balibago

noun

ba·​li·​ba·​go

ˌbälēˈbä(ˌ)gō

plural -s

Philippines

: majagua sense a

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Tagalog

Note: One of a number of variants of the name for the tree in major Philippine languages. The words balabágo and malabágo are given as Visayan, balibágo as Tagalog and Pampangan in Elmer D. Merrill, A Dictionary of Native Plant Names of the Philippine Islands (Manila: Department of the Interior, Bureau of Government Laboratories, 1903), compiled largely from 19th-century Spanish printed sources. John Wolff, in A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan, gives maribágu as the name in that language for Hibiscus tiliaceus. The second element of the word is clearly a reflex of Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *baRu, the tree Hibiscus tiliaceus. See also bola entry 2.

Love words?

You must — there are over 200,000 words in our free online dictionary, but you are looking for one that’s only in the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary.

Start your free trial today and get unlimited access to America's largest dictionary, with:

• More than 250,000 words that aren't in our free dictionary
• Expanded definitions, etymologies, and usage notes
• Advanced search features
• Ad free!