Skip to content

hampas-lupa

hampás-lupâ with stress marks

vagrants; poor (LIT: strike the soil)

noun ham-PAS LU-pa Compound origin Rare

Usage Note

Hampas-lupa is a pejorative compound word meaning the destitute or vagrants — literally 'those who strike the earth,' implying people so low they are beaten to the ground. It is used in literature and social commentary to describe extreme poverty and marginalization. Learners should be aware of its derogatory register.

Examples

Beginner

" Mahirap ang buhay ng hampas-lupa. "

Natural Translation

The life of the destitute is hard.

Literal Translation

Hard the life of-the vagrant.

Intermediate

" Ang mga hampas-lupa ay kailangang tulungan ng pamahalaan. "

Natural Translation

The homeless poor need to be helped by the government.

Literal Translation

The vagrants are needed-to-be-helped by-the government.

Advanced

" Inilarawan ng manunulat ang mga hampas-lupang natutulog sa lansangan habang nagdiriwang ang mga mayayaman sa kabilang panig ng lungsod. "

Natural Translation

The writer depicted the destitute sleeping in the streets while the rich celebrated on the other side of the city.

Literal Translation

Depicted by-the writer the vagrants who-sleep in-the street while celebrating the rich on the other side of-the city.

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.