Filipino Pronouns and Tagalog Po at OpoTo show respect Filipino pronouns are rendered in the plural form. Tagalog native speakers usually use "po" and "opo" when adressing the elderly and people in authority. Where respect needs to be consistently shown as a cultural nuance, the pronouns should be rendered in the plural. Note the sentence below: Lumalapit po kami sa inyo para masagot ang ilan naming katanungan. (We come to you so some of our questions will be answered.) The use of "po" requires that the pronouns for you/us/our be unified. The sentence below lacks unity and must be checked: Lumalapit po kami sa iyo para masagot ang ilan naming katanungan.(We come to you so some of our questions will be answered). The second sentence uses the regular pronoun for "you" (iyo) which is not consistent with the polite nuance of the sentence. [Please note that we're using the word "polite" here as a synonym for "respectful".] This regular pronoun is more correct if the Tagalog sentence did not use "po": Lumalapit kami sa iyo para masagot ang ilan naming katanungan. Other Filipino pronouns used in this light are: kayo/ninyo/inyo (second person, plural) is used even if only one person is addressed if the speaker wants to give respect:
When addressing people formally, a higher order of respect is required. In this instance use the pronouns sila/kanila/nila (third person,plural).
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