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AA adj. [Eng., abbrev. of a(ttract a(ttention]  Blatant, conspicuous, showy, unashamed.
2005 Renee Tan The Sunday Times, 27 February, 38 “Never see she show half ball meh.. so A.A.!” What it means: “Can’t you see she’s revealing a lot of cleavage.. so attract-attention!”

[1955 R.J. Wilkinson A Malay–English Dictionary, vol. 1, 1 abang. .. (Mal., Java) «Elder brother»; .. Also, familiarly, of persons regarded as elder brothers, such as elder cousins and intimate friends; occasionally, a term used by a wife to a husband..  1963 Richard Winstedt An Unabridged Malay–English Dictionary 1 abang.. elder brother, male cousin or male friend or one’s own generation, wife’s term for husband of any age..]

Mal. slang  A familiar term of address for a male relative or close friend who is of one’s generation but older than oneself.

act blur see entry under Blur.

action v. [< Eng. action n.]  1 Appear to be carrying on an activity, working, etc.; put on a display.  2 Boast, show off.
2 2001 Michelle Ho (quoting Louis Tan) The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 14 January, P7 When the music is good, it’s fun to action a bit on the dance floor.  2005 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 30 January, L12 You very action, mah.  2006 Nur Amira Abdul Karim (quoting Ang Wei Kiat) The Sunday Times, 30 July, 35 Wei Kiat admits that his grasp of English grammar is poor and his vocabulary, weak. He does not speak “high class English” to his friends and family. Says Wei Kiat, “Wait people think I very action.”

agak /ah-gah(k), ˈɑɡɑ(k̚)/ n. & v. [Mal., conjecture, guessing; agak-agak approximately, as far as one can guess, more or less]  Also agak-agak.  A n. A guess, an estimation: Agaration.  B v. Guess, estimate.
2000 Cheong Suk-wai and Magdalene Lum (quoting Hooi Kok Wai) The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 26 November, P2 ‘He was from the “no room for agak-agak” school of cooking. Every recipe had to have a precise formula, as he believed firmly that was the only way to keep the quality of dishes consistent.’ Agak-agak means to guesstimate.  2004 Teo Pau Lin (quoting Pamelia Lee) The Straits Times (LifeStyle), 9 May, 32 [A]ll along she’d cooked by agak (estimation). So when she wrote the cookbook, she had to discipline herself to putting everything into measurements.  B 2008 Huang Lijie (quoting Henrietta Tay) The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 7 December, 28 “My mother-in-law and grandmother-in-law used to tell me their recipes needed ‘a little of this and a little of that’, so I’m used to agak-agak.” Agak-agak is Malay for guesstimate.

Comb.:

ah beng, Ah Beng /beng, bɛŋ/ n. & a. [a common Chinese male name, poss. Hk. 明 beng clear, bright; to illustrate, to illumine; to display, to distinguish (Medhurst); Mand. míng bright, brilliant, light; clear, distinct; open, overt, explicit; sharp-eyed, clear-sighted; aboveboard, honest; sight; understand, know (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)] Also ellipt. beng, Beng. derog.  A n. A man perceived to be loutish and uncouth, and who follows fashion trends but is often viewed as lacking taste; the male counterpart of an Ah Huay or Ah Lian.  B a. Having the nature or attributes of an ah beng.
A 1999 Cleo, May. I’m the King of Bengs! [title] .. He says he doesn’t give a hoot if people call him an ah beng, a catch-all term for the uncouth, the uneducated, the unrefined, the unenlightened, who blindly define status by the brands they own.  .. “I’m the king of bengs,” he laughs, “I have my own Prada bag, Prada shoes, Prada jacket, Gucci belt, clothes from Calvin Klein, Armani, Valentino..”  1999 Clarissa Oon The Straits Times (Life!), 29 December, 9 He skulked around.. watching hard-core bengs drag on their cigarettes.  2000 Arti Mulchand The Straits Times (Life!), 21 July, 5 Tacky enough for an Ah Beng.  2001 Neil Humphreys Notes from an Even Smaller Island 83 My friend David is always reminding me to stay away from these dangerous gangsters who stalk the streets. These people are apparently so menacing that they have even been labelled with menacing names. The boys are called Ah Bengs and the girls Ah Lians. I have been warned by friends never to make eye contact with them, never to laugh at their ridiculous clothing combinations (white, skin-tight trousers and vest, black belt and a bright yellow handphone stuck to the hip) and never to get into an argument with them because they are usually armed with knives or, wait for it, parangs.  2001 Cheong Suk-Wai, Tee Hun Ching & Michelle Ho (quoting Eng Jeng Hwee) The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 7 January, P3 Once the younger consumers hear the world ‘cognac’, they would think, “This is what Ah Bengs would drink.”  2003 Peh Shing Huei (quoting Allan Chia) The Sunday Times, 12 October, 32 Wayne Rooney can wait. He is still young. Anyway, he is a chao ah beng.  B 2000 Arti Mulchand The Straits Times (Life!), 21 July, 5 And beng or not, their radio ditties are catchier than the flu. .. Boom Boom Boom Boom is a staple in the Beng-mobile phone ringer collection.  2000 Chris Ho The Straits Times (Life!), 29 December, L6 This is the perfect pop album few believed [Kylie] Minogue could deliver. Campy, chic and also ‘beng’, Light Years is light all right but it also has X-factor thrill and dare.

ah chek /chek, tʃɛk˺/ n. [Hk. 叔 chek an uncle, a father’s brother (Medhurst); Mand. jìu mother’s brother, uncle (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)]  A middle-aged or elderly man.
1987 Toh Paik Choo On the Buses 69 It’s ‘Ah Ko’ when he doesn’t look old enough to be your father and ‘Ah Chek’ when he does.  2000 Cheong Suk-Wai The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 3 September, 3 Lurking ah cheks, ah peks and ah sohs.  2005 Tan Chek Wee Today, 9 December, 47 It could be the ah pek, ah soh, ah chek, or even the pakcik or makcik – this syndrome seat-patting [sic: seat-patting syndrome?] spans all the major races in Singapore (well, all right, I have yet to see an ang moh doing so), transcending sex, educational level and age.

ah gua var. of ah kua, ah kwa.

ah lian, Ah Lian /leearn, liːɛn/ n. & a. [a common Chinese female name, poss. Hk. 莲 lëên < 莲(花 lëên (hwa) the water lily (Medhurst); Mand. lián lotus + huā flower, blossom, bloom (Chi.–Eng. Dict.); Hk. 荷)莲 (hô) lëên the lotus (Medhurst); Mand. hé lotus (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)] Also ellipt. lian, Lian. derog.  A n. The female counterpart of an Ah Beng: a woman perceived to be loutish and uncouth, and who follows fashion trends but is often viewed as lacking taste.  B a. Having the nature or attributes of an ah lian.
A 2000 Yeow Kai Chai The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 2 July, 5 He has been accused of making Fann Wong look like a cheena ah lian.  2000 Theresa Tan & Neo Hui Min (quoting Jolin Tan) The Straits Times, 4 December, H10 Parents don’t spend much time with their kids in Singapore and they turn into ‘Bengs’ and ‘Lians’.  2000 Samuel Lee The Straits Times (Life!), 29 December, L8 You can’t deny that it was a good tune. Even if the Bengs and Lians latched on six months after the general populace.  2001 Michelle Ho The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 14 January, P7 Often labelled as Bengs and Lians, they howl in Hokkien and gesture in unison while dancing to Euro-trance.  B 2000 Jason Wee The Straits Times (Life!), 16 October, 8 An ah lian manicurist.  2001 Clarissa Oon (quoting Cynthia Lee MacQuarrie) The Straits Times (Life!), 9 July, L5 So what’s the most lian thing about you?  .. Actually, I do not think I’m lian at all, definitely not my dressing.  2004 Lim Kuan Chiang Today, 14 May, 48 [W]e’re not going to go back to those ah lian insults published in the press last month.

ah qua var. of ah kua, ah kwa.

ah-balling /ah-boh-ling, ˈɑːbəʊlɪŋ/ n. [poss. Teo. 鸭母 ah⁴bho² duck egg (ah⁴ the name of a water fowl, commonly used to refer to the domestic duck which has a flat beak and short legs, webs between its toes, and is good at swimming but unable to fly high + bho² mother) (Chaozhou Dict.) + (?) ling [the Chinese character cannot be displayed due to software limitations: it consists of a 米 radical with 零 on the right] (not found in Chaozhou Dict.); Mand. yā duck + mǔ mother + líng (literary language) rice cake, rice pastry (Comp. Chi.–Eng. Dict.)] Also ah balling, arboling.  A Chinese (Teochew) dessert consisting of glutinous rice balls with a sweet filling such as red bean, peanut or sesame paste, usu. served in a light sweetened syrup.
¶ Known in Mand. as 汤圆 tāngyuán: tāng soup, broth + yuán round, circular; spherical.
2003 Teo Pau Lin The Sunday Times, 5 October, L38 Machine-made ah-balling, or glutinous rice balls, are now readily available in supermarkets. .. All five types of fillings – red bean, green bean, yam, peanut and sesame – are made by hand. And, in keeping with the Teochew tradition, the sugar syrup is flavoured simply with pandan leaves.  2005 Teo Pau Lin The Sunday Times (LifeStyle) (from Straits Times Interactive), 31 July. Hai Sing Ah Balling .. Loh Yeow Seng, 59, started helping at his father’s stall in the now-demolished Ellenborough market, near Clarke Quay, more than 30 years ago. The average waiting time was one hour because every glutinous rice ball was hand-made upon each order. Eschewing machine-made convenience, he still makes them by hand today, and the difference is clear. The texture of the rice ball is so smooth that your lips could clamp down on one and it wouldn’t stick to you.  2006 Kuek Lin The Sunday Times (LifeStyle) (from Straits Times Interactive), 17 September. Her ah-balling are bursting with peanut filling and have a smooth, thin skin. Delicious when eaten hot.  2008 Chen Fen Today, 18–19 October, 39 Give the usual sesame cream and ah bohling dumplings a miss.

air-con /air-kon, ˈɛːkɒn/ n., v. & a. [Eng., abbrev. of air-conditioner, air-conditioning] Also aircon.  A n. Air-conditioner.  B v. Install an air-conditioner; cool a room using an air-conditioner.  C a. Air-conditioned, cooled by air-conditioning.
A 2000 Teo Pau Lin (quoting Dasmond Koh) The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 3 December, P26 People think we just.. enjoy the air-con.  2005 ‘Mr Brown’ (Lee Kin Mun) Today, 6 May, 32 [F]ewer people will loiter.. less air-con will be used. Added cost savings!  2005 Tay Yek Keak The Sunday Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 7 August. I hear complaints every day. Half of them in my head, from me complaining about me to me. At first they sound very irritating. Then they turn into a droning noise like an air-con that’s been running too long. Then they gain a rhythm. Now, they’re background music I cannot shake off. ..  2007 Neil Humphreys Weekend Today (from Todayonline.com), 20 January. Singapore might be a fine city but it’s also a humid one, so don’t even think about messing with their air-con.  B 2005 ‘Mr Brown’ (Lee Kin Mun) Today, 22 April, 30 There will still be security cameras in our casinos, but at least the place will be aircon-ed.  2006 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (LifeStyle) (from Straits Times Interactive), 18 June. Wouldn’t this be a more pleasant experience if they air-conned the whole stadium?  C 1987 Toh Paik Choo On the Buses 16 Air-con buses.  2003 ‘Mr Brown’ (Lee Kin Mun) Today, 5 December, 54 Apparently, there are soldiers out there who believe the new IPPT (Individual Physical Proficiency Test) in an aircon gym is not a good thing.  2005 ‘Mr Brown’ (Lee Kin Mun) Today, 18 March, 36 [W]e decided to stick to the air-con places.

air-level /air-le-vəl, ˈɛːˌlɛvəl/ n. [< Eng., mispron. of A-level (examinations)] derog. mil. slang. A person educated up to the General Certificate of Education (GCE) Advanced Level standard; fig. a person perceived to be more intelligent than oneself, a smart-aleck.
1991 Valerie Tan The Straits Times (Section 3), 9 August, 19 air-level – a person with A levels.  1994 C.S. Chong NS: An Air-Level Story [back cover] Air Level.. Army lingo for A-level. An obvious corruption used to ridicule A-Level trainees when they failed to meet commanders’ expectations.  7 I have tried to bring them to life in their ‘Air Level’ mindset, complete with all their strengths, weaknesses and language.  64 He said he was not afraid of ‘Air-Levels’.

aiyah /ı-yah, ʌɪˈjɑː/ int. [Mand. 哎呀 āiyā]  An exclamation used at the beginning of a sentence to expr. consternation, despair, dismay, exasperation, etc.
1989 David Henry Hwang M. Butterfly Aaaa-ya! How can you use such sickening language?  1991 Valerie Tan The Straits Times (Section 3), 9 August, 19 aiyah! – [exasperated exclamation], from Chinese.  2000 Cheong Suk-Wai (quoting Sim Bak Sun) The Straits Times (Life! This Weekend), 13 July, 7 Aiyah, what to do, I was not smart enough for higher studies.  2000 Diane Tan (quoting Patricia Mok) The Straits Times (Life!), 4 September, 20 Aiya, the people around us thought we were acting. 2000 Cheong Suk-wai The Straits Times (Life!), 25 November, L12 Aiya, your father will be harvesting his cherry tomatoes as usual.  2002 “Nine Made Instant Millionaires” (quoting Lim Leng Beng) The Straits Times, 26 February 1 Aiyah, bought at the wrong place.  2006 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 12 March. ‘Aiyah,’ sighed the Wife. ‘I guess people don’t believe you’re a real star unless you dress like one.’  2006 Ben Nadarajan & K.C. Vijayan (quoting Lawrence Lai) The Straits Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 27 April. Aiyah, it’s you again.  2006 Cheong Suk-Wai (quoting Khalid Mohamad Jiwa) The Sunday Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 20 August, L4 “Aiyah, you ahhh,” he drawls in a chiding tone, before breaking into throaty chuckles.

aiyoh /ı-yoh, ʌɪˈjəʊ/ int. [Mand. 哎哟 āiyō]  An exclamation expr. concern, consternation, dismay, frustration, surprise, etc.
2000 Karamjit Kaur The Straits Times, 15 February, 44 Aiyoh, that’s all is it?  2000 Teo Pau Lin (quoting Dasmond Koh) The Sunday Times (Sunday Plus), 3 December, P26 Aiyoh, we sound so guai (decent)!  2006 Juliana June Rasul (quoting Sheila Majid) Today, 25 July, 30 Aiyoh! Don’t call me that [a veteran] lah. Macam (like) pensioner lah.

a-jay /ay-jay, ˈeɪdʒeɪ/ n. & a. [Eng. gay in pig Latin with the g modified to j] Also ay-jay.  Homosexual, gay.  Compare G, PLU.

AK abbrev. of ah kua, ah kwa.

Ali Baba bag n. [Eng., poss. f. the fact that the bag appears tall enough to contain a person, like the oil-jars that the thieves hid in to attack Ali Baba, a fictional character in the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves f. The Arabian Nights or A Thousand and One Nights; compare Ali Baba basket a tall laundry basket resembling in shape the oil-jars in which the thieves hid to attack Ali Baba]  mil.  A soldier’s duffle bag or kit bag, a tall cylindrical canvas bag for carrying personal belongings.
1981 Martin Choo (ed.) The Singapore Armed Forces 108 Each enlistee leaves.. with items packed into a duffel bag more commonly known as the ‘Ali-Baba’ bag.  1990 Mickey Chiang Fighting Fit: The Singapore Armed Forces 112 At the General Supply Base, they receive their army kit, and an ‘Ali Baba’ bag, a big duffle bag large enough to contain all their kit.. and more. .. To the young recruit who is already carrying a civilian bag packed with his belongings and spare civilian clothing, the Ali Baba bag is a man-size load.

[1955 R.J. Wilkinson A Malay–English Dictionary, vol. 1, 40 apa. .. What; how; which; somehow; somewhat. An idiomatic word giving a suggestion of indefiniteness or interrogation – even contemptuous interrogation – to the sentence in which it occurs. .. Apa macham: what kind of; how; what.  vol. 2, 717 macham. Sort; type; kind; like. A word much used in Bazaar-Malay: .. apa m[acham] (how)..  2011 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 18 September, 16 Apa macam, Eck Kheng? (Malay for ‘so how’?)  1963 Richard Winstedt An Unabridged Malay–English Dictionary 222 apa m[acham]? what’s this? what’s up?]

What’s this?, what’s up?, how are you doing?
2006 Nur Amira Abdul Karim (quoting Ahmad Ali Hatta) The Sunday Times, 30 July, 35 I say ‘wassup?’ or ‘amacam?’ which are equivalent to ‘how are you?’ to my friends. But I would certainly not write that down in an essay. I doubt any other student would.

Phrase: angkat bola /boh-lah, ˈbolɑː/ v. phr. [Mal. bola ball, apparently a reference to the testicles].  Also transl. into Eng. as Carry Balls.

angkoo kueh var. of Ang Ku Kueh.

anyhow adv. [Eng., in any way or manner whatever, or however imperfect; in random fashion, unmethodically]  Carelessly, recklessly.
2003 Tan Shzr Ee (quoting David Wee) The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 21 December, L11 Careful. Don’t anyhow say. Must check first.

anyhow whack see entry under Whack 2.

AQ abbrev. of ah qua: see entry under ah kua, ah kwa.

Comb. and phrases:

arboling var. of Ah-Balling.

arbuthen /ah-bah-den, ˌɑːbɑˈdɛn/ int. [poss. < Eng. ah, but then?]  An exclamation expr. that something is manifestly self-evident or obvious; duh!
2011 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 20 March. While watching TV coverage of the catastrophe engulfing Japan, I turned to the Wife and said, ‘I know this is horribly churlish of me, but I can’t help wondering: If we needed to evacuate in a hurry, what would be the first thing you’d grab?’ ‘You mean besides Yakuza Baby?’ she frowned as our toddler turned her head at the mention of her nickname. ‘Arbuthen?’ I clicked my tongue.

argable a. [Hk. Ar + Eng. –able] Of a person: one whose favour it is possible to get into, easily flattered.
1978 Leong Choon Cheong Youth in the Army 303 argable. One you can get into favour or ar with: fusion of Hokkien and English.  1985 Michael Chiang Army Daze 33 Ar ka liau (Hokkien) One who is totally ar-gable.

arrow v. [Eng., poss. f. the practice of drawing or stamping an arrow on a document against a name to direct the document to that person for his or her attention] freq. mil. slang  Assign, delegate (esp. an unpleasant task); direct, order.
2003 ‘Pak Cham Kai’ Talkingcock.com <http://www.talkingcock.com/html/article.php?sid=1289>, 14 December. The chao ang mor all arrow me to come because they were damn sian of their hard tack and hojjiber MRE [Meal, Ready-to-Eat]. Then got one of their occifer saw me making Maggi mee in the barracks, and arrow me to come and make for them.  2005 Hong Xinyi The Sunday Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 19 June. Arrow. Army use: In army administrative practice, a tiny arrow is stamped next to the name of the person in charge in official documents. Civilian use: To delegate an unpleasant job to somebody. If you are the person being given such a task, the correct response is ‘I kena arrow’. Example: My colleague fell ill, so I kena arrow by my boss to write this boring proposal for the client.  2010 Niki Bruce The Sunday Times, 12 December, 33. “I can’t meet you for lunch tomorrow,” said a new colleague. “I’ve been arrowed to work on that NDP [National Day Parade] project.” .. I asked a fellow expat who’d been here a bit longer what it meant. Apparently, my friend had been asked by a senior editor to work on a project. I assumed that the “arrow” in question was a pointed finger, but apparently the term has been borrowed from the military.

art buah /ahrt buah, ɑːt bʊɑː/ n. [Hn.]  A sticky Hainanese Kueh made from rice flour that is coated in ginger-flavoured coconut shavings and sesame seeds and fried.
2004 Katrina Karim Today, 22 March, 40 A special dessert includes the gooey art buah.., which is made from rice flour and coated with ginger-flavoured coconut shavings and sesame seeds.  2010 Rebecca Lynne Tan The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 25 July, 21 [A]rt bua, a rice flour kueh doused in coconut and sesame seeds cooked in brown sugar.

assam /ah-sahm, ɑˈsɑm/ n. [< Mal. asam chelagi (asam acid, sour; a generic name for acid fruits and preparations); asam jawa (or Jawa) (Jawa Java; Javanese: see quot. 1955 below; poss. < Skt. यव yava barley (in the earliest times probably any grain or corn yielding flour or meal); a barley-corn (Monier-Williams)) or buah asam keranji (buah fruit, keranji a tree-name: asam keranji Manilla tamarind (Pithecolobium dulce) (OED)) (Wilkinson)]

[1955 R.J. Wilkinson A Malay–English Dictionary, vol. 1, 452 Jawa. [Skr. [Sanskrit] jawa (millet, barley)] Java; Javanese. Java is described by early Indian writers as rich in millet and gold; it may have got its name from the millet. The Arab navigators applied the name to both Sumatra and Java, whence Jawi, q.v. Modern Malays use it of Java proper.. asam J[awa] (tamarind)..]

Also asam.  The tamarind, a brown pod from the tree Tamarindus indica, N.O. Leguminosæ, containing one to twelve seeds embedded in a soft brown or reddish-black acid pulp which is used in cookery (OED).

2006 Eveline Gan Weekend Today, 22–23 July, 23 The ikan garam assam ($12) – two fish fillets drenched in assam curry.. [T]he sour assam gravy was excellent with the right balance of tangy spiciness.  2006 Sukri Kadola Today (from Todayonline.com), 21 September. My dad and I used to share a warm packet of nasi padang over our favourite wildlife documentary. He indulged in mother’s recipe of stir-fried lady’s fingers or bitter gourd infused with the rich taste of sliced mackerel in assam sauce.  2006 Chris Tan The Sunday Times (LifeStyle) (from Straits Times Interactive), 1 October. Knead 11/2 Tbs assam (tamarind) pulp with 200ml water until the pulp dissolves. Strain and set it aside.  2006 Sylvia Tan The Straits Times (Mind Your Body), 29 November, 14. Ikan masak assam is fish cooked in a spicy tamarind stock, which belongs to a whole category of Peranakan sour gravies.  2008 Shermaine Wong Weekend Today, 15–16 November, 37 The new dish of assam fish was in a league of its own. For $32 you get a whole grilled tilapia served on a banana leaf with wing beans or lady’s fingers. It was slathered with a thick, addictive assam paste, which was tangy, sweet, spicy and salty all at once.  2008 Wong Ah Yoke The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 16 November, 26 I tried it as braised duck meat with mustard green, asam (tamarind) and chilli, which is inspired by a Malaysian dish cooked with leftover meat from banquets.  2013 Thng Lay Teen The Sunday Times (SundayLife!), 8 December, 37 For something more filling, the assam curry pork with rice ($4.50) is a decent bet. Think tender pork slices smothered in assam curry gravy, complete with vegetables such as brinjal, lady’s fingers and tomato. Sour but not too spicy, it makes a good one-dish lunch if you are in a hurry.

Comb.:

assam laksa /lahk-sah, ˈlɑksɑ/ n. [Mal.; see Laksa]  Penang Laksa.
2011 Rebecca Lynne Tan The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 26 June, 22 .. assam laksa, a dark and sour fish-based tamarind-infused broth served with cucumber, pineapple and hae-ko (prawn paste)..

atas /ah-tahs, ɑːˈtɑs/ a. [Mal., position over or above (Wilkinson); above in height, on (land, ship, bank, mound), over (people) (Winstedt)]  1 Arrogant, snobbish.  2 High-brow, sophisticated.
1 2003 Colin Goh The Sunday Times, 12 October, L18 I’m a supporter of good English (if only to thumb a nose at atas Westerners and bananas).  2003 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 23 November, L18 Why you so atas, see me no up?  2004 Colin Goh The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 22 August, L14 ‘Wah lau, you’re such an atas wanker,’ snorted the Wife in disbelief.  2005 Tor Ching Li (quoting Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong) Weekend Today, 14–15 May, 10 When you speak (Chinese with) good hanyu pinyin pronunciation, nobody thinks you are being sikit atas (Malay for snobbish). It’s okay. But, when you speak good English then people think .. maybe you don’t fit in. So, you water down and try to fit in your English and be friends with people.  2007 Paul Jacob The Straits Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 10 November. Since when did S’poreans become so ‘atas’? [title] .. Since when did some of us become so ‘atas’, so superior, that we can no longer be tolerant and accommodating of those who are helping do the labour that will make this place grow, become more vibrant and attractive.  2 2006 Jeanine Tan (quoting Kumar) Today, 4 January, 33 I love the limelight. I want to be Oprah Winfrey, but the lonely, poor version. I want to go atas (Malay for high-brow). 

attend B n. [Eng., poss. < attend v. of a medical man: to pay professional visits to (a patient)] mil.  1 Medical leave assigned by an army medical officer putting a soldier on light duties.  2 The state of being issued with an attend B medical certificate; on light duties.  3 A soldier who is on attend B status.
1 1985 Michael Chiang Army Daze 33 Attend B. Doctor’s prescription. Means a soldier can only perform light duties – but cannot switch off.  2004 Col. Bernard Toh Today, 25 May, 10 ‘Attend B’ medical leave means that the serviceman can undergo non-physically demanding training activities or perform light duties. 2 1994 C.S. Chong NS: An Air-Level Story 135 Attend B/C. Types of medical conditions. .. B is a case of excuses from specific physical tasks, eg. running.  3 1994 C.S. Chong NS: An Air-Level Story 45 We heard that there were Attend B recruits deployed in various parts to masquerade as the enemy.

attend C n. [Eng., poss. < attend v. of a medical man: to pay professional visits to (a patient)] mil.  1 Medical leave assigned by an army medical officer excusing a soldier from all duties.  2 The state of being issued with an attend C medical certificate; excused from all duties.  3 A soldier who is on attend C status.
1 1985 Michael Chiang Army Daze 34 Attend C. More valuable doctor’s prescription. Equivalent to an MC – now can switch off.  2004 Col. Bernard Toh Today, 25 May, 10 ‘Attend C’ medical leave means that the serviceman needs complete rest, either at home or in the barracks.  2 1994 C.S. Chong NS: An Air-Level Story 135 Attend B/C. Types of medical conditions. .. C means something serious enough to confine one to bed, sickbay or home.  3 1994 C.S. Chong NS: An Air-Level Story 51 There were Attend B’s and C’s for this grand occasion.

auntie n. [Eng., poss. a transl. of Mand. 阿姨 āyí one’s mother’s sister, auntie; a child’s form of address for any woman of its mother’s generation; or cognates in other Chi. dialects]  (A polite term of address for) a middle-aged or elderly woman who may or may not be a relative.  Compare Uncle.
2001 Neil Humphreys Notes from an Even Smaller Island 29 .. I have yet to meet anyone who is ‘harder’ than a Singaporean auntie. Believe me, they are rock solid and their resolute attitude and lust for life is something that the younger, greedier generation can learn from. A Singaporean auntie or uncle can be anyone who is from the older generations, like an English old age pensioner (OAP), and the term is used out of affection and respect.  2003 Anthea Rowan The Daily Telegraph (from Telegraph.co.uk), 14 October. We’ve found an island full of aunts and uncles [title] .. I was still getting to grips with the local parlance. Singlish – an unconventional brand of English with a smattering of Chinese and Malay thrown in – was my next hurdle. Tea became teh, coffee became kopi, and waitresses and waiters ceased to be – replaced by people I was expected to call auntie and uncle. Good grief, I had relatives here?  2004 Janadas Devan The Straits Times (Very! Singapore), 9 August, 20 I had occasion to visit a Singapore hospital a month ago. I heard nurses call older patients ‘uncles’ and ‘aunties’ and I felt instantly at home.  2005 Shane Ng Soo Lian The Straits Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 12 July. Imagine using a first-aid diagram to teach an auntie to perform cardiac pulmonary resuscitation on an unconscious person.  2006 Lee U-Wen Today (from Todayonline.com), 20 March, 6 Hail the aunty army: McDonald’s honoured for encouraging employment of older workers.. [title].  2006 June Cheong (quoting Jeanette Sim) The Straits Times (Life!) (from Straits Times Interactive), 19 April. You can call me auntie: At 75, SLGA [Singapore Ladies Golf Association]’s president says happiness is family, mahjong and golf [title].. I like the term auntie as... it shows people respect or love us. But it would be nicer to use the word evergreens to describe us.  2006 Terence Chong The Straits Times (from Straits Times Interactive), 17 June. I don’t think they [Singapore’s skinheads] are troublemakers. Many just want to provide shock value. If heartlander uncles and aunties are shocked, then all the better, because this reaction means that they have achieved their raison d’etre – to be different.  2009 Jasmine Teo, Rachael Boon & Natasha Ann Zachariah The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 8 March, 2 The word “auntie” conjures up an image of a nagging old woman with a bad perm while “uncle” is more likely to be a fuddy-duddy balding old man in a singlet and shorts hanging out at the void deck.  2009 David Yeo The Straits Times (Life!), 14 March, E6 The terms of address – “auntie” and “uncle” – have negative connotations and are often used to refer to people from the lower strata of society.  2009 Christine Tan The Straits Times (Life!), 14 March, E6 I would be offended if someone were to address me as “auntie”, especially if that person is older than me. If I am an “auntie”, then what would that make my mother? I believe that no single or young woman would like to be called “auntie”. The word brings to mind housewives shopping at a wet market.  2009 Mrs C.P. Ho The Straits Times (Life!), 14 March, E6 From young, my parents taught me to call anyone older, especially those who are married or are working, “auntie” or “uncle”. It is a way of showing respect. If you feel old just because people call you “auntie” or “uncle”, then you have a self-esteem problem. If you are a foreigner who objects to being called “auntie” and “uncle”, I say this is part of our culture, so accept it.

ayam penyet /ı-yuum pen-yet, ˈʌɪjʌm ˈpɛnjɛt/ n. [Mal. ayam chicken + Penang Mal. penyet, Johor Mal. penyek flattened; snub (of the nose) (Winstedt) < Jav. ajam chicken + pènjèt, penjèt, penjet to press, squeeze (Horne); Ind. pénjék flattened (Echols & Shadily, Ind.–Eng.)]  An Indonesian dish consisting of a flattened, deep-fried chicken thigh which is served with Sambal chilli, vegetables and rice.
2006 Teo Pau Lin The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 3 December, L26 A chicken dish from Indonesia that combines Singapore’s love for all things deep-fried with the love for chilli sauce has become a hot favourite within four years of landing here. The dish is ayam penyet, which is Bahasa Indonesia for “flattened chicken”. Word of its tastiness has spread so fast that there are now more than 40 hawker stalls and restaurants selling it. .. It is a big slab of chicken thigh deep-fried to a lovely crispiness. It is then hammered flat with a wooden pestle to loosen the meat from the bone (hence its name). The tasty meat is placed on a wooden plate alongside boiled or raw vegetables, and spicy sambal and served with hot, fluffy rice. The dish originates from Surabaya, capital of Indonesia’s East Java province, though it has come to Singapore through Batam. Mr Mohamed Fadzil Mohamed Rashid, 38, opened his first Sri Bistari stall in a coffee shop in Still Road after tasting the dish in Batam in 2002.

ayam percik /ı-yuum pə-chik, ˈʌɪjʌm ˈpətʃɪk̚/ n. [Mal. ayam chicken + poss. Mal. perchek, percik, memerchekkan, rechek sprinkle; compare perchekan drops (of water sprinkled); sprinkling; teperchek splashed (Winstedt)]  A Malay dish originating from Kelantan, Malaysia, consisting of chicken wings that have been marinated with black pepper, chilli, ginger, etc., and barbequed.
2005 Zul Othman Today (from Todayonline.com), 15 October. These Hari Raya treats – which include.. ayam percik (marinated chicken wings) – are usually available during the fasting month of Ramadan.  2005 The Star (from The Star Online), 26 October. Ayub Deraman sells Ayam Percik that has been marinated in spices and laced with thick Ayam Percik gravy. The secret of his recipe is in its gravy and spices. While he was willing to disclose that the gravy is made with thick coconut milk he was reluctant to share his trade secret – his spices, used to marinade the chicken. “We do not add peanuts to thicken our sauce as some traders do as our Ayam Percik is the Kelantan version,” said Ayub.

ayam sio /ı-yuum sioh, ˈʌɪjʌm sɪo/ n. [Mal. ayam chicken + Hk. 烧 sëo to burn (Medhurst); Mand. shāo cook; stew after frying or fry after stewing (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)]  A Peranakan dish consisting of chicken that is cooked dry with tamarind, coriander, onions and sugar, giving it a sweet-sour flavour.
2005 Alan John The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 6 February, L12 I could never get enough of her Ayam Sio. This was chicken like I’d never had before, cooked dry in a mysterious sweet-sour blend of tamarind, coriander, onions and sugar.  [2006 William Gwee Thian Hock A Baba Malay Dictionary 29 ayam sioⁿ chicken in spicy stew]  2008 Huang Lijie The Sunday Times (LifeStyle), 23 November, 28 [S]he contributed her recipes for dishes such as ayam sio (chicken with coriander and fermented bean paste) and chap chye to the cookbook..