Cebuano to English Phrasebook

Greetings

The opener changes in every one of these languages — this is the fastest way to tell them apart.

Greetings: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Maayong buntagpending review	Good morning	Every one of these is literally 'good' + 'morning', and the word for 'good' is the giveaway: maayo in the Visayan languages, maupay in Waray, marhay in Bikol, mayap in Kapampangan, maabig in Pangasinan, naimbag in Ilocano.
Maayong haponpending review	Good afternoon
Maayong gabiipending review	Good evening
Maayong adlawpending review	Good day
Kumusta ka?pending review	How are you?	The one phrase that is effectively identical everywhere, because all eight borrowed it from Spanish '¿cómo está?'. Do not read that as evidence the languages are close.
Maayo rapending review	I'm fine
Ayo-ayopending review	Goodbye	Cebuano 'ayo-ayo' and Hiligaynon 'halong' both mean 'take care' rather than 'farewell'; a bare word for goodbye is uncommon in the Visayan languages, and 'bye' is what people actually say.
Maayong gabiipending review	Good night (on parting)	The word for good behaves here as it does in every greeting on this site; it is the second half worth looking at. Rabii, gabii, gab-i, banggi, bengi and labi are six forms that rhyme more than they match.
Dugay na ta wala magkitapending review	Long time no see	Cebuano and Hiligaynon both build this on dugay. Waray reaches for maiha instead — and its sentence carries waray itself, the negator the language is named after.

Courtesy

Thank you, sorry, yes and no.

Courtesy: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Salamatpending review	Thank you	Ilocano is the odd one out. 'Salamat' is understood in Ilocos, but 'agyamanak' — literally 'I am grateful' — is the native form and the one a speaker will use back to you.
Daghang salamatpending review	Thank you very much	The intensifier is the tell: daghan (Cebuano), madamo (Hiligaynon), damo (Waray), dakula (Bikol), dakal (Kapampangan), dakel (Pangasinan) — all meaning 'many', none of them the Tagalog 'marami'.
Walay sapayanpending review	You're welcome	Waray's own name comes from this construction — 'waray' is the word for 'none', and the language is named after how often outsiders heard it.
Oopending review	Yes	Four different words for yes across eight languages. Kapampangan 'wa' and Pangasinan 'on' are unrecognisable to a Tagalog speaker, and machine translation frequently passes them through untouched.
Dilipending review	No	Ilocano also uses 'saan' for no, which is a genuine trap: 'saan' is 'where' in Tagalog. Hiligaynon 'indi' and Waray 'diri' look alike but Waray 'diri' collides with Hiligaynon 'diri', meaning 'here'.
Pasayloa kopending review	Sorry	In everyday speech 'sorry' and 'pasensya' are what most speakers actually say in all eight; the native forms above are what you will see written.
Palihugpending review	Please	None of these behave like English 'please'. They are requests in their own right — Cebuano 'palihug' is closer to 'do me the favour' — and are usually attached to the verb rather than added at the end.
Tabi langpending review	Excuse me	Tabi is the shared form: Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol all build on it and differ only in what follows — lang, anay, po. Tagalog makikiraan and Ilocano umisu man share nothing with it, or with each other.
Walay problemapending review	No problem	The word for 'none' is the giveaway: wala, awan, walay, waray, mayo. Waray-speakers are named after theirs.
Ayo-ayopending review	Take care	Cebuano ayo-ayo and Hiligaynon halong appear again as those languages' entry for goodbye. A Visayan farewell is usually an instruction to look after yourself rather than a word for parting.

Introductions

Names and first meetings.

Introductions: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Unsa'y imong ngalan?pending review	What is your name?	Kapampangan shares no root here at all — 'nanu' for what, 'lagyu' for name — which is a fair summary of how far Central Luzon sits from everything else on this list.
Ang akong ngalan kay…pending review	My name is…
Nalipay ko nga nailhan tikapending review	Nice to meet you
Taga-asa ka?pending review	Where are you from?	Same frame, eight different question words bolted onto it. This single row is the clearest illustration of why machine translation between these languages fails: the shared 'taga-' makes the sentence look translatable while the word that carries the meaning is unique to each.

Understanding

Getting by when you do not follow.

Understanding: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Wala ko kasabotpending review	I don't understand
Kamao ka mo-English?pending review	Do you speak English?	The verb for 'to know how' differs completely: kamao, kabalo, maaram, tataong. None of them is the Tagalog 'marunong'.
Palihug balikapending review	Please say it again
Palihug hinay-hinaypending review	Please speak slowly
Unsa ni?pending review	What is this?
Kasabot kopending review	I understand
Unsa'y tawag ani?pending review	What is this called?
Unsaon ni pagsulti?pending review	How do you say this?

Numbers

Native numerals one to ten, which diverge sharply between the Luzon and Visayan languages.

Numbers: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Usapending review	One	Cebuano and Waray 'usa' is a false friend of the highest order: in Tagalog 'usa' is a deer.
Duhapending review	Two
Tulopending review	Three
Upatpending review	Four
Limapending review	Five	The one numeral that survives intact across all eight — and in Pangasinan 'lima' is also the word for 'hand', which is where the numeral came from in the first place.
Unompending review	Six
Pitopending review	Seven	Pito is unchanged in six of the eight. The two that look different are not: Kapampangan pitu is the u-for-o that runs through its whole numeral set, and Pangasinan pitora is pito carrying the -ra counting suffix that makes its numerals longer than everyone else's.
Walopending review	Eight	Walo survives untouched in six languages. Kapampangan walu and Pangasinan walora are the same word wearing each language's habits — the u for o, and the -ra that Pangasinan attaches to every numeral.
Siyampending review	Nine	Siyam everywhere, and the differences are spelling rather than vocabulary: Ilocano writes siam without the y, Pangasinan siamira adds its counting suffix to the same root. Nine is one of the numerals no language here replaced.
Napulopending review	Ten	Pangasinan numerals carry a counting suffix -ra that none of the others use, so 'limara' and 'samplora' look longer than their neighbours for a structural reason rather than a phonetic one.
Napulog usapending review	Eleven	Three different strategies for building teens: Tagalog and Kapampangan prefix labing-, the Visayan languages say 'ten and one', and Bikol has a dedicated form (kagsaro).
Napulog duhapending review	Twelve	Two ways of building it. Tagalog labindalawa, Kapampangan labingadwa and Pangasinan labinduara use a labi- prefix; the Visayan languages and Ilocano spell it out as ten and two — napulog duha, sangapulo ket dua. Bikol kagduwa contracts the same idea.
Kaluhaanpending review	Twenty	Cebuano and Hiligaynon 'kaluhaan' bears no visible relation to their own word for two, duha. Waray's 'karuhaan' shows the same form after its regular l→r shift.
Katloanpending review	Thirty	The Visayan languages wrap the root for three in ka- and -an and get katloan. Everyone else counts it out as three tens: tatlumpu, tallopulo, tulong pulo, atlungpulu, talomplo.
Kalim-anpending review	Fifty	Kalim-an is the same Visayan ka- -an circumfix seen on thirty, this time around lima. The others say five tens, and Ilocano limapulo shows that construction at its plainest.
Usa ka gatospending review	One hundred	Kapampangan 'dinalan' and Pangasinan 'sanlasus' share nothing with the gatos/daan the rest use — another reminder that the Luzon languages are not a group.
Usa ka libopending review	One thousand	Seven of the eight share libo and differ only in the counter in front of it — isang, usa ka, isa ka, sang-, san-. Ilocano sangaribu swaps the l for an r; Kapampangan drops the counter and says libu on its own.

Question words

Who, what, where and when — the words that differ most and trip up readers most.

Question words: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Unsapending review	What	Ano covers Tagalog, Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol, and Pangasinan anto is close enough to guess. Cebuano unsa, Kapampangan nanu and Ilocano ania are separate words entirely. Question words open most sentences, which is why this is where comprehension between these languages tends to fail first.
Kinsapending review	Who	Hiligaynon 'sin-o' and Waray 'hin-o' differ by a single consonant, and that s→h shift runs through the whole of Waray. It is the single most reliable way to tell the two apart.
Asapending review	Where	Seven distinct words. Cebuano 'asa' is a false friend in Tagalog, where it means to hope or depend on someone.
Kanus-apending review	When	Six of the eight begin with ka-, and three of those carry a glottal stop written as a hyphen — kanus-a, san-o, kakan-o. Bikol nuarin is the outlier, sharing its shape with none of them.
Nganopending review	Why	Kapampangan 'baket' looks like Tagalog 'bakit' and means the same thing — but it is also the Ilocano word for an old woman or a wife, so the same string means two unrelated things depending on which language you are reading.
Tagpila?pending review	How much?	Two different questions. Tagalog magkano and Kapampangan magkanu ask about price directly. Cebuano and Hiligaynon tagpila, Waray tagpira, Bikol pira, Pangasinan pigara and Ilocano mano are all built on that language's word for 'how many' instead.
Pila?pending review	How many?	Cebuano and Hiligaynon 'pila' means 'how many'. In Tagalog 'pila' is a queue — which makes 'Pila?' one of the most commonly misread words between Manila and Cebu.
unsaonpending review	How

Time & days

Today, tomorrow, day and night.

Time & days: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Karonpending review	Today	Eight words and no agreement, and two of them are the trap on this site's Cebuano-Hiligaynon page: Cebuano karon means today, while Hiligaynon reaches for subong instead — because karon in Hiligaynon means later.
Ugmapending review	Tomorrow	Ilocano builds tomorrow out of 'bigat', the word for morning — the same root as in 'Naimbag a bigat'.
Gahaponpending review	Yesterday	Kahapon, gahapon and kasuhapon are one word with the prefix shifting. Waray kakulop, Ilocano idi kalman and Kapampangan napun stand outside it entirely.
Adlawpending review	Day	In the Visayan languages 'adlaw' is both the day and the sun. Tagalog keeps the same double meaning in 'araw'; Ilocano does not — 'aldaw' is the day and 'init' is the sun.
Gabiipending review	Night	Gabi is also the Tagalog for taro, separated only by stress — one of the few places where a core time word collides with a vegetable. Ilocano rabii, Bikol banggi, Kapampangan bengi and Pangasinan labi are the same word pulled through each language's consonants.
Semanapending review	Week	Three Spanish routes to one word. The Visayan languages and Bikol took semana; Tagalog linggo and Kapampangan dominggo both come from domingo, the Sunday that bounds the week. Pangasinan simba arrived the same way — and it is why simba means a week there and 'to attend mass' in Tagalog.
Tuigpending review	Year	Tuig across all three Visayan languages, taon in Tagalog, Bikol and Pangasinan, with Ilocano tawen the same word carrying its w. Kapampangan banwa belongs to neither group.
Lunespending review	Monday	All eight took the Spanish weekday names wholesale. Only Sunday diverges — see below.
Martespending review	Tuesday	Identical in all eight. The Spanish weekday names arrived as a set, and none of these languages had a competing seven-day cycle to defend.
Miyerkulespending review	Wednesday	The only variation is spelling. Ilocano, Hiligaynon and Pangasinan write -koles; the other five write -kules.
Huwebespending review	Thursday	Huebes in Ilocano and Pangasinan, huwebes in the rest — the same choice between u and w those two make on Wednesday and again on Friday.
Biyernespending review	Friday	Biernes in Ilocano and Pangasinan, biyernes elsewhere. Three weekdays running where those two languages spell the Spanish the same way against the other six.
Sabadopending review	Saturday	Sabado in all eight with no variation whatsoever — the one weekday where even Ilocano and Pangasinan write it exactly as everyone else does.
Dominggopending review	Sunday	Tagalog is the outlier: 'Linggo' where the rest kept 'Domingo'. Pangasinan went further and uses 'Simba', from the word for churchgoing — the same root Tagalog uses for the verb 'to attend mass'.
Udtopending review	Noon	Udto across the Visayan languages and Bikol, with Kapampangan ugtu the same word. Tagalog tanghali stands alone, and Ilocano does not use a single word at all: tengnga ti aldaw is 'the middle of the day'.
Buntagpending review	Morning	Aga in Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol, and Tagalog umaga is that root under a prefix. Cebuano buntag, Ilocano bigat, Kapampangan abak and Pangasinan kabuasan are four separate answers — which is why the greetings built on them share so little.
Unyapending review	Later	The sharpest time-word trap in the Visayas. Hiligaynon 'karon' means later; Cebuano 'karon' means now. The same word moves an appointment in opposite directions.
Oraspending review	Hour	Oras in all eight, from Spanish horas, with no language keeping an alternative alongside it.
Kanunaypending review	Always	Pirme and pirmi in Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol are Spanish firme. Cebuano kanunay and Ilocano kanayon are one word between them; Tagalog lagi, Kapampangan pane and Pangasinan naynay are each on their own.

Family & people

Relationships and forms of address.

Family & people: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Inahanpending review	Mother	Kapampangan 'ima' is a mother; Ilocano 'ima' is a hand. Two Luzon languages a hundred kilometres apart, same three letters, nothing in common.
Amahanpending review	Father	Ama holds in Tagalog, Ilocano, Bikol and Pangasinan. Cebuano amahan and the Hiligaynon and Waray amay are the same root extended; Kapampangan ibpa is the only one that shares nothing, which is the pattern Kapampangan sets across this whole list.
Nanaypending review	Mum	Nanay is the near-universal informal form. Ilocano nanang keeps the same shape with its own ending, and Kapampangan ima stands apart — the formal ina sits behind most of these, but nanay is what people actually say.
Tataypending review	Dad	Tatay runs through six of the eight, with Ilocano and Kapampangan both saying tatang. That pairing is worth noticing: the two languages agree here while disagreeing on almost every other kinship term on this page.
Anakpending review	Child	'Anak' is the offspring relationship in all eight; Bikol 'aki' is the exception and is a child in general.
Igsoonpending review	Sibling	Six unrelated roots. Only Tagalog 'kapatid' and Kapampangan 'kapatad' match, and that is a loan rather than shared inheritance.
Lolapending review	Grandmother	Lola is Spanish, and it has taken over Tagalog and all three Visayan languages plus Bikol. What it has not displaced is instructive — Ilocano apong baket, Kapampangan apu and Pangasinan bai all survive in the Luzon languages outside Tagalog.
Lolopending review	Grandfather	Pangasinan 'laki' is a grandfather. In Tagalog, Cebuano and most of the rest, 'lalaki' is simply a man — close enough to mislead.
Higalapending review	Friend	Eight languages, eight unrelated words. Kapampangan 'kaluguran' doubles as a term of affection, which is why 'Kaluguran daka' means 'I love you'.
Lalakipending review	Man	Lalaki, unchanged in seven of the eight. Pangasinan laki is the same word with the first syllable worn away, which it also does to babae — bii.
Babayepending review	Woman	Babae with local spellings — babai, babaye, babayi — in seven languages. Pangasinan bii is the outlier, and it is the same clipping that turns lalaki into laki.
Asawapending review	Spouse	'Asawa' covers husband and wife alike in seven of the eight — the sex of the spouse is not marked. Bikol 'agom' is the odd one out.
Ngalanpending review	Name	No single word here, which matters because 'what is your name' is the first sentence anyone learns. Ngalan and ngaran run through the Visayan languages and Bikol, Ilocano nagan is close, and Kapampangan lagyu shares nothing with any of them.
Silinganpending review	Neighbour	Eight languages, eight words, no two alike. Everyday social vocabulary diverges far more than the numbers or the animals do, and this row is the clearest example of it on the site.
Masusopending review	Baby
Uyoanpending review	Uncle	Tiyo is Spanish and has taken Tagalog, Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol. The native terms survive where Spanish reached less deeply: Ilocano and Pangasinan both keep uliteg, Cebuano uyoan, Kapampangan bapa.
Iyaanpending review	Aunt	The same split as uncle, and the same languages resist. Tiya covers Tagalog, Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol; Ilocano and Pangasinan both keep ikit, exactly as they both keep uliteg.
lalakipending review	Man (adult male)	Lalaki with no variation at all until Pangasinan, which clips it to laki — the same thing it does to the word for woman.
tawopending review	Man (human being)	Tao and tawo are one word: the Visayan languages and Bikol keep the w, Tagalog and Ilocano drop it. Pangasinan too and Kapampangan tau are the same again with their own vowels.
batapending review	Child (a youth)	Two different words competing. Anak means offspring and covers most of the list; Tagalog and Cebuano bata means a young person regardless of whose child they are. Bikol aki is a third. Which one a language chose is a choice about what 'child' means.
asawapending review	Wife	Asawa in seven of the eight, and it is gender-neutral in all of them — the same word appears as the entry for husband. Bikol agom is the only language here using a separate term.
banapending review	Husband	The interesting row is this one against wife. Tagalog, Ilocano, Kapampangan and Pangasinan use asawa for both; Cebuano, Hiligaynon and Waray keep a distinct bana for a husband. Bikol agom covers both, like asawa does.

Food & eating

Meals, ingredients and asking for them.

Food & eating: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Bugaspending review	Rice (uncooked)	All eight distinguish uncooked grain from cooked rice with separate words — a distinction English has to spell out.
Kan-onpending review	Rice (cooked)	Kapampangan 'nasi' is a Malay-shaped word that none of its neighbours share.
Isdapending review	Fish	Bikol and Pangasinan 'sira' is a fish. In Tagalog and Cebuano 'sira' means broken or spoiled — so a Bikolano menu can read alarmingly to a Manila reader.
Karnepending review	Meat	Karne in all eight without a single spelling change. That is unusual for a loan on this list — most leave at least one language holding its own word, and meat left none.
Manokpending review	Chicken	Manok in all eight, with only Kapampangan manuk differing and only in the vowel it always changes. Unlike karne directly above it, nothing displaced this one.
Baboypending review	Pig	Baboy in seven. Bikol urig is the only language here that kept something else, and Kapampangan babi is baboy with its usual syllable lost.
Itlogpending review	Egg	One of the sharpest splits in this file. 'Itlog' covers Tagalog through Hiligaynon, then Waray, Bikol, Kapampangan and Pangasinan each go their own way entirely.
Asinpending review	Salt	The province of Pangasinan is named for this word — 'pang-asin-an', the place where salt is made.
Utanpending review	Vegetable	Utan across the three Visayan languages, gulay in Tagalog and Bikol with Kapampangan gule beside them. Ilocano nateng and Pangasinan pising are each alone.
Mokaonpending review	To eat	Ilocano, Kapampangan and Pangasinan all use 'mangan' — a genuine Luzon isogloss, and one of the very few things the three share against the Visayan 'kaon'.
Gigutom kopending review	I'm hungry	Gutom is the shared root through Tagalog, the Visayan languages and Bikol. The three Luzon languages outside Tagalog each have their own — and each folds the 'I' into the verb rather than saying it separately: mabisinak, danupan ku na, naerasan ak.
Lamipending review	Delicious	Eight languages, eight unrelated words for the same compliment. If you learn one word from this list, learn the local one for this.
Busog na kopending review	I'm full	Busog runs through Tagalog, the Visayan languages and Bikol. Ilocano nabsogakon is the same root with the person attached to it — the construction the pronouns guide sets out, where a whole sentence fits inside one word.
Panpending review	Bread	Tinapay in seven languages. Cebuano alone says pan — Spanish, and shorter.
Asukalpending review	Sugar	Asukal or asukar, and the split is one consonant: Tagalog, Cebuano, Kapampangan and Pangasinan take the l; Ilocano, Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol take the r. Four against four.
Sagingpending review	Banana	Saging in five. Ilocano and Pangasinan both say saba, which in Tagalog names one particular cooking variety rather than the fruit in general. Bikol batag is its own word.
Lubipending review	Coconut	Lubi across all three Visayan languages; niyog in Tagalog, Bikol and Pangasinan with Ilocano niog alongside. Kapampangan ungut belongs to neither group.
Manggapending review	Mango	Mangga in all eight with no variation, which on a page where sweet, sour and salty all splinter is worth noticing.
Maispending review	Corn	Mais in all eight, from Spanish maíz. Maize is a New World crop that reached these islands through Spain, and the word came with the plant.
Ahospending review	Garlic	The Visayan languages took the Spanish 'ajos'; the Luzon languages kept the native 'bawang'.
Sabawpending review	Soup, broth	Sabaw in six, with Kapampangan sabo the same word shortened. Ilocano digo is the only real outlier.
Tam-ispending review	Sweet	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.
Aslompending review	Sour	One root under everyone's adjective prefix, and the vowels do the moving: aslom, aslam, alsem, alsom. The consonants hold. Tagalog maasim is the same word with the l dropped.
Halangpending review	Spicy
Paratpending review	Salty	Maalat in Tagalog, Waray, Bikol and Kapampangan. Hiligaynon maasin builds it on asin — salt itself — while Cebuano parat and Ilocano naapgad are separate words again.
Maglutopending review	To cook	Luto is the root in every one; only the prefix changes — mag-, ag-, man-. Ilocano agluto takes the ag- that marks actor focus, the same prefix the verb table sets out.
Platopending review	Plate	A clean split between the Spanish word and the native one. Tagalog, Cebuano and Bikol took plato; Ilocano, Hiligaynon, Waray, Kapampangan and Pangasinan all kept pinggan. Five to three, and geography does not predict which.
Kutsarapending review	Spoon	Kutsara in all eight, from Spanish cuchara — and it sits beside plate, where five languages kept pinggan rather than take plato. The spoon was borrowed everywhere; the plate was not.

Drinks

Water, coffee and what to order.

Drinks: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Tubigpending review	Water	The Luzon/Visayan split in one word: danum in the north, tubig everywhere else. Tagalog sides with the Visayan languages here despite sitting on Luzon.
Kapepending review	Coffee
Gataspending review	Milk
Moinompending review	To drink
Palihug ug tubigpending review	Water, please
Tsapending review	Tea
Beerpending review	Beer
Init nga tubigpending review	Hot water
Bugnaw nga tubigpending review	Cold water

Market & money

Prices, haggling, paying.

Market & money: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Kwartapending review	Money	Tagalog took 'pera' from Spanish 'perra'; everything north and south of it took 'cuarta' instead. The two are not interchangeable outside Manila.
Mahalpending review	Expensive	In Tagalog 'mahal' means both expensive and beloved. Ilocano keeps them apart — 'nangina' for costly, 'ay-ayat' for love — so the pun does not survive translation.
Baratopending review	Cheap	Four of the eight reach for the Spanish 'barato' rather than a native word, while Tagalog and Ilocano kept their own.
Mopalitpending review	To buy	Cebuano 'palit' is to buy; in Tagalog 'palit' is to exchange or swap. Same root, opposite ends of a transaction.
Merkadopending review	Market
Tagpila ni?pending review	How much is this?
Mahal kaayopending review	That's too expensive
Pwede hangyo?pending review	Can you lower the price?
Mobaligyapending review	To sell

Directions

Left, right, here, there and how far.

Directions: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Walapending review	Left	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.
Tuopending review	Right
Dinhipending review	Here	Hiligaynon 'diri' is 'here'. Waray 'diri' is 'not'. The two languages are neighbours and this pair catches people constantly.
Didtopending review	There
Layopending review	Far
Duolpending review	Near
Asa ang banyo?pending review	Where is the toilet?
Moadtopending review	To go
Diretsopending review	Straight ahead
Taaspending review	Up
Ubospending review	Down
Sulodpending review	Inside
Gawaspending review	Outside

Health & emergency

The phrases worth knowing before you need them.

Health & emergency: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Tabang!pending review	Help!	Worth memorising the local form before you need it. Cebuano 'tabang' is help; Hiligaynon 'tab-ang' is bland or tasteless, which is a poor thing to shout.
Doktorpending review	Doctor
Ospitalpending review	Hospital
Masakiton kopending review	I am sick
Sakitpending review	It hurts	Waray 'maul-ul' and Bikol 'makulog' share nothing with the 'sakit' the other six use.
Pulispending review	Police
Sunog!pending review	Fire!	Bikol shouts 'Kalayo!', which in Tagalog would be parsed as 'distance'. In an emergency that is the worst possible ambiguity.
Kawatan!pending review	Thief!
Pag-ampingpending review	Be careful
Nawala kopending review	I am lost
Hilanatpending review	Fever
Labad sa ulopending review	Headache

The body

Head to foot, where several of these languages share nothing at all.

The body: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Ulopending review	Head	Bikol 'payo' is a head. In Tagalog 'payo' is advice — which makes it one of the neatest false friends in the country.
Matapending review	Eye
Kamotpending review	Hand	Three separate traps in one row: Ilocano 'ima' is Kapampangan for mother, Visayan 'kamot' is Tagalog for scratching, and Pangasinan 'lima' is the numeral five in every other language here.
Tiilpending review	Foot
Babapending review	Mouth	Visayan 'baba' is a mouth; Tagalog 'baba' is a chin, and with different stress it is also 'down'. Neighbouring body parts, different words.
Tiyanpending review	Stomach
Buhokpending review	Hair
Dalungganpending review	Ear
Ilongpending review	Nose
Ngiponpending review	Tooth
Dugopending review	Blood	Ilocano and Kapampangan both say 'daya' for blood — and in Tagalog and Cebuano the same word means cheating. Worth care in any medical setting.
Kasingkasingpending review	Heart
panitpending review	Skin (of a person)
unodpending review	Meat (as in flesh)
bukogpending review	Bone
tambokpending review	Fat (noun)
dilapending review	Tongue
kukopending review	Fingernail
paapending review	Leg
tuhodpending review	Knee
tiyanpending review	Belly
tinaepending review	Guts
liogpending review	Neck
likodpending review	Back
tutoypending review	Breast
ataypending review	Liver

Nature & weather

Sun, rain, sea and mountain.

Nature & weather: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Adlawpending review	Sun	Ilocano 'init' is the sun; Tagalog 'init' is heat. Related idea, different part of speech, and machine translation routinely mixes the two.
Bulanpending review	Moon	Seven of the eight kept 'bulan'; Tagalog alone shifted the l to w. The same word means 'month' in all of them.
Bituonpending review	Star
Ulanpending review	Rain	Ilocano is alone here. 'Tudo' shares nothing with the ulan/uran the other seven use.
Dagatpending review	Sea
Bukidpending review	Mountain	Two traps at once. Ilocano 'bantay' is a mountain; in Tagalog it is a guard. Visayan 'bukid' is a mountain; in Tagalog 'bukid' is a field or farm.
Balaypending review	House
Kalayopending review	Fire	Visayan 'kalayo' is fire; Tagalog 'kalayo' would be parsed as 'distance'. The Luzon languages all keep apoy/apuy.
Subapending review	River	Waray and Bikol 'salog' looks close to Tagalog 'ilog' but is a separate root — and in Cebuano 'salog' is a floor.
Yutapending review	Land, soil	Six unrelated roots for the ground under your feet, and Ilocano 'daga' collides head-on with Tagalog, where it means a rat.
Kahoypending review	Tree
Bulakpending review	Flower	Ilocano 'sabong' is a flower. In Tagalog 'sabong' is cockfighting — an unusually large gap for two languages spoken on the same island.
Batopending review	Stone
Hanginpending review	Wind
Langitpending review	Sky	Pangasinan 'tawen' is the sky; Ilocano 'tawen' is a year. Two Northern Luzon languages, one word, no shared meaning.
Linogpending review	Earthquake
Bagyopending review	Typhoon
lasangpending review	Forest
pupotpending review	Stick (of wood)
bungapending review	Fruit
binhipending review	Seed
dahonpending review	Leaf
gamotpending review	Root
upakpending review	Bark (of tree)
balilipending review	Grass
lanawpending review	Lake
dagatpending review	Sea (as in ocean)
balaspending review	Sand
abogpending review	Dust
yutapending review	Earth (as in soil)
panganodpending review	Cloud
gabonpending review	Fog
hanginpending review	Wind (as in breeze)
niyebepending review	Snow
yelopending review	Ice
asopending review	Smoke
abopending review	Ash
adlawpending review	Day (daytime)

Describing things

Big, small, good, beautiful.

Describing things: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Dakopending review	Big
Gamaypending review	Small
Maayopending review	Good
Dautanpending review	Bad
Gwapapending review	Beautiful	Bikol 'magayon' is the root behind Mayon, the volcano. Waray 'mahusay' means beautiful; in Tagalog the same word means skilled or well-arranged.
Initpending review	Hot
Bugnawpending review	Cold
Paspaspending review	Fast
Bag-opending review	New
Daanpending review	Old (of a thing)	Ilocano and the Visayan languages use 'daan' for old — the same string Tagalog uses for a road.
Tigulangpending review	Old (of a person)	Ilocano 'lakay' is an old man specifically; 'baket' is the word for an old woman, and that one collides with Kapampangan 'baket', meaning why.
Daghanpending review	Many
Gamaypending review	Few
Taaspending review	Long
Mubopending review	Short
Bug-atpending review	Heavy
Limpyopending review	Clean
Hugawpending review	Dirty
tananpending review	All
ubay-ubaypending review	Some
lainpending review	Other
lapadpending review	Wide
bagapending review	Thick
gip-otpending review	Narrow
nipispending review	Thin
initpending review	Warm (as in weather)
tugnawpending review	Cold (as in weather)
punopending review	Full
daanpending review	Old
latapending review	Rotten (as a log)
tarongpending review	Straight
linginpending review	Round
haitpending review	Sharp (as a knife)
habulpending review	Dull (as a knife)
hamispending review	Smooth
basapending review	Wet
ugapending review	Dry (adjective)
tinuodpending review	Right (correct)
tuopending review	Right (side)
walapending review	Left (side)

Feelings

Saying how you are, and how you feel about someone.

Feelings: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Gihigugma tikapending review	I love you	Eight languages and eight completely different verbs. This row alone answers the question of whether Philippine languages are 'dialects of each other'.
Malipayonpending review	Happy
Guolpending review	Sad
Gikapoypending review	Tired
Nasukopending review	Angry
Gimingaw ko nimopending review	I miss you
Nahadlokpending review	Afraid
Nakuratanpending review	Surprised
Gilaayanpending review	Bored

Colours

Basic colour terms.

Colours: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Pulapending review	Red	Pula covers Tagalog, all three Visayan languages and Bikol. The three that break from it — Ilocano nalabaga, Kapampangan malutu, Pangasinan ambalanga — are exactly the three Luzon languages that sit outside the Central Philippine branch. The family tree showing through a colour word.
Putipending review	White	Puti is the base, and two languages keep it under a prefix: Kapampangan maputi, Pangasinan amputi. The two that abandon it are Ilocano puraw and Waray busag — and busag is one of the words that marks Waray off from its Bisayan neighbours, which both say puti.
Itompending review	Black	Kapampangan 'matuling' is black. Tagalog 'matulin' — one letter apart — means fast.
Asulpending review	Blue	Identical in all eight. That is what a loanword looks like: nothing native survives here, so there is nothing for the languages to disagree about. Compare red, where the native words hold and almost nothing matches.
Dalagpending review	Yellow	Three groups, and they follow geography rather than Tagalog. The Visayan languages all say dalag. Ilocano and Pangasinan, both Northern Luzon, both say duyaw. Tagalog dilaw and Kapampangan dilo are what is left over.
Berdepending review	Green	Only Kapampangan kept a native word. The other seven took the Spanish 'verde' and never replaced it.
Kahelpending review	Orange	The same word in all eight, which on this list is true only of orange and blue. Borrowed colour terms travel intact; the native ones — red, white, yellow — are where these languages part company.
Abuhonpending review	Grey	Every one of these is built on the word for ash — abo, dapo — rather than being a colour term of its own.

Everyday verbs

The actions that carry most sentences.

Everyday verbs: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Matulogpending review	To sleep
Makitapending review	To see
Isultipending review	To say	Ilocano and Pangasinan share 'ibaga' — but in Tagalog 'baga' is an ember, and in Ilocano it is the colour red.
Kabalopending review	To know
Gustopending review	To want	Kapampangan 'buri' is to want or like. In Tagalog 'buri' is a species of palm.
Mohatagpending review	To give
Motrabahopending review	To work
Molakawpending review	To walk
Mosultipending review	To speak	The Visayan languages disagree with each other completely here — sulti, hambal, yakan — which is a useful corrective to the idea that they are one language.
Maminawpending review	To listen
Mosulatpending review	To write
Mobasapending review	To read
Molingkodpending review	To sit
Motindogpending review	To stand
Modaganpending review	To run
Maghulatpending review	To wait
Ablihanpending review	To open
Sirad-anpending review	To close
Manghugaspending review	To wash
Moanhipending review	To come here
paakpending review	To bite
supsoppending review	To suck
luwapending review	To spit
sukapending review	To vomit
huyoppending review	To blow (as wind)
ginhawapending review	To breathe
katawapending review	To laugh
dungogpending review	To hear
kahibalopending review	To know (a fact)
hunahunapending review	To think
simhotpending review	To smell (sense odour)
hadlokpending review	To fear
buhipending review	To live
mataypending review	To die
bunopending review	To kill
awaypending review	To fight
mangayampending review	To hunt (transitive)
igopending review	To hit
putolpending review	To cut
pikaspending review	To split
dunggabpending review	To stab (or stick)
katolpending review	To scratch (an itch)
kalotpending review	To dig
langoypending review	To swim
lupadpending review	To fly
aripending review	To come
higdapending review	To lie (as on one's side)
likopending review	To turn (change direction)
hulogpending review	To fall (as in drop)
hawidpending review	To hold (in one's hand)
pisapending review	To squeeze
banyospending review	To rub
pahidpending review	To wipe
bitadpending review	To pull
tuklodpending review	To push
labaypending review	To throw
hikotpending review	To tie
tahipending review	To sew
ihappending review	To count
awitpending review	To sing
dulapending review	To play
lutawpending review	To float
agaspending review	To flow
bagtokpending review	To freeze
burotpending review	To swell
sunogpending review	To burn (intransitive)

Months

The Spanish-derived month names, and where the spellings part company.

Months: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Eneropending review	January	The month names are Spanish in all eight languages. What varies is spelling: Tagalog respells the Spanish f as p (Pebrero), while several of the others keep Febrero.
Pebreropending review	February
Marsopending review	March
Abrilpending review	April
Mayopending review	May
Hunyopending review	June
Hulyopending review	July
Agostopending review	August
Septiyembrepending review	September
Oktubrepending review	October
Nobyembrepending review	November
Disyembrepending review	December

Getting around

Roads, boats, jeepneys and how to get off one.

Getting around: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Dalanpending review	Road	Seven of the eight use 'dalan'. Tagalog's 'daan' is the same root worn down, and Bikol went its own way with 'tinampo'.
Bangkapending review	Boat
Sakyananpending review	Car
Mosakaypending review	To ride
Para langpending review	Stop here, please	'Para' comes from Spanish 'parar', to stop, and is the universal way to get off a jeepney anywhere in the country.
Asa ka paingon?pending review	Where are you going?
Tiketpending review	Ticket

Somewhere to stay

Rooms, doors, keys — a category where almost nothing carries between languages.

Somewhere to stay: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Yawipending review	Key	Another row where nothing carries over. Ilocano 'tulbek' and Tagalog 'susi' share no history at all.
Pultahanpending review	Door
Bintanapending review	Window	Ilocano 'tawa' is a window. In Tagalog it is laughter.
Kuwartopending review	Room
Katrepending review	Bed
Kasilyaspending review	Toilet

Things to buy

Everyday items you might need to ask for.

Things to buy: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Sininapending review	Clothes
Sapatospending review	Shoes
Tambalpending review	Medicine	Worth knowing before a pharmacy visit, and the source of a nasty trap: Tagalog 'gamot' is medicine, but in the Visayan languages the same word means a root.
Sabonpending review	Soap
Libropending review	Book
Papelpending review	Paper

Animals

Everyday creatures, and several of the sharpest false friends on the site.

Animals: Cebuano phrases with English translations
Cebuano	English	Notes
Iropending review	Dog	Four unrelated words for the commonest domestic animal. Worth pairing with the Cebuano trap: 'aso' means smoke there, so the Tagalog word for dog is a real Cebuano word meaning something else entirely.
Iringpending review	Cat	The one domestic animal with no agreement at all. Pusa covers Tagalog, Ilocano, Kapampangan and Pangasinan; the Visayan languages each have their own word — iring, kuring, uding — and Bikol ikos shares with none of them.
Kabawpending review	Carabao	The national animal, and three of the eight have their own word for it — Ilocano nuang, Kapampangan damulag, Pangasinan dueg.
Kandingpending review	Goat	Kanding across the Visayan languages, Bikol and Pangasinan; kambing in Tagalog and Kapampangan; Ilocano kalding sits between the two with its own consonant. Three shapes of what looks like one word.
Bakapending review	Cow	Baka in all eight without variation. Spanish vaca arrived with the animal itself, so there was no native word for it to displace — which is why this row is flat while cat is not.
Kabayopending review	Horse	Kabayo everywhere, from Spanish caballo, with only spelling separating them: Ilocano kabalyo keeps the Spanish ll, Kapampangan kabayu takes its usual u. Another animal that arrived with its name.
Bitinpending review	Snake	Five unrelated words, and the one worth memorising before you need it. Ilocano and Pangasinan share 'uleg', which is unusual — the two rarely agree.
Langgampending review	Bird	Cebuano 'langgam' is a bird; Tagalog 'langgam' is an ant. One of the most-cited false friends between the two largest languages in the country.
Ilagapending review	Rat	Two traps in one row. Ilocano 'utot' is a rat and Tagalog 'utot' is a fart; Tagalog 'daga' is a rat and Ilocano 'daga' is land or soil.
Lamokpending review	Mosquito	Lamok in most, but Hiligaynon and Waray both say namok. The l-to-n shift between those two and their neighbours turns up elsewhere in Bisayan and is regular enough to guess at.
mananappending review	Animal	Hayop covers Tagalog, Hiligaynon, Waray and Bikol, with Ilocano ayup and Pangasinan ayep as the same word reduced. Cebuano mananap is its own; the Kapampangan cell reads animal, which is worth a speaker's eye before it is trusted.
kutopending review	Louse	Kuto in all eight, with only Kapampangan kutu differing and only in its usual vowel. Head lice are old and universal, and the word for them has not moved.
ulodpending review	Worm	Ulod across the Visayan languages and Bikol, uod in Tagalog. Ilocano igges and Pangasinan biges share nothing with them or, on the face of it, with each other. Kapampangan bulati is a fourth answer.
sungaypending review	Horn	Sungay holds in Tagalog and most of the Visayas, then falls apart: Ilocano sara, Waray budyong, Kapampangan sagu, Pangasinan saklor. Waray breaking from Cebuano and Hiligaynon here is its habit rather than an exception.
ikogpending review	Tail	Ikog runs through the Visayan languages and Bikol, and Pangasinan ikol and Kapampangan iki are recognisably the same. Tagalog buntot and Ilocano ipus are the two that stand outside it.
balhibopending review	Feather	Balahibo, balhibo and barahibo are one word — the Waray r for l is the shift that language applies regularly. Ilocano dutdut, Kapampangan bulbul and Pangasinan bago are separate answers, and Bikol balukag is a fourth.
pakopending review	Wing	Pakpak in five languages, and Cebuano and Waray pako is the same root without the doubling. Ilocano payak is the only form that has moved far from it.