barat
barát with stress marks
one who bargains aggressively, stingy, haggle
Usage Note
Barat describes someone who haggles excessively or refuses to pay a fair price — often used affectionately but can carry mild criticism. It is a culturally familiar concept because bargaining at tiangge (markets) and ukay-ukay (thrift stores) is a normal part of Philippine commerce. Calling someone barat is usually a light tease rather than a serious insult.
Examples
" Barat ang kapatid ko. "
Natural Translation
My sibling is stingy.
Literal Translation
Stingy the sibling my.
" Kilala si Aling Nena na barat. "
Natural Translation
Aling Nena is known to be stingy.
Literal Translation
Known (honorific) Nena that stingy.
" Sobrang barat ng tita ko kaya lagi siyang nakikipagtawaran kahit mura na ang presyo sa tindahan. "
Natural Translation
My aunt is so stingy that she always haggles even when the store's price is already cheap.
Literal Translation
Very stingy of aunt my so always she haggling even cheap already the price at store.
Tagalog builds thousands of words from a few hundred roots.
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