lah
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Translingual[edit]
Symbol[edit]
lah
English[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Etymology 1[edit]
An anglicised spelling of la.
Noun[edit]
lah (plural lahs)
Etymology 2[edit]
From Malay lah, Cantonese 啦 (laa1) or Hokkien 啦 (--la).
Pronunciation[edit]
Particle[edit]
- Placed at the end of a phrase or sentence either for emphasis or reassurance.
- Don’t think so much lah! ― Don’t overanalyse.
- It’s okay lah. ― It’s all right; don’t worry about it.
- 1956, Anthony Burgess, Time for a Tiger (The Malayan Trilogy), published 1972, page 23:
- "Old Nabby's quite enough during the day-lah."
- 1994, C. S. Chong, NS: An Air-Level Story, Singapore: Times Books International, →ISBN, page 58:
- Oh well, it was xiong, but overall OK, lah.
- 2000 April 2, Tee Hun Ching, The Sunday Times (Singapore), page 14:
- ‘No, lah!’ he says with a wave of his hand. […] ‘No need, lah! People in the industry know me. […] ’
- 2001 February 23, Susan Long, “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for”, in The Straits Times (Singapore), page H12:
- His says his attitude then, as it still is, was: ‘Try lah, won’t go wrong one lah.’
- Nehmind, can one lah! ― Don’t worry too much about it, you'll definitely be able to do it!
- Used sarcastically to state the obvious.
- No lah, no lah. ― It ‘isn't’ (when it in fact is).
- Emphasizes that something is obvious or self-evident.
- Of course lah!/Yah lah!/Han nah! ― Of course, without a single doubt, it is.
See also[edit]
Further reading[edit]
- Singlish "lah", with a possible deep connection to colloquial Arabic from Language Log
- Manglish "lah" and its affinity to Arabic "muhibbah" from Language Log
Anagrams[edit]
Malay[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Particle[edit]
lah
- (informal) Final particle indicating an imperative, reassurance or emphasis.
- Saya ada di sini lah. ― I'm here.
- Kau ni bodoh betul lah! ― You are so stupid!
- Diam lah! ― Shut up!
- Pergi sana lah! ― Go there!
Descendants[edit]
Middle English[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Old Norse lágr, from Proto-Germanic *lēgaz.
Pronunciation[edit]
Adjective[edit]
lāh (plural and weak singular lāhe, comparative lāhere, superlative lāhest)
Related terms[edit]
Descendants[edit]
References[edit]
- “loue, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
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