MALAYSIAN SLANGS Question : hi jasmin, i'm doing a coursework given by my lecturer about diff malaysian slangs.

what are the meaning of these words "lopek", "doh", "liao" and how to use them. if you wouldn't mind, give me more slangs, thank you. p/s: you're pretty Whoa... Isn't it weird to make your coursework through formspring? Might as well meet me in person right?? Well theres nothing much I can say about Malaysian slangs because its too normal and we use it everyday. I say aiya all the time.. I think.... Slangs are just slangs. Im not sure if their meanings to some of them.. It just somehow completes our sentence. Malaysia kan? Sorry if Im not much of a help. So my answer is sorta not relevant. Sorry to the person who ask me this question but I sure hope he/she will do a good job on the assignment! After reading this question again and I think this is gonna be interesting to write about. I remembered theres this guy who shout out loud to his friend "EH DEI~!!'' So I was like, what is dei?? Oh, should've known its just another ordinary slang. N so the next day, I called my friend dei. Hahaaa.

As you know, us Malaysians. Were really special don't you think? Its true, were different from the others and our ENGLISH are pretty outstanding.. In a way I'm sure you know what I meant about "outstanding" because at the very end of our sentence (mostly) there is always a lah. It may be called a term and also in Chinese I guess that's where LAH is came from. Malaysia is a multi racial country and we always mix a lot of multi race stuff all together. Its like the backbone of our English. Hahahaa. Its so common that even we don't care about it. Because thats how we speak! I wouldn't say originality but slangs happen to be a part of us and we use it a lot. Like AIYA, that is when we say OH NO or OH MAN this is not good. It is preferably called Manglish and the reason why we start using slangs are because we Malaysians have various types of language, BM, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tamil etc. We bottle a lot of things up. It is because of the other language, our English is pretty much been mix by it and so thats why its called Manglish. But basically it is also called rojak. Rojak is in BM by the way. (Bahasa Melayu). but at least our pronunciation is not that bad either. To me, I think that theres no explanation or why must we use the slang so much. Because it is what we use and we love using it. Its something common and normal too. Just like the quote, Were different because were special :) Slang is a subset of a language used by one particular group. It consists of words and expressions which will not be found in the dictionary, and can be distortions of existing words or entirely invented terms. It is used in informal situations. It is not appropriate in formal situations. Who Uses Slang? Slang is used by all kinds of groups of people who share situations or interests. The group which uses these words is always in the minority, and often use slang to set themselves apart or make it difficult for ordinary people to understand them. When a particular new expressions is known and used by a large majority of the population, it is no longer slang, but part of the regular language or usage. Note: Slang and Informal English are NOT the same. Some slang can be used in formal situations, and some of the words that can only be used in informal situations are not slang. Can you think of any examples? Why Does Slang Exist? Slang fulfills at least two different functions, depending on whose point of view you take. For the groups that use slang, it is a way to set themselves apart, to express themselves in a distinct and individual way, and sometimes to keep secrets from being known by others. But for the society in general and the development of the language, slang performs another role. For the language, slang is like a linguistic laboratory, where new words and forms can be tested out, applied to a variety of situations, and then either abandoned or incorporated into the regular language. Its like a trial period for new words. If they allow people to say something that cannot be said using traditional language, and a majority of people accept them, then these words and expressions join their regular language. What Happens to Slang Words and Expressions? After a period of between a few months and many years, slang is used by limited groups with something in common. The far majority never reach the popularity and level of use to become regular words, and are soon forgotten and not used. A few reach widespread usage and can be found in each new edition of the popular dictionaries. Many of the words we use everyday and can find in the dictionary began life as slang. Even Shakespeare used slang. 1. Penggunaan bahasa rojak mendatangkan kemudahan bagi masyarakat yang menuturnya . Bagi masyarakat majmuk seperti masyarakat di negara kita , penggunaan bahasa rojak dikatakan relevan dengan penguasaan bahasa mereka. Contohya , masyarakat Cina dan masyarakat India , mereka lebih selesa menggunakan bahasa Melayu rojak yang dicampur dengan bahasa Inggeris berbanding bahasa Melayu secara betul. 2. Kebiasaannya, bahasa rojak yang sering digunakan meliputi percampuran bahasa Inggeris dengan bahasa Melayu. Hal ini menyebabkan penggunaan bahasa rojak akan dianggap hebat dan mengikut perkembangan semasa jika dituturkan dalam berkomunikasi.

3. Sesuai digunakan dalam proses untuk mempelajari sesuatu. Bahasa rojak sering digunakan oleh masyarakat untuk memudahkan mereka memahami dan mempelajari ilmu. Contohnya, ketika waktu pembelajaran guru juga menggunakan bahasa rojak untuk memastikan pelajar memahami perkara yang diajar. 4. Penggunaan bahasa rojak juga membolehkan kita mengetahui perkataan dalam pelbagai bahasa. Contohnya, kita dapat mengetahui pelbagai perkataan Inggeris yang hebat-hebat bunyinya. 5. Bahasa rojak juga tidak mempengaruhi kemerosotan akademik pelajar. Biarpun bahasa rojak dalam masyarakat melayu dikatakan begitu ketara tetapi dari segi tulisan ia masih ditahap yang membanggakan, bukan sahaja kepada orang melayu bahkan kepada kaum lain seperti kaum cina dan india. 6. Bahasa rojak melambangkan identiti masyarakat Malaysia. Hal ini kerana masyarakat Malaysia juga akan menggunakan bahasa rojak walau di mana mereka berada dan seterusnya memudahkan identiti masyarakat Malaysia dikenalpasti. How To Use the Word "lah" and other Malaysian slang words. If you are walking the streets os London or sipping coffee at a sidewalk cafe somewhere in Paris, and you hear in plain English, "So expensive-lah" or "So hot-lah",just turn around in the direction where the voice comes from and I guarantee you that ten out of ten, that person who just dotted that sentence with a lah is a Malaysian. If you are feeling homesick in s foreign land and suddenly you overhear a conversation full of Yes-lahs and No-lahs, your homesickness can be assuaged for it sounds just like home and the speakers can only be Malaysians ( or Singaporeans, which is close enough when you're homesick!) Just where did this lah come from and how did it creep into the English spoken by Malaysians? It is inevitable that Malaysians, living in a multi-lingual,multi-cultural setting will inter-borrow phrases and expressions from one language to another. Thus the very uniquw lah,used only in this part os the world (Malaysia and Singapore),could have originated from Malay,or any of the local dialects or languages. Only a Malaysian born and bred in this country will know how to use the lah. A Malaysian who has been away for a while can slip back into using it quite comfortably but a Malaysian who has been away for a long time,say,seven to ten years,with little contact with fellow Malaysians, may find great difficulty as to exactly when to pepper his speech with lah. Just going lah,lah,lah every first or third word doesn't qualify. Malaysians will be able to sniff you out in a second and tell that somehow,sorry-lah, you just don't make the grade. For example, try saying the following sentence aloud: I-lah tell you-lah how-lah many times-lah but-lah you never-lah listen. Any true blueblooded Malaysian will cringe and tell straightaway that any person who speaks like that is an imposter. Foreigners newly aarrived in this country will find it quite baffling at first. Sure, these Malaysians are speaking English but what on earth is that strange musical note that they place at the end of their sentences every so often?? It does thake some getting used to. An article in the Malyaysian Trade Quartely (Jan-March 1995) states that many foreigners have mistqken notion that adding a lah to the end of every sentence lets them get away a fairly good impression of a Malaysian accent. This is hardly the case. the use of lah is,in fact, quite an art for those who were not born into the language. Here are a few sophisticated variwations of its use: ..No fun-lah, you (you're really no fun at all) ..You see-lah,like that also you cannot do! (can't you even do such a simple thing?) What are the functions of the word lah? what are the rules regarding its usage? How would you teach your foreigner friend or spouse how to use the lah if he demands desparately for some help along the way? Well, I'm afraid one can't learn it formally.It's just got an acquired taste. You've got to be around for sometime, and gradually you'll acquire a taste for it. If you think lah is baffling enough as it is,Malaysians have more tail words up their sleeves or in this case,off their tongues. A great favorite 'aaa' which has entire repertoire of meanings, depending on how it is used.A simple 'thank you' to a Malaysian may sound too curt and most Malaysians, in informal settings, would prefer to say 'thank you-aaa' as it sounds softer and friendlier. A 'yea-lah' and a 'yes-aaa' reponse are also subtly different in meanings. If someone were to ask you a question such as, "Are you coming along?",a 'yes-aaa'response would be inapropriate whereas a 'yes-lah' response would be acceptable. If your friend informed you that he's bought a brand new car, then a "yes-aaa" response would be fine,meaning "Oh-Really?" The "yes-aaa" could cover a whole gamut of response ranging from being a question to a reply dripping in ssrcasm dependingf on the intonation. Another popular tail word is "one", as in i don't know what to say-lah. This kind of things very hary to say one or I'm fed-up one, you know. I explain how many times in simple english, still cannot get through one. Sometimes if you use one once too often, it can backfire. Your listener may find it hard to resist and may put on your one. Yet another tail word is "man", as in "I say,man.Long time no see" or "I dunno man". This is an interesting adaption from America culture rather than an influence of the mother tongues. Malaysians can add man to any sentence arbitrarily and even to exclamations such as "Wah-man! solid." To confuse things further, sometimes, Malaysians don't use single but souble tail words at the end of a sentence, for example, "He's so stupid one lah!" or "Why your dressing so funny one-aaa" And sometimes tail words do not appear at the end of sentences but somewhere in the middle, such as in sentences where the subject is delayed, for example: "So action one man he!" or "Terror one lah she!" Malaysians generally speak two types of english--proper English particularly in business and professional settings,and Malaysian english with its charming and unique expressions. Just as the French have their oo-la-la, the italians their Mamamia,and the english, endearing expressions like "Bye Love" or "cheers", may our Malaysian "lah" live a long and healthy life! Say yes-lah to that!!!