magbakbak
magbakbák with stress marks
to peel off
From root: bakbak
Conjugations
Past (Completed)
nagbakbak
nag-bak-BAK
peeled off
Present (Incomplete)
nagbabakbak
nag-ba-bak-BAK
is peeling off
Future (Contemplated)
magbabakbak
mag-ba-bak-BAK
will peel off
Usage Note
Magbakbak is the actor-focus infinitive of 'bakbak', describing the act of peeling, stripping bark, or removing surface layers. It works both with a person as the active agent and intransitively when surfaces like paint or plaster peel spontaneously; its object-focus partner 'bakbakin' foregrounds the surface being stripped.
Examples
" Magbakbak ka ng dilaw na pintura. "
Natural Translation
Peel off the yellow paint.
Literal Translation
Peel you of yellow paint.
" Magbakbak ka ng balat ng saging. "
Natural Translation
Peel the skin off a banana.
Literal Translation
Peel you of skin of banana.
" Bago natin pinturahan ang pader, kailangan muna nating magbakbak ng lumang papel sa dingding. "
Natural Translation
Before we paint the wall, we first need to strip off the old paper on it.
Literal Translation
Before we paint the wall, need first of-us to-peel of old paper on wall.
Tagalog builds thousands of words from a few hundred roots.
How Tagalog words workWord family
bakbak has 2 related forms built from the same root.
Related Words
Explore Tagalog by topic
Free guides on grammar, vocabulary, and culture to take you past single-word lookups.

Philippines Geography for Learners: Islands & Language
Philippines geography for Tagalog learners: 7,641 islands, three island groups, and the Southern Luzon heartland where the Tagalog language was born.

Ng vs Nang in Tagalog: The Spelling Rule
Ng vs nang sound identical but spell differently. Use ng to mark nouns (of, the object), and nang for how, when, repetition, and counting time.

Mano Po and Filipino Etiquette: A Visitor's Guide
Mano po presses an elder's hand to your forehead as a blessing. Learn who to mano, how to lip-point, and the etiquette that wins over a Filipino family.

Tagalog vs Filipino: What's the Difference & Which to Learn
Tagalog and Filipino aren't the same language — but they overlap almost completely. Here's the real difference and which one you should actually learn.