redirected from
kan tang
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:
kantang kan tang
kentang
→
Malay:
kentang
Detailed etymology
definitions
noun
- potato, the edible tuber of the Solanum tuberosum plant
- (pejorative, metaphor) a person of Chinese descent who speaks English well but has poor skills in Chinese languages, is only in touch with Western culture, and lives a Western lifestyle with Western tastes and values
antonyms:
adjective
- (pejorative) westernized
synonyms:
usage notes
Also borrowed into both Hokkien and Teochew as 𫈉砃/蕳砃, (POJ) kan-tang, and so 'kentang' is commonly pronounced as 'kan-tang' by many Chinese people - this is not a mispronunciation, as many Malay speakers believe, but rather the actual word for 'potato' in Hokkien or Teochew.