mais
/maˈʔis/
The Tagalog word for corn is mais.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /maˈʔis/.
Did you know?
- In some regions of the Philippines, corn is treated as a primary staple instead of rice and is referred to as bigas na mais, which literally translates to 'corn rice'.
- The term mais is used in a way that reflects the 'Galleon Trade' history, where crops from the Americas were brought to Asia via Mexico.
- Tracing back even further, the Spanish word 'maíz' comes from the Taíno language of the Caribbean. This means the word 'mais' links the Philippines to the Americas through a long linguistic chain.
Examples in context
- Gusto mo ba ng mais?Would you like some corn?This sentence is useful for asking if someone wants some mais.Tatoeba #11594396 by qwertzu, translation #10054271 by shekitten
- Sinong pumitas ng mais?Who picked the corn?This sentence is useful for asking who picked the mais.Tatoeba #8658633 by artemio, translation #2647279 by CK
- Marami akong nakaing mais.I ate a lot of corn.This sentence is useful for saying how much mais you ate.Tatoeba #11594408 by qwertzu, translation #9778834 by CK
- Ang mais ang isang pangunahing pagkain sa Pilipinas.Corn is a staple food in the Philippines.
- 24 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A small street food stall in the afternoon.
- JasmineMay benta ba kayong nilagang mais?Do you sell boiled corn?
- RicardoMeron po, gusto niyo ba?Yes, would you like some?
- JasmineSige, bibili ako ng dalawang mais.Okay, I will buy two ears of corn.
- RicardoSige po, heto na ang order niyo.Alright, here is your order.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry mais, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries mais, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
