100482 Regardless, it is useful to understand a fair bit of Singlish, or at least understand the most common phrases used to avoid getting ‘lost in translation’.
100483 Besides the typical “lah” which punctuates most sentences used by the locals, here is a quick guide of phrases that you may encounter and use most often:
100484 Don’t pray pray ah!
100485 : “Don’t mess around!”
100486 Oh, izzit?
100487 : “That’s interesting.” / “Oh, is that true?”
100488 Dohwan: “No, thanks.” / “I don’t want it.”
100489 Kiasu: A general term used to describe the highly competitive nature of many Singaporeans.
100490 It is originally a Chinese dialect expression that literally means “fear of losing”.
100491 So how?
100492 : “So what do we do now?”
100493 Alamak!
100494 : A general expression of dismay or incredulity.