Skip to content

sukab

sukáb with stress marks

traitor; treacherous

noun adjective su-KAB Native origin Less Common

Usage Note

Sukab is a strong native pejorative for someone who betrays trust or acts treacherously. It appears in historical and contemporary political commentary as well as in personal betrayal, and carries more native force than traydor, which is borrowed from Spanish.

Examples

Beginner

" Sukab pala siya. "

Natural Translation

So he is treacherous after all.

Literal Translation

Treacherous after-all he.

Intermediate

" Siya ay isang sukab na kaibigan. "

Natural Translation

He/she is a treacherous friend.

Literal Translation

He/she is a treacherous friend.

Advanced

" Hindi inakala ng bayani na ang kanyang pinagkatiwalaang kasama pala ang tunay na sukab sa likod ng pagtataksil. "

Natural Translation

The hero never imagined that the comrade he trusted was actually the real traitor behind the betrayal.

Literal Translation

Not imagined by hero that the his trusted companion actually the true traitor behind of betrayal.

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.