The Cebuano/Bisaya word pula means “red”. Pronounced PU-la, it is used as a adjective by native Cebuano speakers across Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, and much of Mindanao. This page covers what pula means in Bisaya, how to pronounce it correctly, how to use it in a sentence, and related words in the same category.
Bisaya word
pula
English meaning
red
Part of speech
Adjective
In Bisaya (Cebuano), pula translates to “red”.
As a adjective in the Adjectives category, “pula” is part of the core Bisaya vocabulary that learners encounter early on. Native speakers use it across all registers — casual home conversations in Cebu, busy marketplaces in Bohol, and everyday interactions throughout the Visayas and Mindanao.
Capital letters mark the stressed syllable — say it louder and slightly longer.
Bisaya stress is phonemic — the wrong stress can make a word hard for native speakers to recognise. For pula, put the main stress on the uppercase syllable in PU-la. A good technique is to clap on the stressed syllable as you say the word: pu-la. Once the rhythm is natural, drop the clapping and let muscle memory take over.
Bisaya adjectives like "pula" (red) typically come before the noun they describe, similar to English. You can intensify them using "kaayo" — for example, "pula kaayo" means "very red". Negation is done with "dili" (not) or "wala" depending on context. Mastering descriptive adjectives like "pula" is one of the quickest ways to make your Bisaya sentences richer and more expressive.
Expand your vocabulary by learning other Bisaya adjectives in the same category as “pula”.
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