Commonly found variants; note these may range from acceptable alternatives to
non-standard forms or incorrect spellings*.
* Singlish is a largely spoken creole, and as such descriptivism (recording forms that reflect actual pronunciation in spoken language, or as appearing in the linguistic corpus) is more pertinent than strict prescriptivism. Nevertheless, the use of more standard forms (or for words originating in languages with Latin script, such as Malay, accurate to the original spelling) is recommended and encouraged.
* Singlish is a largely spoken creole, and as such descriptivism (recording forms that reflect actual pronunciation in spoken language, or as appearing in the linguistic corpus) is more pertinent than strict prescriptivism. Nevertheless, the use of more standard forms (or for words originating in languages with Latin script, such as Malay, accurate to the original spelling) is recommended and encouraged.
also can:
dam bai dumbai dambai
dum bai
→
Teochew:
髧眉
peng'im:
dam3 bhai7
Detailed etymology
definitions
adjective
- (pejorative, of a person) idiotic; useless; weak
What are the dum bai upper management thinking? This software is just going to make our lives harder.
noun
- (pejorative) fool; idiot; retard; clown
She felt like a dum bai when she forgot her lines on stage in front of a packed audience of uncles and aunties.