Goondu Origin: Tamil/Malay – literally means fat (tamil) and hard (malay) but is used locally to describe a stupid person or an idiot. Goondu is a name that you use on someone who is either stupid or someone that acts like an idiot.
Dictionary
Chicken Feed
Chicken Feed Origin: Singlish – The term is used to describe a task that is easy to accomplish, just like a piece of cake. Chicken Feed is Singlish’s very own version of the english phrase “a piece of cake”. It is akin to describing that a task is easy or a problem that can be […]
Karung Guni
Karung Guni Origin: Malay – It means gunny sack but is more popular as a reference to our local Rag-and-Bone Man. Karung Guni better known to Singaporeans as Karung Guni Man is our local Rag-And-Bone Man who collects old items like newspaper, electrical appliances, clothes and many other stuff. In the past, they will go […]
Ho Seh Boh??
Ho Seh Boh? Origin: Hokkien – It is a question asking “How have you been?” A popular hokkien greeting when you chance upon a friend outside. It is a simple and yet effective greeting that asks the person how has he/she been.
Copycat Kiss The Rat, Go Home Let Your Mother Slap
Copycat Kiss The Rat, Go Home Let Your Mother Slap Origin: 90s English phrase – Many 90s kids used this phrase to say someone who is basically a copycat. This phrase was popular back in the 90s when school-going kids often used this phrase to spite someone who always copied their actions or to say someone […]
7 Early, 8 Early (七早八早)
7 Early, 8 Early Origin: Chinese – From the chinese phrase 七早八早, which means early in the morning. “7 Early, 8 Early” (七早八早) also common in its hokkien form is used to refer to the time frame between 7am – 8am (or earlier) when some could still be asleep. It is commonly used as a phrase […]
Bao The Mountain, Bao the Sea (Bao Sua Bao Hai,包山包海 )
Bao The Mountain, Bao the Sea Origin: Hokkien – The chinese-english description of the Hokkien phrase “Bao Sua Bao Hai” “Bao the Mountain , Bao the Sea” (包山包海) is the chinese-english equivalent of the hokkien phrase “Bao Sua Bao Hai”. It literally translates to cover the mountain and cover the sea. It is usually used […]
Siang Kar Pager?
Siang Kar Pager? Origin: Hokkien – It is a question asking who had paged me on my pager This hokkien phrase was commonly used back in the 80s/90s and early 2000s when there was widespread use of pagers. A pager also known as a beeper is a telecommunication device that can receive alphanumeric messages and […]
KPKB – Kao Peh Kao Bu
KPKB – Kao Peh Kao Bu Origin: Acronym/Hokkien – Literally means “Cry Father, Cry Mother” in hokkien. This hokkien phrase is used to describe someone who cry/bawl when their father/mother passed away. However, it is used popularly to describe someone who makes a lot of noise (usually making a complaint). This is especially true when […]