Hello guys! Today, I thought about making you learn a few colloquial words used by us Filipinos in our ordinary and usual conversations everyday. I want to make it known to you guys, so that if ever you visit my country and roam around, you will know why they suddenly giggle and laugh at what you're trying to tell them if you insist on using these words during your visit here. This was based on an article by an online viral magazine with the link I provided below for your reference. Try to and say each word as you read and try to guess its meaning based on how you think it may mean. The ACTUAL meaning of the words are listed at the end, but don't try to scroll down without guessing first what it was according to you. Here goes: Word #1: Astig What foreigners think it was: "a kind of bug?” “GARLIC” “yeah, I think it’s a kind of bug that attaches itself to your butt” “it tricks you cause it smells good, then it latches on” Word #2: Amboy What foreigners think it was: “A ‘scrub’ if you will” “yes, an amboy will try to holler at you when you’ve dropped your metro card” “or like, a boy in the a.m.” “oh yeah, he could be very punctual” Word#3: Bongga What foreigners think it was: “term for a vagina” “like im gonna hit that bongga” “like it’s bongga time” “I’m gonna bongga you all night long” Word#4: Bagets What foreigners think it was: “I think my racist grandfather has called me this before?” “a pinoy treat that we’re not yet ready for because we’re not on that level.” “baget = bagel + wet” “that’s worse than unwashed bongga” Word#5: Barkada What foreigners think it was: “yes, a barkada is a tornado full of, like, tiny yorkies” “you have to stay inside during barkada season” “it’s raining dogs and dogs, dads joke” Word#6: Bebot What foreigners think it was: “a baby robot” “who can really dance” “look at that bebot get down!” “and the bebot dougies” Word#7: Chika What foreigners think it was: “A basic bitch.” “definitely a babe” “the basicest of basic bitches” “’bebot on the butt’ I NOW KNOW WHAT I WANT ON MY TOMBSTONE” Word#8: Damo “it’s like a vaginal contraceptive” “like a dental dam?” “AN ORGASM” “A term a bro uses for ejaculating” “like, there’s a filipino version of Pitbull and his songs are GREAT but people love to hate because they’re “brb gotta go damo” Word#9: Jakol “a creepy dude” “a mean person” “A MAN ON TINDER” “a guy who complains about being in the friendzone” Word#10: Kuripot “that thing you use to clean out your sinuses!” “a gross sex act” “and she uses a kuripot because she’s curing you” “A KURING POT” Word#11: Kikay “TIPSY” “LET’S GET KIKAYYYYY” “EVERYBODY IN THE CLUB GETTING KIKAY” “I’M SUCH A KIKAY BEBOT — filipino version of hot mess” “Beyoncé’s ‘Partition’ is about getting kikay in a car” Word#12: Palpak “a fannypack for two” “A PACK FOR YOUR PAL” Word#13: Payatot “someone who is bad at sharing” “won’t give you their tots” “makes you pay for them” “Leave Honey Boo Boo alone YOU MONSTERS” Word#14: Titi “SPERM” “i think it’s sperm” “small sperm” “yeah like sperm that can’t really swim that well” “but all sperm are small” “always left behind” “we were all once just titi, you guys” “yeah, the sperms that never win the race” “maybe a titi is a small chubby little girl who grows up to be a blogger” “I have someone’s titi on my jeans but like… who could know who it belongs to” Word#15: Pekpek “sex” “well, if we hadn’t already gotten the word for penis…” “i feel like pekpek is just the tip” “just a little pekpek” “no we’re just pekpeking” “i had too much sisig and i just wanna pekpek” WHAT IT REALLY MEAN: 1. Cool or awesome. 2. Usually refers to a Filipino having an American lineage or genes. Its a combination word coined from the words: 'American' + 'boy' 3. Fabulous 4. Young teens 5. Friend or group of friends 6. Female gender usually referring to female teens and young female adults. 7. Gossip or some kinda joke 8. Literally it simply means 'grass' but when used on gangsta & street terms it means marijuana pot. 9. Masturbate or ejaculate 10. Frugal or ungenerous usually in terms of money. 11. Girly or so feminishly 12. Something defective or fails to function on a thing usually devices. 13. Skinny 14. Penis 15. Vagina SOURCE: BuzzFeed
@Amie Ar, you gave me a good laugh with this thread. Sometimes it's really funny when foreigners would mispronounce Filipino words particularly if they do not know the meaning. I remember one incident when my husband's cousin named Cholo came for a visit. He was about 20 at that time and he left for the US when he was around 4 of 5 years old so he doesn't speak Filipino. Making matters worse, he was with 2 of his American friends. Whenever relatives would ask Cholo what they want to eat, the 3 vacationers would quickly reply kepyas. They thought all along that kepyas means a nice food or something like that. They have no idea that kepyas means vagina, huh.
Hilarious! This reminds me of the word 'boondocks.' We use this in American English to mean 'out in the middle of nowhere' or even something like 'the sticks.' I always thought growing up that it probably referred to docks, as in by the ocean, but it turns out that it is a Tagalog word referring to the mountains. It is thought that American sailors/soldiers brought it back from the Philippines.
Funny indeed Diana! I also got to laugh at how our 'bundok' (this is how we spell it) which actually mean 'a mountain or mound' will be spelled by non-natives as 'boondocks.' Well, for one they both sound the same. lols!
@Amie Ar ... this was a good respite from heavy reading What about "kuties", "burloloy", "salvage" ? Any additional laughs we can enjoy on these? Thanks a lot for the fun!