“Left” in every Philippine language
Left across 9 languages, and what the differences tell you.
Last updated
Side by side
| Language | Left |
|---|---|
| English | Left |
| Tagalog | Kaliwa |
| Ilocano | Kannigid |
| Cebuano | Wala |
| Hiligaynon | Wala |
| Waray | Wala |
| Bikol | Wala |
| Kapampangan | Kaili |
| Pangasinan | Kawigi |
What the pattern shows
The most dangerous word on this page. 'Wala' means left in four of these languages and 'none' in Tagalog — so a Tagalog speaker hearing directions in Cebu can understand the sentence and take the wrong turn.
Where they agree
- Wala — Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Waray, Bikol
Standing alone: English (Left), Tagalog (Kaliwa), Ilocano (Kannigid), Kapampangan (Kaili) and Pangasinan (Kawigi).
More directions
Where this comes from
This row is one of 84 concept pages drawn from a parallel set of everyday vocabulary held across nine languages. You can browse all of them, download the whole set under CC BY-SA 4.0, or paste text to find out which language it is.
Compiled from published general reference and pending review by native speakers. If something here is wrong in a language you speak, please tell us.