basura

Asturian

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish basura. Doublet of medieval vassoria, whence the modern verb basoriar (“to dirty”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [baˈsu.ɾa]
• Rhymes: -uɾa
• Syllabification: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basura f (uncountable)

1. trash, garbage, rubbish

   Synonyms: refugaya, puxarra

2. trash bin

   Bótalo a la basura.

   Throw it in the trash [bin].

   ¿Ú ties la basura na cocina?

   Where's the trash [bin] in your kitchen?

Usage notes

Basura is used most often in the modern sense of "mixed waste", such as the waste produced by an entire household or facility. The native terms are most often used in traditional contexts or for the waste resultant of a specific activity.

Further reading

• “basura”, in Diccionariu de la llingua asturiana [Dictionary of the Asturian Language] (in Asturian), 1st edition, Academy of the Asturian Language [Asturian: Academia de la Llingua Asturiana], 2000, →ISBN
• García Arias, Xosé Lluis (2002–2004), “basura”, in Diccionario general de la lengua asturiana [General Dictionary of the Asturian Language] (overall work in Spanish), Editorial Prensa Asturiana, →ISBN

Cebuano

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Cebuano basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [baˈs̪uː.ɾ̪a]
• Hyphenation: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basúra (Badlit spelling ᜊᜐᜓᜇ)

1. garbage; useless or disposable material; waste material of any kind

   Synonyms: sagbot, yagit

Central Bikol

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Central Bikol basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [baˈsu.ɾa]
• Hyphenation: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basúra (Basahan spelling ᜊᜐᜓᜍ)

1. garbage; waste; rubbish; trash

   Synonym: ramog

Derived terms

• basurahan
• ibasura
• magbasura

Related terms

• basurero

Chavacano

Etymology

Inherited from Spanish basura (“garbage”).

Pronunciation

• (Zamboanga) IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [ba.ˈsu.ɾa]
• Rhymes: -a, -ɾa
• Hyphenation: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basúra

1. garbage

Related terms

• basurera
• basurero

Hiligaynon

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Hiligaynon basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [baˈsu.ɾa]
• Hyphenation: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basúra

1. garbage, refuse, waste, rubbish, trash

   Synonym: higko

Ibanag

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Ibanag basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Noun

basura

1. garbage; trash

Ilocano

A "No littering" sign in a mix of Tagalog, Ilocano, and English. The Ilocano portion, using standard orthography, reads "Basurayo iuwiyo".

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Ilocano basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [bɐˈsu.ɾa]
• Hyphenation: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basúra

1. trash, garbage

References

• Rubino, Carl Ralph Galvez (2000), “basúra”, in Byron W. Bender, editor, Ilocano Dictionary and Grammar: Ilocano-English, English-Ilocano‎^[1] (overall work in English and Ilocano), Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, page 103

Masbatenyo

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Masbatenyo basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Noun

basura

1. garbage; trash

   Synonyms: higko, ati

Derived terms

• basurahan

Pangasinan

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Pangasinan basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/, [baˈsʊ.ɾa]
• Hyphenation: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basura

1. garbage; trash

Spanish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basura

Inherited from Old Spanish vassura, from Vulgar Latin *versūra, ultimately derived from Latin verrō (“sweep”). Unrelated to Latin versūra (“refinancing”), which derives from vertō (“turn”).

Compare typologically Proto-Slavic *sъmetь, *sъmetьje (whence Polish śmieć, Serbo-Croatian смеће), akin to *mesti.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [baˈsu.ɾa]

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uɾa
• Syllabification: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basura f (plural basuras)

1. trash, waste, garbage, rubbish, nonsense

   Synonyms: desecho, porquería

2. something trashy or undesirable

   Synonym: mierda

Derived terms

• bote de basura (“trash can”) (El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua)
• caneca de basura (“trash can”) (Colombia)
• cesto de basura
• comida basura
• contenedor de basura (“trash can”) (Venezuela)
• correo basura
• cubo de basura (“trash can”) (Spain)
• la basura de un hombre es el tesoro de otro
• latón de basura (“trash can”) (Cuba)
• pipote de basura (“trash can”) (Venezuela)
• tacho de basura (“trash can”) (Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay)
• tarro de basura (“trash can”) (Colombia)
• telebasura
• tinaco de basura (“trash can”) (Panama)
• tirar a basura (“throw to the trash”) (Cuba)
• tirar basura (“to litter”)

Related terms

• barrer
• basural
• basurero

Descendants

• Chavacano: basura
• → Asturian: basura
• → Catalan: bassura
• → Cebuano: basura
• → Central Bikol: basura
• → Chamorro: basula
• → Hiligaynon: basura
• → Ibanag: basura
• → Ilocano: basura
• → Masbatenyo: basura
• → Tagalog: basura

Further reading

• “basura”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Tagalog

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Tagalog basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura, from Old Spanish vassura, from Vulgar Latin *versūra, from Latin verrō (“sweep”) + -tūra (noun-forming suffix).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /baˈsuɾa/ [bɐˈsuː.ɾɐ]
• Rhymes: -uɾa
• Syllabification: ba‧su‧ra

Noun

basura (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜐᜓᜇ)

1. garbage; trash; rubbish; junk

   Synonyms: sukal, yagit

2. (figurative) something useless; worthless; not needed; or of poor quality

   Synonym: walang-kuwenta

Derived terms

• basurahan
• ibasura
• magbabasura
• magbasura
• tambakan ng basura
• telebasura

Related terms

• basurera
• basurero

Further reading

• “basura”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

Yogad

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wers-der.

Latin verrō

Proto-Indo-European *-tew-?

Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂?

Latin -tūra

Vulgar Latin *versūra

Old Spanish vassura

Spanish basurabor.

Yogad basura

Borrowed from Spanish basura.

Noun

basura

1. garbage; trash