Sometimes we get a certain feeling that we can’t accurately put into words, part of it being that no word exists in our native language to describe it. So, like any other person, we described it in sentences, browsing the web for a specific term to satisfy that curiosity about a certain feeling or emotion we’re experiencing.

For Oxford English Dictionary’s latest update on its list of “untranslatable words,” several new words were added from the regions across Southeast Asia, South Africa, and Ireland. Although words like lumpia or kababayan have been incorporated into the foreign dictionary, a regular Filipino word popped up on its list.

Gigil (pronounced as ghee-gill) is taken from the Tagalog language that describes a “feeling we get when someone or something cute, a feeling so intense that it gives us the irresistible urge to tightly clench our hands, grit our teeth, and pinch or squeeze whomever or whatever it is we find so adorable.”

Whether it be a fluffy little creature or a chubby-cheeked baby, the Oxford Dictionary says gigil is a pithy name for the strange, paradoxical emotion that humans feel. It can be used as a noun or an adjective to describe someone experiencing it.

However, this is not the first time the Oxford Dictionary has borrowed words from Tagalog. Much earlier, they adopted kababayan, which means two things: a small, yellow cake similar to a muffin, or a word that Filipinos use to call their fellowmen or people from the same town or region as them.

The word lumpia was also recognized, adopting the name of various types of East and Southeast Asian spring rolls. Although it is a word borrowed from Tagalog, they noted that it is also from Malay, Indonesian, and perhaps, even Dutch.

Other words like videoke–the Filipino version of karaoke; sando; load; CR (comfort room); and a terror, which is often used as an adjective for a teacher who is strict, harsh, or demanding, were also adopted into the English dictionary in the past.