Singlish 新加坡式英語 (新加坡式英语)
Xīnjiāpō shì Yīngyǔ · from English
What is Singlish?
Singlish is Singapore's colloquial English, with grammar, particles and vocabulary from Hokkien, Malay, Cantonese, Tamil and Mandarin.
It features sentence-final particles like lah, leh and lor, topic-prominent structures and loanwords such as kiasu and shiok. The government once campaigned against it (Speak Good English Movement, 2000), but it is a strong marker of Singaporean identity. Most Singaporeans switch between Singlish and Standard English.
Examples
Can lah (sure, can do); Don't play play (don't mess around); kiasu (afraid to lose, from Hokkien 驚輸); shiok (delicious, great); Eh, you makan already? (have you eaten?)
Kungfucius says: Singlish: English that went to a hawker centre and came back better.