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:
khua simi khua kua si mi kua khoa si mi khoa kua simi kua khoa simi khoa
* The diacritic ◌̃ represents a nasalized vowel.
[ SSS:
khuã si mi khuã ]
khua si mi khua
→
Hokkien:
看什物看
poj:
khoàⁿ sím-mi̍h khoàⁿ
Detailed etymology
definitions
expression
- (rude) what [the hell] are you looking at; what are you staring for; what's so nice to look at
- (rarer) what are you looking at; what is it that is so interesting
Khoa si mi khoa? Kan ni na, stare some more I bloody come over hentam you.
The whole jin gang gather over there khoa si mi khoa? Got some celebrity come isit?
synonyms:
usage notes
Can be used out of genuine curiosity or in a threatening and rude manner.
* The nasal vowel is almost always unmarked by speakers, though it is very important to the pronunciation of the term. In a dipthong or tripthong, the recommended convention is to mark the final vowel, unless it is spelled using a repeated letter, in which case the first-occurring repeated letter is marked.