstract entity/concept | pagkáon 'food' | káon 'to eat' |
| paN- | V | abstract entity/concept | pamatyág 'feeling' | batyág 'to feel' |
| taga-/tiga- | N | native of a certain place | taga-Manila 'native of Manila' | Manila 'Manila |
| taga-/tiga- | V | doer of a definite action | tagapudó 'harvester' | pudó 'harvest' |
| tika- | V | almost happening | tikaúran 'will rain' | urán 'rain' |
| tag-/ tig- | N | season/time of | tag`urán 'rainy season | urán 'rain' |
| tag- | N | owner of | tagbaláy 'owner of the house' | baláy 'house' |
| tig- | N | distributive | tig`urúsad 'one each' | usád 'one' |
Nominalizing voice affix :
| Affix | Base | Gloss | Example | Root/Stem |
| -(h)an | N, V | location of a thing, action or process | atubángan 'in front of' | atúbang 'front' |
| -(h)an | V | Instrument | kanáman 'toy' | kánam 'play |
| -(h)an | V | someone addicted to a particular action | kawatán 'thief' | káwat 'to steal' |
| ka-STEM + -an | V | degree, quantity | karaútan 'ugliness' | raút 'ugly' |
| ka-STEM + -an | N | collection or group | ka`igmanghúdan 'brothers' | igmanghúd 'relative/brother' |
| ka-STEM + -an | N | place for N | kahadían 'kingdom' | hádi 'king' |
| -in- | V | resultant state | pinaláypay sinugbá 'smoked fish/meat' | palaypáy sugbá 'to smoke fish/meat' |
| | N | in the manner of | Minásbate 'Masbate style' | Masbáte 'Masbate' |
| -(h)un | N, V | made of/ has the quality of | langitnón 'heavenly' | lángit 'heaven' |
| -(h)un | N, V | something to be V-ed | anihún '(crop) to be harvested' | áni 'harvest' |
| -V$_r$- + -on | V | inherently V | sarawáyon 'mischievous' | sawáy 'mischief' |
Masbatenyo employs three types of possession strategies:
* possessive clauses (may and igwá and oblique phrases sa/kan)
* lexical noun phrases (ni and san/sin constructions)
* genitive case pronouns (personal and demonstrative pronouns)

### Verbs

Masbatenyo verbs, like verbs in other Philippine languages, are marked for their voice, aspect and modality. Further, as Nolasco observed in Philippine languages, voice and tense/aspect/mode often interact and it is sometimes difficult to tease them apart.

#### Aspect

Masbatenyo is marked for aspect to show the condition of the action; whether it has begun or not, and whether it is viewed as a process or in a static state. What is important to the speakers is not a temporal relation of the activity to the moment of speaking, but the internal stages of the activity. It is not marked for tense since its action is not correlated with time.
Masbatenyo has the five aspects: infinitive or neutral, perfective, imperfective, prospective and recent perfective.

#### Mode

Mode describes the speakers' attitude toward a situation, including the speakers' belief in its reality, or likelihood (Payne 1997). It describes the view of the speaker as to how the action is done. The term mode, mood and modality are often used interchangeably. There are at least six types of mode that occur in Masbatenyo:
* indicative
* imperative
* aptative/abilitative
* reciprocal/social
* causative
* distributive
Summary of modes in Masbatenyo :
| Mode | Affix | Meaning |
| Indicative | um, m-, -an, -on, i- | action is performed |
| Imperative | -on, -an, -a, -i | request or command |
| Aptative | paka- | possibility/ accidental |
| Reciprocal | paki(g) | action is done together by the actor and the goal of the action; exchange of actions between two or more actors |
| Causative | pa- | the actor is the reason why the action is done but the actor is not doing the action |
| Distributive | pang- | plurality of an action or that an action is done repeatedly |

### Modifiers

In Masbatenyo, the so-called "adjectives" and "adverbs" are similar morphologically; hence, there exists no persuasive reasons for separating the modifiers of verbs and non-verbs.
Modifiers can either occur in their root forms or they can be inflected by affixes. The first type belongs to a class of unaffixed form of statives. These forms denote that the properties they exhibit are not derived from a process or those that are possessed innately by the thing being described. Examples are lab`as 'fresh (fish)' versus lúb`ok 'rotten', hilaw 'raw' versus lutô 'cooked'.
Affixed forms of the statives are classified according to the affix that attaches to their root forms. There are three types of affixed forms in Masbaenyo:

#### m- type

    The subtype inflected for by the m- replacive affix expresses the state or attribute of the referent or entity being described, e.g., madulom 'dark'.

#### hi-/ha- type

    The second subtype, which is inflected for by the hi-/ha-, is used to describe measurements (depth, height, length), e.g., harayo 'far'; hitaas 'high'.

#### those with voice affix.

    The third subtype is affixed with voice affix.
    Voice affixes deriving stative verbs Affix Lexical Base Gloss Examples Stem/Root -an N, V personal character talawán 'coward' tálaw 'cowardice' V person performing action kawatán 'thief' káwat 'to steal' <in> N manner Minásbaté 'Masbatenyo style' Masbáte 'Masbate' ma- + -on V mental or physical qualities malangáson 'joker' langás 'joke' maka-V$_1$r Stative making one become makaarálo 'embarrassing' álo 'shame' -(a)-n-on N state /human modifier langitnón 'heavenly' lángit 'heaven' -on N, V quality; description of a person buwáon 'liar' tibíhon 'person suffering from tuberculosis' búwà 'lie' tíbi 'tuberculosis' para- V fond of habitual action paralángas 'joker' langás 'to joke'
Masbatenyo modifiers are inflected by means of affixes for four degrees of intensity: basic, comparative, superlative, and intensive.
* Mabuot na bátà si Chai. 'Chai is a kind child.' (Basic)
* Mas maganda si Benj. 'Benj is more beautiful.' (Comparative)
* Pinakamadagmit si Karl. 'Karl is the fastest.' (Superlative)
In Masbatenyo, intensive degree is expressed by the affix ka- accompanied by the non-obligatory particle man attached to bare forms (roots), e.g. Kaganda san boses ni Tinne. 'Tinne's voice is so beautiful.'
Intensive degree may also be expressed by Curu reduplication. ka- intensification also co-occurs with the Curu intensification. Katurutam`is saní na biko. 'This rice cake is very sweet.'
Adverbial properties in Masbatenyo are rather expressed by clitic particles such as na 'already', pa 'still', ngáni 'really', kunó 'reportedly', etc.

### Pronouns

In Philippine-type languages, pronouns replace the full noun phrases in a clause. Pronouns, however, do not take the place of nouns in most expressions (e.g. an bata > siya, not an siya), but do so in oblique phrases (e.g. sa batà 'to the child' > sa iya 'to him/her').
There are five important types of pronouns in Philippine languages: personal pronouns, interrogative pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, reflexive pronouns and indefinite pronouns.
Personal pronouns refer to entities already mentioned in the discourse or known to the hearer. They are classified according to person, case and number.
Masbatenyo personal pronouns :
| | | | Gloss | Absolutive | Absolutive | Ergative | Ergative | Genitive/ Oblique |
| | | | Gloss | free | clitic | free | clitic | free |
| 1st person | singular | singular | 1SG | ako | =ako | ákon | =ko | ákon |
| 1st person | plural | excl | 1+2 | kami | =kami | ámon | =námon | ámon |
| 1st person | plural | incl | 1+2PL | kita | =kita | áton | =náton | áton |
| 2nd person | singular | singular | 2SG | ikaw | =ka/ikaw | ímo | =mo/nímo | ímo |
| 2nd person | plural | plural | 2PL | kamo | =kamo | íyo | =níyo | íyo |
| 3rd person | singular | singular | 3SG | siya | =siya | íya | =níya | íya |
| 3rd person | plural | plural | 3PL | sinda | =sinda | índa | =nínda | índa |
Demonstrative pronouns or deictics refer to entities in relation to distance, and space and also refer to their location on a timeline. In discourse, demonstratives are also used to track reference across clauses. They sometimes take the place of third personal pronouns.
Demonstrative pronouns in Masbatenyo :
| Spatial orientation | Absolutive (S/O) | Ergative (A) | Ergative (A) | Oblique |
| Spatial orientation | Absolutive (S/O) | Non-specific | Specific | Oblique |
| near speaker | iní | siní | saní | didî |
| near hearer | inâ | sinâ | sanâ | didâ |
| far from both | idtó | sidtó | sadtó | didtó |
Interrogative pronouns are those that take place of the nouns in questions. Interrogatives are used when a concept is being questioned and to elicit information so that an item can be identified. The interrogative pronouns are sin`o 'who', náno 'what', pan`o 'how', san`o 'when', pirá 'how much', háin 'where', and diín 'where'.
Nano kay 'why' differs from the rest of interrogative words since it does not replace a noun phrase but an entire clause. It consists of the interrogative pronoun náno and the reason particle kay.
Reflexive pronouns are special words which refer to the same referent in a construction. It is made up of the word sadíri plus the relevant pronoun, as in the phrase sa sadíri niya or sa iya sadíri.
Indefinite pronouns refer to entities, persons, places or times which cannot be clearly established. The indefinite pronouns can either be expressed in two ways:
* by the same form as the interrogatives plus the particle man
* by the use of the connectors bísan 'even, including', máski 'even though' or kun 'if' plus interrogative word
Amó is a general pro-form that can be used to replace any noun, verb, modifier, or even whole clauses. Wolfenden refers to amó as the universal substitute. Amo is also used to track an antecedent in a previous sentence.

### Numeral terms

Masbatenyo has native terms for numbers. However, in the domain of money and time, Spanish terms are used. Numerals typically go with nouns to specify the number of items talked about. They can also modify verbs and other predicates to indicate degree and quantity of action.
Numeral expressions in Masbatenyo :
| Numeral | Cardinal | Ordinal | Distributive | Time expression |
| one | isád/uno | primiro | tig-isád | ala-úna |
| two | duwá/duhá/dos | ikaduwá | tigduwá | alas-dos |
| three | tuló/tres | ikatuló | tigtuló | alas-tres |
| four | upát/kwatro | ikaupát | tig-upát | alas-kwatro |
| five | lima/singko | ikalimá | tiglimá | alas-singko |
| six | unóm/sais | ikaunóm | tig-unóm | alas-sais |
| seven | pitó/syete | ikapitó | tigpitó | alas-syete |
| eight | waló/otso | ikawaló | tigwaló | alas-otso |
| nine | siyám/nwebe | ikasiyám | tigsyám | alas-nwebe |
| ten | napúlo/dyis | pangnapúlò | tignapúlò | alas-dyis |
| eleven | ónse | pang-ónse | tig-ónse | alas-ónse |
| twelve | dose | pandóse | tigdóse | alas-dóse |
| thirteen | trese | pantrese | tigtrese | |
| twenty | beynte | pambeynte | tigbeynte | |
| thirty | treynta | pantreynta | tigtreynta | |
| one-hundred | syin/isád ka gatús | | tigsyin | |
| one thousand | mil/isád ka líbo | | tig`isád ka líbo | |

#### Basic mathematical operations

The following are basic mathematical operations in Masbateño:
* one plus one equals two (1 + 1 = 2) – An usad gindagdagan san usad, duha/duwa ka bilog
* two times two equals four (2 x 2 = 4) – An duwa ginpilô san duwa na bes, nagin upat
* eight minus five equals three (8 – 5 = 3) – An walo gin-ibanan san lima, tulo an nabilin
* nine divided by three equals three (9 ÷ 3 = 3) – An siyam ginbarahin sa tulo, tig-turulo

#### Advanced algebraic operations

The following are advanced algebraic operations in Masbateño:
* x raised to the power of y, or in symbols, (x^y). In Minasbate, an x piluon sa y na beses.
* square root of x, or in symbols, sqrt(x). In Minasbate, an ikaduha na gamot san x o an numero na pinilo sa duwa na beses na nagin x.
* x over y, or in symbols, x/y. In Minasbate, x kada y.
* one and a half plus two and one-fourth equals three and three-fourths, or in symbols, 1 1/2 + 2 1/4 = 3 3/4. In Minasbate, an usad kag katunga gindagdagan san duha kag kaupat, tulo kag tulo-kaupat tanan.

## Useful terms and expressions
### Parts of the body

| English | Tagalog | Masbatenyo | IPA Transcription |
| ankle | bukung-bukong, sakong | tikód | [tɪ'kɔd] |
| arm | bisig | butkún | [bʊt'kʊn] |
| armpit | kili-kili | kilikili | [kɪlɪˈkɪlɪ] |
| back | likod | likod | [lɪ'kɔd] |
| beard | balbas | barbas | [bar'bas] |
| belly | tiyan | tiyan | [tɪ'jan] |
| bile | apdu | apdû | [ʔapˈdʊʔ] |
| blood | dugo | dugô | [dʊ'gɔʔ] |
| body | katawan | lawas | ['lawas] |
| breast | suso | dudu | ['dʊdʊ] |
| buttocks | puwit, puwitan | bubót | [bʊˈbɔt] |
| cheek | pisngi | pisngi | [pɪs'ŋɪ] |
| chest | dibdib | dughán | [dʊg'han] |
| chin | baba | babà, sulan, sulay | ['babaʔ], [sʊˈlan], ['sʊˈlaɪ̯] |
| curly hair | kurong | kurung | [kʊˈrʊŋ] |
| ear | tainga | talinga | [ta'lɪŋa] |
| elbow | siko | siko | ['sɪkɔ] |
| eye | mata | mata | [maˈta] |
| eyebrow | kilay | kíray | ['kɪɾaɪ̯] |
| face | mukha | bayhón | [bajˈhɔn] |
| finger | daliri | tudlo | [tʊd'lʊʔ] |
| fingernail | kuko | kuko | [kʊ'kɔ] |
| forehead | noo | agtang | [ʔagˈtaŋ] |
| foot | paa | tiíl | [tɪˈʔɪl] |
| gray hair | uban | uban | ['ʔʊban] |
| hair | buhok | buhok | [bʊ'hɔk] |
| hand | kamay | kamút | [kaˈmʊt] |
| head | ulo | úlo | ['ʔʊlɔ] |
| heart | puso | puso | [pʊsɔʔ] |
| intestines | bituka | tinái | [tɪ'naʔɪ] |
| jaw | panga | pangá | [pa'ŋa] |
| knee | tuhod | tuhod | ['tʊhɔd] |
| left (hand) | kaliwa | walá | [wa'la] |
| lip | labi | ngawít | [ŋa'wɪt] |
| liver | atay | atáy | [ʔa'taɪ̯] |
| lungs | baga | bagà | ['bagaʔ] |
| mouth | bibig | bibíg | [bɪˈbɪg] |
| nail (finger or toe) | kuko | kukó | [kʊ'kɔ] |
| nape | batok | lùong | [lʊ'ʔɔŋ] |
| navel | pusod | pusod | ['pʊsɔd] |
| neck | leeg | líog | ['lɪʔʊg] |
| nose | ilong | iróng | [ʔɪ'rʊŋ] |
| palm (hand) | palad | pálad | ['palad] |
| penis | ari ng lalaki, utin, titi, buto | butò | ['bʊtʊʔ] |
| rib | tadyang | gúsok | ['gʊsɔk] |
| right (hand) | kanan | tuó | [tʊ'ʔɔ] |
| shoulder | balikat | abága | [ʔa'baga] |
| skull | bungo | bungô, alimpatakan | [bʊ'ŋɔʔ], [ʔalɪmpaˈtakan] |
| stomach | tiyan | tiyan | [tɪ'jan] |
| thigh | hita | híta | ['hɪtaʔ] |
| throat | lalamunan | tutunlán | [tʊtʊnˈlan] |
| toe | daliri sa paa | tudlô | ['tʊdlɔʔ] |
| tooth | ngipin | ngípon | ['ŋɪpɔn] |
| vagina | pekpek, puki | putáy | [pʊ'taɪ̯] |

### Animals

| English | Tagalog | Masbatenyo | IPA Transcription |
| ant | langgam | guyom, hurmigas | ['gʊjɔm]; [hʊr'mɪgas] |
| bird | ibon | sapát | [sa'pat] |
| butterfly | paruparo | alibangbang | [ʔalɪˈbaŋbaŋ] |
| cat | pusa | miyà | [mɪjaʔ] |
| chick | sisiw | pisû | [pɪ'sʊʔ] |
| chicken | manok | manok | [ma'nɔk] |
| cockroach | ipis | kuratsa | [kʊ'ratsa] |
| carabao | kalabaw | karabáw | [karaˈbaʊ̯] |
| crocodile | buwaya | buwáya | [bʊ'waja] |
| crow | uwak | uwák | [ʔʊ'wak] |
| deer | usa | usa | ['ʔʊsa] |
| dog | aso | ido, ayam | [ʔɪdʊʔ], ['ʔajam] |
| eel | igat (freshwater) palos (saltwater) | palós | [pa'lɔs] |
| fish | isda | isdâ | [ʔɪs'daʔ] |
| fly (the insect) | langaw (small), bangaw (big) | lángaw | ['laŋaʊ̯] |
| frog | palaka | pakâ | [pa'kaʔ] |
| mosquito | lamok | lamúk | [la'mʊk] |
| octopus | pugita | pugíta | [pʊˈgɪta] |
| pig | baboy | baboy | ['babɔɪ̯] |
| snake | ahas | sawá | [sa'wa] |
| spider | gagamba | lawà | ['lawaʔ] |

### Adjectives/Modifiers

| English | Tagalog | Masbatenyo | IPA Transcription |
| alive | buhay | buháy | [bʊˈhaɪ̯] |
| all | lahat | tanán | [ta'nan] |
| awake | gising | matá | [ma'ta] |
| bald | kalbo | kalbo | [kalbɔ] |
| beautiful | maganda | magandá | [maganˈda] |
| big | malaki | dakû | [daˈkʊʔ] |
| bitter | mapait | mapaít | [mapaʔɪt] |
| black | itim, maitim | itúm, maitúm | [ʔɪ'tʊm], [maʔɪ'tʊm] |
| clean | malinis | malínis, limpio | [ma'lɪnɪs], ['lɪmpjɔ] |
| cold (objects) | malamig | matúgnaw | [maˈtʊgnaʊ̯] |
| cold (weather) | maginaw, malamig | mahágkot | [ma'hagkɔt] |
| curly hair | kulot | kurúng | [kʊˈrʊŋ] |
| dark, dim | madilim | madulúm | [madʊ'lʊm] |
| deaf | bingi | bungól | [bʊˈŋɔl] |
| deep | malalim | madalúm / hidarúm | [mada'lʊm] |
| dumb (mute) | pipi | apâ | [ʔa'paʔ] |
| far | malayo | harayû | [hara'jʊʔ] |
| fast | mabilis | madagmít / matulin | [madag'mɪt] |
| few | kaunti, iilan | dyútay / diyút | [djʊ'taɪ̯] |
| first | una | úna, primero | ['ʔʊna], [prɪ'merɔ] |
| foul-smelling | mabaho | mabahò | [ma'bahʊʔ] |
| fragrant | mabango | mahumot | [maˈhʊmɔt] |
| full (after eating) | busog | busóg | [bʊˈsɔg] |
| full (not empty) | puno | punô | [pʊ'nʊʔ] |
| good | mabuti | mabúot, maayo | [ma'bʊʔɔt], [maˈʔajʊ] |
| healthy | malusog | mabaskog | [ma'baskog] |
| heavy | mabigat | mabug-at | [mabʊgˈʔat] |
| hungry | gutom | gutóm | [gʊ'tɔm] |
| last | huli | urhí | [ʔʊrˈhɪ] |
| light | magaan(g) | magaán | [maga'ʔan] |
| many | marami | damû | [daˈmʊʔ] |
| narrow | makitid | mapiot | [mapiot] |
| rotten (as fruit) | sira | lupâ | [lu'pâ] |
| rotten (log) | bulok | lub-ok | [lʊb'ʔɔk] |
| shallow | mababaw | hamábaw | [haˈmabaʊ̯] |
| sharp (knife) | matalim, matalas | matarúm | [mata'rʊm] |
| short | maliit (size), maikli, maiksi (length), pandak (height) | dyutáy, putót | [djʊ'taɪ̯], [pʊ'tɔt] |
| sleepy | inaantok | ginapiráw | [gɪnapɪˈraʊ̯] |
| slow | mabagal | mahínay | [maˈhɪnaɪ̯] |
| small | maliit | dyutáy | [djʊˈtaɪ̯] |
| sweet | matamis | matam-is | [matam'ʔɪs] |
| thick | makapal | dakmól | [dakˈmɔl] |
| thin | manipis | manipís | [manɪ'pɪs] |
| thin (human) | payat | maníwang | [ma'nɪwaŋ] |
| thirsty | uhaw | uháw | [ʔʊ'haʊ̯] |
| tight | masikip | gutók | [gʊ'tɔk] |
| ugly | pangit | maraót | [mara'ʔɔt] |
| warm (weather), warm (humid) | mainit, maalinsangan | maínit | [ma'ʔɪnɪt] |
| weak | mahina | maluya | [maˈlʊja] |
| wet | basa | basâ | [ba'saʔ] |
| wide | malawak | halápad | [haˈlapad] |
| wrong | mali | malî | [ma'lɪʔ] |

### Common phrases

* I hate you! – Badli ako sa imo! / Habo ko sa imo!
* I love you. – Namomo-ot ako sa imo. Namumot-an ta ikaw. (Bicolano-influenced)
* I love you. – Palangga ta ikaw. (Masbate Mainland)
* Let's talk. – Mag-istoryahan kita.
* Can I join? – Pwede ako kaintra?
* Pleased to meet you. – Malipay ako na nagbagat kita.
* How you doin'? – Matiano ka dida?
* Please let me know. – Ipaaram la sa akon.
* Please help me. – Buligi man ako.
* Can you teach me? – Pwede mo ba ako matukduan? Pwede magpatukdo?
* I want to learn Masbatenyo. – Gusto ko makaaram mag-istoryahan san Masbatenyo.
* Good morning! – Maayo na aga!
* Good afternoon! – Maayo na hapon!
* Good evening! – Maayo na gab-i!
* Good night! – Turog maayo.
* Let's eat. – Karaon na kita.
* You're (really) beautiful. – Kaganda mo (gayud).
* Please call me. – Tawagi tabi ako.
* Can I ask you a favor? – Pwede mangayo pabor (o bulig)?

## Literary works

Pulong Ko Yadto
   Pulong ko yadto mato-od kag tunay An imo sa akon tuga na pagmahal Nano an nangyari kay imo guin bayaan Mga pangako mo san nag-agi na adlaw Mili kay sugad an akon kamotangan Imo guin bayaan, imo guin bayaan Nagtios sin labi na kasakitan Kay gusto mo ada na ako mamatay Kon dili pa lamang an akon paglaom Sa imo binilin na mga surmaton Di kunta nagios inin tagipusu-on Di kunta nasayang inin lawas nakon.