Questions · Titas and titos

Questions for your titas and titos, instead of the usual ones

Every Filipino knows the tita questions: “Tumaba ka!”, “May boyfriend ka na?”, “Kailan ka mag-aasawa?”. Here are better ones, in both directions: questions to ask your tita (aunt) and tito (uncle), and questions they can ask you instead.

  • 17 questions
  • EN + TL on every card
  • Free in the app
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Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.

Icebreakers№ 48

Recall a harmless mistake that became a good story later.

Anong pagkakamali ang nakakatawa nang balikan ngayon, na wala namang nasaktan?

Tap to flipkumustahan
A note

What would the title of this story be?

Ano ang magiging pamagat ng kuwentong ito?

Tap to returnkumustahan

The questions

17 questions for titas, titos and their nieces and nephews

Every question in English and Filipino/Tagalog, word for word from the Kumustahan decks. Open “Back of the card” for the reflection printed on the other side.

Instead of “tumaba ka”

5 questions

Silly, harmless questions a tita can ask that won’t make anyone hide in the kitchen.

  1. Which everyday invention from the future would you most want to see?

    Anong pang-araw-araw na gamit mula sa future ang gusto mong makita?

    Back of the card

    Give the invention a name people could remember.

    Bigyan ang imbensiyon ng pangalang madaling tandaan.

  2. Pick a tiny superpower that would make things easier.

    Pick one tiny superpower na magpapadali ng ginagawa mo.

    Back of the card

    Tiny superpowers are best when they solve tiny annoyances. Not every power needs a cape; some just need shorter lines.

    Best ang tiny superpowers kapag tiny annoyances ang sinosolve. Hindi lahat kailangan ng cape; minsan shorter lines lang.

  3. Pick a mascot for your current mood: sleepy, dramatic, cheerful, chaotic, or something else.

    Pumili ng mascot para sa current mood mo: sleepy, dramatic, cheerful, chaotic, o iba pa.

    Back of the card

    Current mood is sometimes easier to explain through a mascot. It can be tired, dramatic, cheerful, or strangely accurate.

    Minsan mas madaling i-explain ang current mood gamit mascot. Puwedeng pagod, dramatic, cheerful, o weirdly accurate.

  4. If you could open a tiny shop just for fun, what would it sell?

    Kung magbubukas ka ng maliit na tindahan for fun, ano ang ibebenta mo?

    Back of the card

    What would you call your shop?

    Ano ang ipapangalan mo sa tindahan?

  5. Pitch one useless invention you would still buy.

    I-pitch ang useless invention na bibilhin mo pa rin.

    Back of the card

    A useless invention can still understand your heart. Sometimes the appeal is not usefulness, just delight.

    May useless invention na gets pa rin ang puso mo. Hindi laging usefulness ang point; minsan delight lang.

Ask tita about her barkada days

5 questions

Every tita had a barkada. Most of them have stories.

  1. Tell about a ride home with friends that you still remember.

    Magkuwento ng pag-uwi kasama ang friends na naaalala mo pa.

    Back of the card

    You could remember just the last thing someone said before you parted.

    Puwedeng balikan ang huling sinabi bago kayo naghiwa-hiwalay.

  2. Which song takes you back to a particular time with friends?

    Anong kanta ang nagpapaalala sa'yo ng isang panahon ninyo ng friends mo?

    Back of the card

    Picture where everyone was when the song came on.

    Isipin kung nasaan ang lahat noong tumugtog ang kanta.

  3. If you and your friends had just one free hour, how would you spend it together?

    Kung isang oras lang kayong lahat libre, ano ang gagawin ninyo?

    Back of the card

    Save a few minutes at the end for one thing you would not want to rush.

    Puwede kang maglaan ng ilang minuto sa dulo para sa bagay na ayaw mong madaliin.

  4. What failed plan with friends turned into a good memory?

    Anong pumalpak na plano kasama ang friends ang naging masayang memory?

    Back of the card

    The failed plan can be the story's best plot twist.

    Puwedeng ang pumalpak na plano ang pinakamagandang plot twist sa kuwento.

  5. Which simple hangout with a friend would you happily repeat?

    Anong simpleng bonding kasama ang friend ang gusto mong ulitin?

    Back of the card

    Same place, same activity, different weather. Would you still choose it?

    Parehong lugar at gagawin, pero iba ang panahon. Pipiliin mo pa rin ba ito?

Tito’s funniest stories

4 questions

For the tito who turns every story into a performance.

  1. Think of someone in your circle who can turn anything into a funny story.

    Isipin yung tao sa circle niyo na kayang gawing funny story kahit simpleng bagay lang.

    Back of the card

    Every circle has someone who makes ordinary stories funnier than expected. Naming them is also a tiny thank-you.

    May tao talagang nagpapasaya ng simpleng kwento. Kapag naalala mo siya, parang small thank-you na rin.

  2. Tell a funny story about overreacting to a tiny problem.

    Kailan ka napasobra ng reaction sa simpleng problema na natatawanan mo na ngayon?

    Back of the card

    How would you tell it if the tiny problem were the villain in the story?

    Paano mo ito ikukuwento kung ang maliit na problema ang kontrabida sa kuwento?

  3. What funny experience made you late to meet a friend?

    Anong nakakatawang nangyari kaya ka na-late sa pagkikita ninyo ng friend?

    Back of the card

    Retell the delay as a very dramatic excuse, if you like.

    Kung gusto mo, ikuwento ang pagka-late na parang sobrang dramatic na palusot.

  4. Recall a harmless mistake that became a good story later.

    Anong pagkakamali ang nakakatawa nang balikan ngayon, na wala namang nasaktan?

    Back of the card

    What would the title of this story be?

    Ano ang magiging pamagat ng kuwentong ito?

For titas to ask the pamangkin

3 questions

Questions for nieces and nephews about what they’re actually into.

  1. Which small adulting skill are you proud you can do now?

    Anong small adulting skill ang proud kang kaya mo na ngayon?

    Back of the card

    Adulting skills can be funny and real at the same time. Paying, fixing, calling, cooking, asking: they all count.

    Nakakatawa pero real ang adulting skills. Magbayad, mag-ayos, tumawag, magluto, magtanong: counted lahat yan.

  2. Recall the last time you tried something new just because you were curious.

    Ikuwento ang huling beses na sumubok ka ng bago dahil curious ka lang.

    Back of the card

    Would you try it again, or was once enough?

    Susubukan mo ba ulit, o sapat na ang minsan?

  3. If you had one free hour every week, what hobby would you go back to?

    Kung may isang free hour ka every week, anong hobby ang babalikan mo?

    Back of the card

    A hobby you miss can point to a part of you that still wants some space.

    Yung hobby na nami-miss mo minsan tumuturo sa part ng sarili mo na gusto pa rin ng konting space.

How to use them

Before you ask

In Filipino families, tita and tito cover far more than your parents’ siblings. They’re your parents’ cousins, their best friends, the neighbor who watched you after school, and, abroad, practically every Filipino adult at church. That is a lot of relatives asking the same three questions at every party.

The fix is to hand them better ones. Titas and titos love to talk about their own youth: the barkada, the ride home after a party, the song that takes them back. Ask about that and the conversation flips from interrogation to storytelling, usually with laughter from the whole table.

If you’re the tita, the first and last groups are for you: questions that are fun to answer and don’t touch weight, grades, salary or marriage plans. Every card has the Tagalog and the English, so it works whether your pamangkin (niece or nephew) grew up in Quezon City or Queens.

Good for

  • Family parties and reunions
  • Christmas with the extended family
  • Titas of the barkada (your mom’s friends)
  • Cousins’ birthdays with the whole clan

Tips

  1. Ask a tita to tell a story about your parent when they were young. She will.
  2. Titas: compliment something other than appearance. Ask about a hobby instead.
  3. Let the tito with the loudest laugh go first. He sets the tone.
  4. If someone asks “kailan ka mag-aasawa?”, hand them a card. It works surprisingly well.

Decks for this

Titas and titos

Frequently asked questions

What can I ask my tita and tito?

Ask about their barkada days, the funniest thing that happened to them, a ride home or a song from their youth. Titas and titos usually love telling stories about when they were young.

What should titas ask instead of “may boyfriend ka na?”

Light, fun questions about the pamangkin’s interests, hobbies and opinions: a fake job title that suits them, a hobby they would go back to, the last time they tried something new.

Why do Filipinos call older people tita and tito?

Tita (aunt) and tito (uncle) are also used for parents’ friends and other adults of that generation as a sign of respect and closeness, not only for blood relatives.

Bring a better question to the table.

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