{"id":1869,"date":"2015-12-04T15:35:46","date_gmt":"2015-12-04T07:35:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guide\/?p=1869"},"modified":"2021-06-29T18:01:32","modified_gmt":"2021-06-29T10:01:32","slug":"10-common-filipino-words-expats-can-use-to-talk-like-a-local","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/2015\/12\/04\/10-common-filipino-words-expats-can-use-to-talk-like-a-local\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Common Filipino Words Expats Can Use to Talk Like a Local"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Language barrier has always been a hurdle for expats living in a foreign country. The best way to make communication easier for a foreigner and a local is learning the local language. Learn some local words and they will appreciate you for it! Here are 10 common Filipino words you can use to help your conversations with a local easier:<\/span><\/p>\n

Kamusta (also kumusta)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

When starting a conversation, the daily greetings \u201cMagandang Umaga\u201d (Good morning), \u201cMagandang Hapon\u201d(Good afternoon), and \u201cMagandang Gabi\u201d (Good evening), are almost always followed by the Tagalog word \u201cKamusta\u201d which translates to\u2014How\u00a0 are you?<\/em> in English. To know how a local is doing, you can say: Kamusta<\/em><\/strong> ka? (How are you?)<\/span><\/p>\n

Oo\/ Hindi<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Usual conversations include questions answerable by a yes or no. In Filipino, \u201coo\u201d means yes while \u201chindi\u201d means no. For example, when asked if you are coming to the party, you can say \u201cOo<\/em><\/strong>, I\u2019m coming.\u201d (Yes, I\u2019m coming.) or \u201cHindi, <\/em><\/strong>I\u2019m not\u201d. It\u2019s okay to mix Filipino words with English expressions as the locals also do it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ewan<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

When having no idea what to reply in a conversation or a question, you can use the Filipino word \u201cEwan\u201d that means I don\u2019t know<\/em> in English. For example, if someone asks you how much a Rolex watch is and you are absolutely clueless about its price, you can simply say: \u201cEwan<\/strong>.\u201d (I don\u2019t know) Avoid raising your voice or stressing the word though as it might come off as impolite or brash.<\/span><\/p>\n

Teka<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

If someone is in a hurry but you still need some time to talk to him\/her further, you can say \u201cTeka\u201d that means wait<\/em> or hang on<\/em> in English. For example, when someone says \u201cI have to go,\u201d you can reply \u201cTeka<\/strong>, I have something to say.\u201d<\/strong>(Wait, I have something to say.)<\/span><\/p>\n

Bakit<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

When already in a deep conversation, you might have some follow-up questions regarding why a certain thing happened. \u201cBakit\u201d is the Filipino term for the question word why<\/em>. So you can simply ask, \u2018Bakit?\u2019 when you are wondering about the reason for something.<\/span><\/p>\n

Magkano<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMagkano\u201d is the Filipino term for How much?<\/em> If you want to buy something, example, a bag and are wondering about its price, say: \u201cMagkano<\/strong>?\u201d (How much is this bag?)<\/span><\/p>\n

Maraming salamat<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Having an attitude of gratitude is appreciated in all cultures. Locally, you can express this by saying \u2018Maraming salamat\u2019 which is the equivalent of Thank you very much.<\/em> A simple \u2018Salamat\u2019 will also do as it means Thank you.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Patawad po<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPatawad po\u201d is used when you want to ask for forgiveness to someone in case you did something wrong. It is the Filipino way of saying I\u2019m sorry deeply. For example, you bumped into someone unintentionally, you can say: \u201cPatawad po<\/strong>.\u201d (I\u2019m sorry.)<\/span><\/p>\n

Opo<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

To further adapt to the Filipino traditional conversation, expats must learn to use this honorific Filipino term. \u201cOpo\u201d is used when talking to someone older or someone with a higher rank.\u00a0 It is a more respectful term to say \u2018yes\u2019 compared to \u201cOo.\u201d For example, when asked the question: \u201cPupunta ka ba sa pagdiriwang?\u201d (Are coming to the party?). You can answer: \u201cOpo<\/strong>.\u201d (Yes.)<\/span><\/p>\n

Para<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

This Filipino term is useful when you are riding a jeepney or a tricycle. When you have reached your destination and you want the driver to stop, you can say \u201cPara.\u201d This will signal the driver that you want to get off the vehicle. For example, if you are going to a shopping mall and you have noticed that it\u2019s time for you to get off the jeepney, simply say: \u201cPara<\/strong>.\u201d (Please stop.)<\/span><\/p>\n

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Article by Philippine Primer Staff<\/em><\/p>\n

Photo by nomadisbeautiful.com<\/a> via definitelyfilipino.com<\/a>
\n<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Language barrier has always been a hurdle for expats living in a foreign country. The best way to make communication easier for a foreigner and a local is learning the local language. Learn some local words and they will appreciate you for it! Here are 10 common Filipino words you can use to help your conversations with a local easier: Kamusta (also kumusta) When starting a conversation, the daily greetings \u201cMagandang Umaga\u201d (Good morning), \u201cMagandang Hapon\u201d(Good afternoon), and \u201cMagandang Gabi\u201d (Good evening), are almost always followed by the Tagalog word \u201cKamusta\u201d which translates to\u2014How\u00a0 are you? in English. To know how a local is doing, you can say: Kamusta ka? […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1871,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1730,1729],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture-and-history","category-everyday-life-hacks"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1869"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9207,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869\/revisions\/9207"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1871"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/tips-guides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}