You can now say you're blur and it'll be perfectly acceptable English
By Pamela Chow
It was amusing enough that "la" and "kampong" were previously added to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) - now, even more Singlish words have been inducted into the official this-is-acceptable-English list.
Now, Microsoft Word, please stop trying to correct my Singlish. If this can help cement Singaporean identity, I'd say it's rather "shiok" - I'm sorry, I mean, shiok.
(Photo: moonberry.com)
3. Lepak
Another word that OED recognises for its importance by granting it three entries: its noun, verb and “lepaking”.
It defines lepak (noun) as “the practice of loitering aimlessly or idly; loafing, relaxing, hanging out”. Notably, it has been listed with a negative connotation, tracing it to usages referring to “loitering”, “idleness” and a “negative habit”.
Also, it is now official that the present and past participles can be spelled with either one or two “k”s, IE “lepakking” and “lepakked”.
Imagine English teachers saying, “The past participle of ‘lepak’ is lepakked’.” Strangely amusing.
ADVERTISEMENTS