TAGALOG MONOSYLLABIC ROOTS

Tagalog words are, or are based on, two-syllable or three-syllable stems. These disyllabic or trisyllabic items are in their turn based on monosyllabic roots. For instance, the following terms seem to be based on the root √kad “foot”: lákad “walk”, lakád “bare-footed”, *kadkád ▸ kaladkád “drag, shuffle”, *ka-dag ▸ karág “heavy footstep”, síkad “kick”, singkád “in one jump” (e.g. santaóñg singkád “a full year”), takád “base, foundation” ▸ *t-ay-akád ▸ tayakád “mobile hut”, *t-i-akád ▸ tiyakád “stilt”, tangkád “high-legged” ▸ *t-ay-angkád ▸ tayangkád “long-legged”, tákad “a bamboo stem left for regrowth”, *k-i-ad ▸ kiyád ▸ takiyád ▸ takyád “stilt”.