Lah, Leh, Lor – What?

As an expatriate in Singapore, you must have heard ubiquitous injections of the words' lah', 'leh,' and 'lor’ in nearly all conversations you overhear. Well, congratulations – you’ve been exposed to Singlish, Singaporeans’ colloquial twist on English!

What is Singlish?

But let’s take a step back – what is Singlish, exactly? Singlish is a patois (dialect) that takes its influences from Singapore’s four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil.

And you might be surprised to know this, but in 2017, 27 Singlish words were included in the Oxford English Dictionary! So, there's no reason for you not to learn some key Singlish phrases.

A brief guide to Singlish

Here are five of the most common Singlish terms you’ll hear, with Singlish conversation examples.

Lah, leh, lor

'Lah,' 'leh,' and 'lor' are all discourse particles placed at the end of a sentence. Each term serves a different purpose, and it all depends on tone, syntax, and context.

• Lah – Brings about a sense of exasperation.

  • “Just do it like that lah."

• Leh – Demonstrates a tinge of uncertainty.

  • “I didn’t know you had to do it like that leh."

• Lor – Signifies a sense of resignation.

  • “I didn’t have a choice, so I did it like that lor.”

Makan (mah-kahn)

Makan is the Malay word for ‘to eat.’ You can use this Singlish term to invite your colleagues or housemates out for a meal. For example, "Let's go makan at twelve today.”

Bojio (boh-chio)

Did someone forget to invite you to hang out? You've got to use this Singlish term on them then! It signifies disappointment and a little bit of anger that you weren't part of the activity. For example,

Housemate: “I had a wonderful McDonald’s meal yesterday.”

You: “Bojio!”

Kaypoh (kay-poh)

You can use this term when someone is nosy; it works as a verb and an adjective. For example, "Yes, I went to the bar alone. Why are you so kaypoh?” and “Don’t kaypoh lah.”

Siao (see-ow)

'Siao’ is the Hokkien term for 'crazy.’ It’s also used most frequently as an exclamation when something has gone wrong. For example, you might hear your colleague saying, “The boss wants us to work overnight? Siao!”

There are more words, but I want to keep this post short.

Tell us what other Singlish words you heard!