Skip to content

kintab

kintáb with stress marks

shine, brilliance

noun kin-TAB Native origin Less Common

Usage Note

Kintab describes a polished, reflective sheen on a surface — commonly used for shiny shoes, gleaming floors, or lustrous hair. It implies care and cleanliness, and complimenting someone's kintab is a way of praising their grooming or housekeeping effort.

Examples

Beginner

" May kintab ang bagong sahig. "

Natural Translation

The new floor has a shine.

Literal Translation

Has shine the new floor.

Intermediate

" May kintab ang sapatos niya pagkatapos nitong linisin. "

Natural Translation

His/Her shoes had a shine after cleaning them.

Literal Translation

Has shine the shoes his/her after-this cleaned.

Advanced

" Pinunasan niyang mabuti ang lumang kotse hanggang sa bumalik ang dating kintab nito na parang bago pa rin. "

Natural Translation

He/She polished the old car thoroughly until its former shine came back, as if it were still brand new.

Literal Translation

Wiped he/she-well the old car until returned the former shine its like new still.

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.