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“Sweet” in every Philippine language

Sweet across 9 languages, and what the differences tell you.

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Side by side

Sweet in 9 Philippine languages and English
LanguageSweet
EnglishSweet
TagalogMatamis
IlocanoNasam-it
CebuanoTam-is
HiligaynonMatam-is
WarayMatam-is
BikolMahamis
KapampanganMayumu
PangasinanMasamit

What the pattern shows

Tam-is is the root, and almost every language wraps it in its own adjective prefix — ma-, na-. Bikol mahamis differs by a single consonant; Kapampangan mayumu is the one form here unrelated to the rest.

Where they agree

  • Matam-is Hiligaynon, Waray

Standing alone: English (Sweet), Tagalog (Matamis), Ilocano (Nasam-it), Cebuano (Tam-is), Bikol (Mahamis), Kapampangan (Mayumu) and Pangasinan (Masamit).

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Where this comes from

This row is one of 161 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.