Skip to content

mandala

mandalá with stress marks

haystack; circular/square deity image

noun man-da-LA Native origin Rare

Usage Note

Mandala in Philippine agricultural tradition refers to a circular pile of harvested rice stalks. The same word appears in religious and artistic contexts as a geometric sacred diagram, reflecting the word's blend of indigenous roots and pre-colonial Hindu-Buddhist influence.

Examples

Beginner

" Malaki ang mandala sa bukid. "

Natural Translation

The haystack in the field is big.

Literal Translation

Big the haystack in-the field.

Intermediate

" Mataas ang mandala. "

Natural Translation

The haystack is high.

Literal Translation

High the haystack.

Advanced

" Pagkatapos ng ani, nagtulong-tulong ang mga magsasaka sa pagbuo ng malalaking mandala ng dayami sa gitna ng bukid. "

Natural Translation

After the harvest, the farmers worked together to build large haystacks of straw in the middle of the field.

Literal Translation

After of-the harvest, helped-one-another the [mga] farmer in-the building of large [mga] haystack of straw in middle of-the field.

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.