Friday, February 13, 2026

Pangasinan words to describe fruit flavor and texture

Pangasinan words to describe fruit flavor and texture

Pangasinan language has some unique words to describe fruit somewhere in this list:

State of Ripeness

maeta - unripe

aluto - ripe

gubal - a state of 'unripeness' in certain fruits (?)

tabal - the quality of ripeness in certain fruits like camachile (?) 

abeyew - hinog sa pilit; turned prematurely ripe, so it is no longer crunchy as desired but at the same time not at the mellow stage of ripeness as well.

adunel - got squashed in some parts

atuyak - squashed

abulok - rotten

biyakin (bi-'ya-kin) - an unripe stage of the mango fruit (the 'Hawaiian' variety is said to be best) that is perfect for its crunchiness and mild sourness

poypoy - ? ; as in "dalayap ya poypoy" 

nankakamulsit - like the plural form of atuyak-tuyak 

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State of Freshness

kapanburbor - freshly harvested; has freshly harvested quality

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Taste

masamit, malamis, malamlamis - sweet, very sweet

lamisan - sweetish

anapseng, anakseng - sour

mananam - delicious in the sense of being full of umami

masamit - delicious, even if it is not exactly sweet (masamit) 

magata - creamy (gata usually means coconut milk)

ampait - bitter 

maarat - mapait na mapakla; bitter and astringent

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Texture

makanot - fibrous, as in the case of fibrous fruits and root crops 

malamuteg - phlegm-like texture as in immature coconut meat 

mabuwer, magara, or magaralagar, magalareger - sandy 

mabago - furry or feathery 

masalangsang - crunchy

magalasagas, makalasakas, etc. - combination of crunchy, spongy, juicy, etc.

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Taste and Texture

ampasager - mapakla or the unpleasant, slightly astringent taste of certain unripe fruits, leaving a sticky, gummy sensation in the mouth and tongue. 

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I wonder whether we have words for malabo (to describe an old cottony mansanas) and maligat (to describe the preferred texture of kalubasa).  



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