Of all Tagalog words that don’t have English equivalents, there is no word that people like talking more about than “kilig.”

It’s that ticklish, happy, excited feeling, most commonly associated by love. A shudder of happiness? “Kilig!“

In a literal sense, it means “to shudder,” such as after you pee, but the word is meant to describe a pleasurable shuddering or squirming with delight.

It’s that feeling you get when your crush compliments you. “Kilig!“

Imagine you are watching a very romantic move. If that movie gave you a fluttery feeling, that movie made you feel “kilig.”

“Giddy” is another word that is akin to “kilig.” It’s a ticklish giddy.

One thing about this word is that it’s a very commonly used Tagalog word. You’ll hear it often.

It might be a little hard to discern, as Tagalog listening comprehension is a challenge being an Austronesian language, which is an agglutinative language. For all non-language nerds, that means that the words get twisted around a lot, such as with prefixes, infixes and suffixes. (Read: Why Are Tagalog Verbs Drive Language Learners Crazy)

In fact, when listening to native speech, you’ll probably hear the word”kilig” all changed up, rather than the word “kilig” plainly as it self.

You might find the word in various forms like:

“Kinilig ka ba?” – Did you get that “kilig” feeling?

“Kinikilig ako.” – I’m having that “kilig” feeling.

“Kikiligin ka sa pelikula na ito.” – You will have that “kilig” feeling from this move.

“Nakakakilig ang eksena na ito.” – This scene can give you the kilig feeling.

You might discover the “kilig” feeling yourself. How?

If you ask someone to marry you, you might feel “kilig.” (Read: Different was to ask someone to marry you in Tagalog)

You might feel “kilig” if someone you find crazily attractive starts flirting with you. (Read: Flirting in Tagalog)

You might feel “kilig” if you’re on a date, and you during the evening, your date, whom you like, holds your hand for the first time. (Read: Dating in Tagalog)

Of course, there is the ultimate “kilig” feeling… falling in love.