Skip to content

balanghay

balangháy with stress marks

military unit or company

noun ba-lang-HAY Native origin Rare

Usage Note

Balanghay is a historical and military term for a company or unit of soldiers, rarely used in everyday modern speech. It appears in historical texts, literature, and discussions of Philippine precolonial social organization.

Examples

Beginner

" Malakas ang balanghay. "

Natural Translation

The military unit is strong.

Literal Translation

Strong the military-unit.

Intermediate

" Sino ang pinuno ng balanghay? "

Natural Translation

Who is the leader of the military unit?

Literal Translation

Who the leader of military-unit?

Advanced

" Sa mga lumang aklat ng kasaysayan, binanggit kung paanong ang bawat balanghay ay may sariling pinuno na nangunguna sa labanan. "

Natural Translation

In old history books, it is mentioned how each military unit had its own leader who led in battle.

Literal Translation

In old books of history, mentioned how the each military-unit has own leader that leads in battle.

Free · iOS & Android

Take Tagalog with you

The full course, a 12,500-word dictionary, and flashcards that make every word stick — free to start on iOS and Android.

Tagalog builds thousands of words from a few hundred roots.

How Tagalog words work

Explore Tagalog by topic

Free guides on grammar, vocabulary, and culture to take you past single-word lookups.