Talk:Philippine English

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[edit] Philippingish

I know that there are "Manglish" and "Singlish". Why don't we create a new term for Philippine English?

I think "Philippingish" is a more appropriate term than "Philippine English". Ayumi Hamasaki

You know how I think of you? You're funny! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.97.176.54 (talk) 05:55, 5 May 2008 (UTC)
Yes, there's Manglish, and there's Singlish. There's also Taglish and Englog used in the Philippines. But there's no Philippinglish. Since no one calls it by that name, I am taking it out. The purpose of Wikipedia is to be encyclopedic, and not create new terms that are not used in any community.

--Wng 01:09, May 16, 2005 (UTC)


Like in other countries (Espanyol instead of Castellano, Chinese instead of Putonghua etc.. ) , President Quezon and the national committee of linguistics named the language Filipino instead Tagalog to reflect the name of the country and for fear of repurcussions from the other language groups, escpecially the Cebuanos. But it is really based on Tagalog. And for the Philippine English, nobody really says Philippinglish, neither in the US or the Philippines. Could this be a Japanese English word? --Jondel 01:33, 16 May 2005 (UTC)

[edit] 3rd largest English speaking nation

I placed the line 'The Philippines is said to be the third largest English speaking nation.' e.g. But how about India, Canada ? Are there issues of being 'native speakers', first language speakers, etc.? Is this really true?--Jondel 03:44, 6 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I removed that line altogether. It will be hard to support that with documentation, esp. the turn of phrase "is said to be...". --Ronaldo Guevara 04:50, 6 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I didn't realize someone had added "fourth largest English speaking country in the world" until I noticed that someone edited it to say "third largest English-speaking country in the world". I removed that line again since no source was cited. --Edward Sandstig 12:50, 17 July 2006 (UTC)
English is taught at the primary level. So assuming the 80+ million population, and about half speaks basic English, that's 40+ million, well over Canada's 32 million population. Dunno about India though. --Howard the Duck 14:10, 17 July 2006 (UTC)
But English can but is not spoken by the mainstream on a regular basis is it?--Jondel 02:49, 18 July 2006 (UTC)
If that is the basis, then no, but if the basis is if they can speak, then yes. I saw a foreigner asking for directions and the guy at the corner responded in English, although in English carabao. --Howard the Duck 03:00, 18 July 2006 (UTC)

Carabao English is alright. With media like television this can be improved. Filipinos in Saudi Arabia, Spain, Japan and other countries are proud to speak English. In many non-English countries, English subtitles are needed to comprehend movies and media. Filipinos don't need subtitles. The problem is there is peer pressure to not speak English. It is (mis)interpreted as a language for the elite, rich which is detrimental for progress and growth. No one should be (mis)interpreted as being pretentious for speaking English. --Jondel 04:09, 18 July 2006 (UTC)

Which is quite sad, given that almost everywhere you look you will see groups of people (or in the case of classroom teachers, individuals) doing just that, speaking English (stiltedly—pilit—I might add) as if it were a status symbol, and looking down on you when you speak Filipino. (Plus, upon finding out that you’re an Anglophone, they really get irked when you correct their grammar, ironically.)
It is most likely the behavior of these people that contribute to the stereotyping of Anglophone Pinoys (or those who just plainly want to speak English) as pretentious. —Lagalag 08:23, 4 January 2007 (UTC)

English is not always taught in primary, considering on people who speak taglog as a first language will learn english at primary, people from other parts (e.g. negros, cebu, bohol, mindanao, bicolandia etc.) would learn english in secondary school, but haha maybe i misinterpreted what Howard the Duck saidAustralian Jezza 12:18, 24 April 2007 (UTC)

No, they teach English almost anywhere in the Philippines --121.97.176.54 (talk) 05:58, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Unique Phillipine English words

The list should include only those words generally accepted in the Philippines.


The following are not generally accepted:


Commander - (slang) for My wife.

C.R. - toilet, bathroom. C.R. are initials for Comfort Room.

for a while - used on the telephone to mean please hold

get/go down the bus - Get off the bus.

open/close the light. - Switch on/off the light.

ref - refrigerator

take home - take-out (or "to go" in AE)

Gimmick - have a good time, party, watch a movie.

Mineral Water - Spring Water, Bottled Water.

This one is correctly used in the Philippines and should therefore not be classified as a word unique to the Philippines:

course - one's major in college (as opposed to a single class in AE)

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a MAJOR is -- "N. Amer. a student’s principal subject or course. > a student specializing in a specified subject: a math major."

They are not accepted in English but Filipinos tend to say it. This is not an article on accepted English. --Jondel 00:32, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

Yes, we know that this is not an article on accepted English, but an article on ACCEPTED PHILIPPINE ENGLISH, which is why I said "generally accepted IN THE PHILIPPINES". Otherwise, I would not have added Overpass, Rotunda', Stowaway and Tomboy.

But don't worry. I won't start an edit war because I concede that some of your contributions may be right. For example, the term "C.R." may have fallen into accepted Philippine usage, (even in formal usage) - you might be correct there.

However, the generally accepted term in the Phil. for "to go" or "takeout" is "take-out", not "take-home"; and "open/close the light" is definitely not generally accepted in the Phil. - we correctly say "turn on/off" or "switch on/off". --219.90.68.25 07:08, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

One reason I write in this article is for foreigners/non-filipinos in the Philippines. For example it will help them to know what CR means. Another is for Filipinos(like me) just to know that the above list is not accepted English. E. g. I know English speakers don't know C. R. I know that the above list is not accepted even by English teachers or the Academe, but the list of words will be useful for them in their classes, research, etc.
Where else will we place the above list then? What would be the title of the article? Do we create an Accepted Philippine English article? Please compare with Malaysian English, Singaporean English, etc.
How about if I place 'These words are not accepted by the English teachers, nevertheless Filipinos tend to use these words .' Is this ok?
BTW please feel free to add overpass, rotonda, etc . Tomboy is a standard English word.It is in the dictionary.Unless you mean lesbian(?) Is it different from Filipino usage? --Jondel 06:50, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

Yes, Tomboy is an English word that appears in the dictionary which means "boyish", but it means "lesbian" in Phil. usage.

I'm referring to this portion of the article: "Some words in Philippine English have a different meaning from their counterparts in standard American or British English." - as in the previously cited examples of "Gimmick" and "Salvage".

In the same manner, Rotunda is an English word that appears in the dictionary as "a round building or room, esp. one with a dome", but it means "roundabout" in Phil. English.

For example, The Manila Times refers to the roundabout at the Manila-Quezon City boundary as the "Mabuhay Rotunda".

As I said - no edit wars for me. I'm just happy that there are people like you who are willing to take the time to contribute to the Wiki. --202.81.188.50 07:46, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

Is the Mabuhay Rotunda, the same as Welcome Rotunda? I lived in Pasay. I'm not familiar with QC .

Many first (and second generation) Filipino -Americans I know tend to say open and close the light .

Well do be bold contribute too when you have the time. Help broaden the knowledge base. There is a lot of edit wars here though, so be prepared. If your info is factual and not opinionated, it should prevail. --Jondel 08:51, 25 July 2005 (UTC)
Calling something "opinionated" is definitely a gray area. What if we are talking of the opinions of respected linguists and/or linguistic societies? I believe it is actually good to lean towards the opinion of linguistic authorities rather than those of some random users. To junk something simply because it is an opinion is not exactly advisable.
It would be great if we had a voice of authority from professional linguists. However, we can rely on mainstream usage, can't we, as the nearest thing towards an authorical source? I'm also sure that being a Filipino, one would be familiar with mainstream usage.--Jondel 05:25, 31 July 2006 (UTC)

Welcome Rotunda - Yes, that's exactly it. It was formerly known as "Welcome Rotonda" (traditionally spelled with an "o" instead of a "u"). The name was officially changed to "Mabuhay Rotonda" sometime in the 1980s. Rotonda's traditional spelling with an "o" fell into disuse when newspapers and other media started spelling it with a "u" sometime in the 1990s. --219.90.67.139 09:07, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

Congratulations!--Jondel 05:25, 31 July 2006 (UTC)

The list says "Overtake" meaning to pass a vehicle on the road is a Philipine word, but it means the same thing in British English too, from seemingly all over the country. I have some old books from around 1900-1940 and in those "Overhaul" seems to be more commonly used to mean the same thing, but in modern times that is almost entirely only used to mean "doing something up", IE restoring a classic car 86.144.98.56 19:04, 2 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Australian English

I am not qualified to comment on English as used in Phillipines, but I can comment on words and phrases that are said to be unique to phillipines english: some of the list are not (because I use them and I am Australian)

aircon for air condirioner
masters for post grad degree
text for SMS message

suggest these be deleted (and maybe others?) unless some evidence

--GPoss 11:47, Aug 28, 2004 (UTC)

Thanks and done. Don't know if traffic should be removed. Can I ask, do they say open/ close the light or turn/switch on /off the light , in Aussie English?--Jondel 01:40, 30 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I read somewhere that some people in India use close/open the lights... I may be wrong though. joelogs--210.213.72.7 02:40, 28 August 2005 (UTC)--210.213.72.7 02:40, 28 August 2005 (UTC)--210.213.72.7 02:40, 28 August 2005 (UTC)j

We say turn or switch on/off.... I have never heard open/close the light in any country. We would also say "there was a lot of traffic on the road today" but that implies that the traffic is heavy, not that there is an actual jam: that would be a traffic jam. --GPoss 09:33, Aug 30, 2004 (UTC)

Philipino's have a stereotype of excessively using loan words, in otherwords, using english words whenever no strict filipino word for a thing exists, instead of trying to construct a new word in the filipino dialect. Is there any truth to this?

In urban areas this is true. This can be attributed to the medium of instruction in education, the media, the medium for executing legal and government proceedings, etc. Hardly any filipino would prefer to understand medicine, calculus, etc. in pure filipino .--Jondel 10:49, 30 Jan 2005 (UTC)


Yes, it's true, but I wouldn't say it is "excessively" so.
Other countries do the same. For example, the Japanese also borrow foreign words, such as 'pen' (pen), 'basu' (bus), 'pan' (bread), 'dansu' (dance), 'tenisu' (tennis), 'oosutoralia' (Australia), 'igirisu' (England), 'kolonbia' (Colombia), 'kenburiggi daigaku' (Cambridge University) and 'okkusufoudo daigaku' (Oxford University). http://www.cltr.uq.edu.au/oncall/imura102.html
In fact, English developed such an expansive vocabulary by borrowing heavily from other languages. Latin and Greek are extensively used in English scientific terms. Common words such as "pizza" and "ballet" were directly lifted without even bothering to change the spelling. Sometimes, the spelling is changed, as in the case of "boondocks", which the Oxford English Dictionary defines as:
boondocks /"bu;ndQks/ pl. n. (the boondocks) N. Amer. informal - rough or isolated country. - ORIGIN 1940s: boondock from Tagalog bundok ‘mountain’. --219.90.68.25 07:08, 25 July 2005 (UTC)
Also, abaca, ylang-ylang, yo-yo, capiz (shell), manila, etc.--Jondel 07:24, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Almond joy

I deleted this brief portion:

"almond (silent L often pronounced)"

I'm American, and I don't know of anyone who pronounces "almond" with a silent L. The conventional pronounciation is "ALL-mund."

Just a comment: to many Asians (filipinos and Japanese , I'm a filipino living in Japan), Americans tend to extend and stress the first syllable so it sounds like AWW-mund to us. America to the Japanese sounds like uh-MEIrika or MEIrika.--Jondel 10:53, 8 Feb 2005 (UTC)
I'm an American, and "almond" is at the top of many "lists of most commonly mispronounced words" (check your dictionary). The l is properly silent, and while I realize the letter may seem prominent when you slow down and think about it, listen to the word in casual speech at an ordinary pace—do you really hear the l in every single person's pronunciation? ADH (t&m) 13:12, Feb 8, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] What is this article about???

I understand that there's a separate article on Englog. Can the authors of this article please remove the Englog aspects from this article and help us truly understand what indeed is Philippines English? You can't tell what this article is trying to explain - standard English in The Philippines or Englog. -- CJ Withers 06:30, 21 March 2006 (UTC)

I think a distinction needs to be made between:
  1. those who really speak English fluently or as a mother tongue, are familiar with the nuances and intricacies of the language, and can distinguish between all the 40+ phones inherent to English (and not just the around 20 or so of Tagalog, Cebuano, etc.); and,
  2. those who know English only as a second language or less, this which clearly constitutes the vast majority of Filipinos.
But really, if this article is going to be about the latter, then we might as well create articles for Hungarian English, Albanian English, Armenian English… —Lagalag 10:10, 27 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] P, F AND V, B REPLACMENTS

I'm a first generation Canadian born Filipino and one thing that is unique about Filipino English here is the replacements of Ps with Fs and Vs with Bs. The thing about the Vs and Bs is that it cannot be done vice-versa as the Ps and Fs.

Some Examples (note: most are letters are accompanied with a roll of the tongue):

  • Filipino = Pilipino (Given)
  • Victor = Bick-tor
  • Family = Pam-eh-lee
  • Varnish = Bar-nish
  • Fun = Pan
  • Vehicle = Be-hic-kle
  • Lover = Lab-er or loob-er
  • Find = Pined
  • Official = O-pish-al
  • Very = Berry

I know these won't make it into the front page because it regards English spoken on the Pilippines, but I though it would be interesting to add in the discussion. --24.114.255.83 04:48, 30 March 2006 (UTC)

Hey, I think "Letter Replacements" is part of the accent. It cannot be done vice versa because the some English letters-q, f, j, z, x, c, v-did not originallly exist in most Philippine languages. see Filipino alphabet---23prootie

The switch occurs because the de facto Tagalog alphabet does not include the soft consonants and sounds of F, V, etc. but other Philippine languages' alphabets do, such as Ilocano.

[edit] Salvage

Did not come from Spanish.Salvage originally came from something like :The corpse was salvaged from Pasig river, salvage meaning,recoverred or found. This has of course become murdered.--Jondel 07:39, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

This is an easy mistake, since most Pinoys (Filipinos) do not learn English as the first language. They would, then, translate the English into Tagalog "in their heads" first, with unfortunate results. In the example given by Jondel, it becomes, literally, "Ang bangkay ay na-salvage sa ilog Pasig". This statement can have two literal meanings based on the context of the word "sa":
  • The corpse was salvaged from the Pasig river.
  • The corpse was salvaged at the Pasig river.
The second translation implies a meaning for those who are not familiar with the original meaning of "salvage", i.e. that a person became a corpse due to being "salvaged", and that the process of "salvaging" just happened to have been performed at the Pasig river. Nowadays, brutal murders that result in corpses that are not actually "salvaged" are still referred to as "salvage-victims". Gryphon Hall 07:37, 18 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Other words for investigation

--Jondel 07:39, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Crony

A Marcos associate ussually involved in corruption and illegal accumulation of healthwealth.--Jondel 07:39, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

The term is not (no longer? don't know if the term was used prior to Marcos) specific to associations with Marcos though. You could state it as "Originally used to refer to a Marcos associate who had usually benefited financially from the dictator's patronage. The Philippine media's modern use of the term encompasses anyone seen to have benefited from associating with local politicans." --Edward Sandstig 21:50, 28 June 2006 (UTC)
Definition of crony, in case somebody decides to remove it again. --Edward Sandstig 17:20, 21 August 2006 (UTC)
Well, I'm not sure what regions dictionary.com covers (and dict.org also returns various "close friend" definitions), but in Ireland, "crony" implies "probably a crook". A mafia gang leader or a corrupt politician would have cronies. I think the meaning is the same in the UK too. See also Cronyism. Gronky 05:00, 14 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Accepted English and non-Accepted English in the Philippines

Should it be noted that many English teachers and professors in the Philippines attempt to correct issues such as mispronunciation and incorrect usage of terms ("turn off the lights" instead of "close the lights") to match American English? --Edward Sandstig 22:01, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

Seems like a good idea. On 'close the lights':I don't know if this is linguistically ingrained because when Filipinos immigrate to the US they habitually tend to say this. Why don't for example Spanish speakers have this habit? --Jondel 01:21, 29 June 2006
A native Spanish speaker might be able to provide us with what "turn off the lights" is in Spanish. With regards Tagalog though, the term used is "patayin mo yung ilaw", which literally translated is "kill the lights", so the "close the lights" bit doesn't seem to come from Tagalog --Edward Sandstig 01:29, 29 June 2006 (UTC)
The close and turn off is seen other applications: Turn off the TV - close the TV, etc. In spanish I think it is 'apaga la luz'.--Jondel 03:47, 29 June 2006 (UTC)
Would it be okay for me to place "This form of mispronunciation is generally frowned upon in the workplace and some schools" in the Phonology section? Or is it too POV? --Edward Sandstig 08:04, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
Maybe frowned upon in some schools and English purists? (Yes it would be ok).--Jondel 00:13, 10 July 2006 (UTC)
How about — "This form of mispronunciation is generally frowned upon by English purists, some schools, and businesses dealing with international clients."? --Edward Sandstig 09:59, 10 July 2006 (UTC)


Please go ahead and enter what you think is appropriate.--Jondel 23:16, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

I've worked at a British School, once I had asked the procurement (british national) to give me a "staple wire", she replied that she didn't know what I was asking, then I resolved by saying "how about some 'staples'" and then she laughed and told me that there is no such thing as staple wire. I was embarrased and put into deep thinking, "was it me or was it me?" ah damn purist...... (just sharing)

[edit] Philippine English is the official language?

I've been taught English as seen and told by Americans. So if there's any official English language, it's American English, or just plain English. --Howard the Duck 14:07, 8 July 2006 (UTC)

Each region develops their own version of the language. Americans (or British, etc)would not for example understand 'C.R.' or 'salvage' in the way, we Filipinos use these words.--Jondel 06:41, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
But is it accurate to say that "Philippine English" is the "official language"? The constitution says plain english. --Howard the Duck 06:49, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
You are right. Sorry for the oversight. Lets correct this appropriately. --Jondel 06:57, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
Please note that Philippine English is an officially recognized English dialect by the Oxford International Dictionary, on equal footing with American and British English. However, we ought to recognize that this refers to standard English in the Philippines, not the bastardized variety spoken in the streets. This means the usage must be acceptable in the academe or during formal occasions to classify as standard. Furthermore, although the constitution just says English, I wonder why it would be argued that this should mean American English when a standard English dialect exists in the country?
Philippine English is the English used in the street. English taught in schools is more of the American type, hence Filipinos type "organizations" not "organisations."
Also if the constitution says English, then it is absolutely not Philippine English because there is no modifier before English. The constitution says plain "English", not "Philippine English." --Howard the Duck 02:11, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Neither does the American constitution say that the official language is American English. This is really a simple concept. English is a language, while American English and Philippine English are dialects of a language. Of course, an official language would be a language. But the flavor used should be the local dialect. God forbid the Americans to use Philippine English as their official language. There is no room for such a bastardized language in official business. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.177.144.208 (talk • contribs)
The current setup satisfied me already. I shall comment no further on this issue. --Howard the Duck 06:00, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
The keyword is "Official LANGUAGE" not "Official DIALECT." English is simply English the language in general. Any other preceding adjective would make it fall under the category of a dialect, which I'm sure doesn't have official status in any country's constitution, right?--Red C.

Would this note if placed on top, address your concerns?

The following article focuses on English as spoken in the Philippines and does not imply endorsement from any academic, language or business institutions nor is it taught nor promoted by the said institutions.

Or something to the effect that

Standard English is taught in Schools and promoted in business institutions? This article focuses on English as habitually and customarily spoken by Filipinos.--Jondel 05:06, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
That'll be nice. --Howard the Duck 13:47, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Ok, then.--Jondel 15:37, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
Should the note appear as a disclaimer, at the top as in its previous position?--Jondel 08:43, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
Isn't the disclaimer redundant considering the article's opening sentence is: "Philippine English is the variation of English used in the Philippines by the media and the vast majority of Filipinos. It is not officially taught at schools. English is one of the two official languages of the Republic of the Philippines, the other being Filipino."? --Edward Sandstig 09:39, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
sorry to be late in this, but Philippine English would be the offical language, like American English or Candian english is the offical or de facto of United States and Canada respectively. Why would american english be offical? Is it becuase americans want world domination AGAIN?Australian Jezza 12:48, 6 October 2006 (UTC)
The English taught in schools is American English, not because America is King, but because Americans colonized the Philippines, and Philippine English is derived from American English. If the Brits conquered the country, it might have been British English. The article already desribes this very well. (Note that the existence of "standard English" is disputed) --Howard the Duck 05:21, 18 October 2006 (UTC)
ahhh.... i'm from australia.... who colonised australia.... british.... but do we speak british english? no, we speak australian english, but technically we don't have an official language haha, niether does america... but also america didn't really colonise the philippines, it took over from the coloniser, spain.Australian Jezza 12:25, 24 April 2007 (UTC)
Well Australian English sounds very much like British English, like using "s" instead of "z" in words such as "colonization", etc. --Howard the Duck 15:41, 8 January 2008 (UTC)
How do the Brish say "I'm going to the Hospital to dietoday." ? Australians probably don't understand it when people are horrified when they say the same thing. :) --Jondel (talk) 06:26, 10 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] "Full-pledged"

Fbkintanar added — "Full-pledged - Have full status, to be inducted into an office or membership. This may be related to the U.S. adjective full-fledged (in Britain, fully fledged) which similarly means "completely developed or established; of full status" (Compact OED) but with reference to a young bird developing flight feathers rather than a pledging ceremony." — I don't think this is common and most likely just a typo or spelling error. Unless this is being confused with the statement "I fully pledge" during oathtaking, which is also used in standard English? --Edward Sandstig 09:54, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

That dictionary has no boondock or carabao word!! Burn! Destroy! :)--Jondel 05:28, 31 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "Every now and then" means often?

Not heard it being used this way, but an aunt informed me that a starlet once used it in this context. It might have been said in a sarcastic tone. Keep or remove? --Edward Sandstig 10:10, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Proposed move

Philippine English → English in the Philippines   (Discuss)

There is no Philippine dialect of the English language. If this were the case, "big" words and phrases would be easily understood (though not necessarily used) by the general population, which isn't the case. — 210.213.184.10 05:02, 26 September 2006 (UTC)
O yes there is. Check out Oxford International English Dictionary for a list of English dialects.
Um.. there is a dialect of Enlgish called 'Philippine English', because firstly, a variation of a language can be called a dialect when a person from another region who speaks the same language can't understand some parts of that language for example, C.R. for most Austalians, Canadians, British, American, New Zealand and etc. people ( who dont have a Filipino backgorund) wouldn't understand this a toilet!!! The same goes for Australian and New Zealand english, to many people Australian and NZ English is the same (mostly to pople are aren't Nz'ers or Aussies, but Australians and NZ'ers have different words for different things, which we might not understand what they mean, an example could be the Australian 'milk bar' is the equvalent of a NZ 'dairy'. Plus are you even Filipino? because if you were you would realise this all so quickly that it is a dialect o english, and under Languages of the Philippines there is an article on English in the Philippines.
are you even Filipino? - this question has no place in this discussion. Gronky 21:35, 16 October 2006 (UTC)
Right. There’s no need to employ ad hominem attacks. Plus, to the [second] anonymous user, I believe you’re missing the point here. Filipinos, unlike Australians, Brits, New Zealanders, etc., in general, do not think in English, but rather using the structures of their native languages, which aren’t even of the Germanic family. The English that they’re speaking is not a dialect of native speakers. —Lagalag 11:16, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

here is what i found on Encarta, read it... even though it says variety it says the same for American, australian new zealand, etc. english

Philippine English

noun

English spoken in Philippines: a variety of English spoken in the Philippines

Philippine English, also Filipino English, is the variety of English used in the Philippines. It has some co-official status with Filipino. English is the second western colonial language, after Spanish; the United States took the territory in 1898 from Spain, whose colony it had been since 1521. The nation is diverse, with a Malay majority, a Chinese minority, and many people of mixed Malay, Chinese, Spanish, and US backgrounds. Because English is used in varying degrees by over half the population of about 60 million, the Philippines rightly claims to be a major English-speaking country.

Like US English, Philippine English pronounces r in words such as art, door, and worker. Also, h is pronounced with the tip of the tongue curled back and raised. Vowels tend to be full in all syllables (e.g. seven being pronounced 'seh-ven', not 'sev'n'). An 's' or 'sh' sound may serve instead of a 'z' or 'zh', as in 'carss' (cars), 'pleshure' (pleasure). In grammar, the present continuous is commonly used for habitual behaviour, rather than the simple present ('We are doing this work all the time' for 'We do this work all the time'), the present perfect may be used rather than the simple past ('We have done it yesterday' for 'We did it yesterday'), and the past perfect rather than the present perfect ('They had already been there' for 'They have already been there').

Distinctive vocabulary includes: (1) Hispanicisms, unchanged or adapted, e.g. asalto (surprise party), querida (mistress); (2) words from Tagalog, e.g. boondock (mountain) - whence 'the boondocks', kundiman (love song), tao (man) - as in 'the common tao'; (3) local coinages, e.g. carnap (to steal a car), formed by analogy with kidnap, and jeepney (small bus), blending jeep and jitney, a jeep adapted for passengers.

...or how the Spanish word siempre (orig. Latin semper) which means "always" has come to mean "of course" in Filipino.--Red C.

Microsoft® Encarta® 2006. © 1993-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.Australian Jezza 12:41, 6 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Open/ close the light

Why is someone always removing this? If you (the deleter)are a Filipino living in the Philippines, I guarantee that you will unconsciously say this if you immigrate to the US, Australia, etc.. I know so many first -generation Filipino americans who unconsciously say this . Again this article is not about proper English or to undermine Filipino speaking abilities. It is mentioned here to make known unconscious habits in speech.--Jondel 07:55, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

I'm not the deleter, however it may be being deleted because the usage isn't limited to Philippine English speakers. I have regularly heard Italian Canadians use this phrase the same way --Hearleg (talk) 14:47, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] How is "gimmick" used?

I don't remember ever hearing a Filipino say this. Could an example be added? It is "Lets gimmick later", or "Lets go gimmick", or "Lets have a gimmick" or what? Gronky 21:40, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

Young people say stuff like "Gimik sa Sabado" or "Saan gimik natin?". I'm not sure I've heard many people use it in an English sentence, unless they were dealing with a balikbayan for example. --Edward Sandstig 22:38, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

Hey the word "gimmik" is used as both Noun and Verb, as of course depends on the context, Gimmik is also interpreted as a bad scheme of work to replace the old tagalog-street word "raket" which means easy-money for an extra job. 221.133.22.56 16:48, 14 December 2006 (UTC) (just sharing)

Can you give an example of how Filipinos use it in English as a verb with the meaning of "to go out and have fun"? Gronky 20:14, 14 December 2006 (UTC)
Where’s your gimik?, I guess. I don’t think it’s used too often in English, the word, that is. —Lagalag 11:23, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

Okey let's say in Verb, we use it this way : John, let's gimmik tomorrow night, are you free? :

          as a Noun: Ah! what's your gimmik again. : which of course being used by conyos. (just sharing)

Gimmick (spelt gimik in Filipino usage) is more properly classified as an english loanword in Filipino. It's use in Philippine English is very limited. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.164.174.198 (talk) 07:11, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Bisaya accent

Hey, I think there should be a section for the Bisaya accent. mean there is a significant difference with the accent of Manila and the accent of rural Cebu.--23prootie 23:45, 6 February 2007 (UTC)

i agree, my mum has a different accent from her friends lol, she's from bohol and she has like (well to me) a more... like british or less of an american accent than her friends who are from manila.Australian Jezza 12:30, 24 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Promise

I'm thingking of adding this word, where they really mean to say 'I swear'. Sometimes the usage is correct. i.e. The movie will be good, I promise. The teacher will be there, I promise. Sometimes, 'I swear' would be more appropriate in the past tense usage. i.e.The movie was good, I promiseswear. The teacher was there, I promiseswear.--Jondel 12:16, 27 June 2007 (UTC)

Americans also use this tag phrase, which is roughly synonymous with other tag phrases such as, like you said, "I swear" and also "honestly" or "scout's honor."--Red C.

[edit] Jingle, Chancing and Duster

"Jingle" is an English word that is used in the Philippines as a slang word to mean urinate. Whether used colloquially or not, it is still an English word which has a completely different meaning in the Philippines than other English speaking countries. Examples: (in Taglish): "Sandali lang, I have to jingle muna before we go."; (English) "Wait a minute I have to jingle before we go."

"Chancing" is also an English word that is usually spelled in the Philippines as "tsansing" but nonetheless is still an English word like taksi (taxi), titser (teacher), etc. Example: (Taglish) "Napaka-crowded sa Metro Rail ngayon. Ang mama sa likod ko kept chancing me - laging dumidikit siya sa akin likod. Nakakainis!" (English) "It was so crowded on the Metro Rail today. The man behind me kept chancing me - he kept bumping into my back." —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ciredor2001 (talk • contribs) 08:57, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Isn't "chancing"'s definition expanded to mean behaviour that would be considered sexual harassment in other countries? And in Philippine English useage, chancing is a noun. (e.g. "I don't like riding the jeep, people always make 'chancing' when you ride.") —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.164.174.198 (talk) 07:14, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

"Duster" is an English word and is not only used when speaking in Tagalog, but has a different meaning than in most other English speaking countries. In the Philippines, a duster is a simple sun dress. In the U.S. a duster refers to an instrument used to remove dust from items (usually furniture) and is most often made up of feathers.


We shouldn't confuse Philippine English with Taglish, or even with "Colegiala English" or the English spoken by some female students from all-girls schools. Both "Jingle" and "Chancing", though they may be sometimes used in English, are almost always used with Taglish and Filipino. It's not like the Philippine English word "officemate" which is almost always used instead of the standard "co-worker".

Examples: I'm having dinner with my officemates tonight. This is my officemate, Carol.

"Jingle" is mostly used by members of the middle or lower class when speaking in Filipino. Examples:

Jingle muna ako. Si Bogs? Jumi-jingle yata.

Chances are, you hear "jingle" used in English once for every 1,000 times you hear it in taglish or Filipino.

So I think both "jingle" and "chancing" aren't generally used in Philippine English like the other words in the list. Although you made a good point with "duster". —Preceding unsigned comment added by Souledgemaster (talk • contribs) 07:32, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] NPOV Tag

Doing NPOV tag cleanup. An NPOV tag must be accompanied by a posting on the discussion page stating clearly what issues the editor finds violating POV, and what they feel can be done about it. This permits discussion and resolution of the issues. These tags do not have any such discussion, are drive-by tagging, and will be removed. Jjdon (talk) 00:18, 25 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Usage

The Vocabulary and usage section of this article presently concentrates on Vocabulary. I think that it should have a Vocabulary subsection containing most or all of the existing material and a Usage subsection containing info about Philippine English usage idiosyncrasies vs. U.S. and U.K. English. Some examples:

  • "I will be the one" vs. "I will"—As I understand it, this comes from the Tagalog "ako na lang".
  • "make an ocular inspection" vs. "inspect".
  • "the other day" meaning specifically "the day before yesterday" instead of meaning generally ""recently".
  • "for a while", the English translation of the Tagalog, "sandali lang", The component words of the phrase "for a while" are clearly English, but this expression as a whole does not exist in the rest of the English-speaking world. In the UK or the US, the idiomatic equivalent would be something like "just a second" or "just a moment".
  • "Watch your steps" vs. "Watch your step".
  • Using the English word "last" where the Tagalog word "noon" would be used, as in e.g., "last January 15th" which, in the US or UK, would be taken as January 15th of the previous year.
  • "we accept" vs. "we do" (e.g. "we accept printing").
  • Personal Pronoun—In the major languages of the Philippines, there is no distinction between the pronouns for male and female. The Tagalog word for both "he" and "she" is "siya". Thus, because Filipinos are not used to differentiating between the two, it is not uncommon to hear someone say, e.g., "he gave birth to twins yesterday" or to speak of their father saying, "she still doesn't have work".
  • Response to a negative question—E.g., the question, "Haven't you seen the doctor?" is answered "yes", meaning "Yes, I have not seen the doctor", and which a US or UK listener would take as having the opposite meaning. This difference from US and UK convention is not unique to the Philippines, and causes much confusion.
  • "I'll just go ahead", meaning "I'm leaving" and not meaning "I'll go first, and you follow".
  • "open the light" and "close the light", which are not used in US and UK English and are equivalent respectively to "turn on the light" and "turn off the light". This is doubly confusing because in US and UK English "opening" a valve in a plumbing system allows water to flow, while "opening" an electrical switch breaks the connection and stops electricity from flowing.

Not being a Filipino, I'm not well qualified to put this together. The examples above grew out of my time spent in the Philippines and from some googling around. Could someone better qualified than I improve & expand the above, or should I just drop it into the article as-is?

The above grew largely out of material here and here. There is some more material, nor about pronumciation than about usage here. There's some info related to both usage and pronunciation here. -- Boracay Bill (talk) 21:13, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

"Go ahead", "The other day", "For a while" and "Close the light" are already in the article, but could be expanded. The part about personal pronouns is considered a grammatical error, and isn't the sort of thing you'd hear from the local media or most university professors. "Conduct an ocular inspection" is more common than "Make an ocular inspection", at least in the media and official government documents. Surprised that nobody's added "I will be the one who will" and "We accept", but I think it's possible you're correct about the origin of "I will be the one who will". --Edward Sandstig (talk) 07:29, 29 May 2008 (UTC)
There is also Go up/down the bus when Get on/off the bus is meant. From the famous:Bababa ba? Bababa. (Are you/we getting off? Yes I/we am/are getting off).--Jondel 04:52, 30 May 2008 (UTC) 'Get down the vehicle' already in the article.--Jondel (talk) 05:28, 30 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Arbor?

Has anyone else heard "arbor" used in Philippine English? I was under the impression it was Tagalog slang. --Edward Sandstig (talk) 11:28, 30 May 2008 (UTC)