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kia su
* 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:
kia su
* The diacritic ◌̃ represents a nasalized vowel.
[ SSS:
kiãsu ]
kiasu
→
Min nan:
惊输
驚輸
poj:
kiaⁿ-su
definitions
adjective
- scared of losing out and being uncompetitive with others; selfish; overly-competitive to the point of stepping over others
She will go back to Malaysia to continue pre-university instead of going to a JC in Singapore. Well, at least she won't be in a kiasu environment anymore ... Actually, I think I would probably be less kiasu if I wasn't living and studying in this kiasu environment. It's hard not to be kiasu when everyone around you is ... maybe I'm not truly kiasu but just ambitious!
— 2011, Ee Lin See. My Kiasu Teenage Life in Singapore. Monsoon Books Pte. Limited. ISBN: 9789814358606
When Singaporeans travel, the most common kiasu act that they are guilty of is choping (reserving) seats wherever they go on trains, buses, ships and m restaurants.
— 1993 July 24, Ee Lin See. The Straits Times, "Survey of Kiasu".p.4
noun
- a person who is afraid to lose out to others
Apart from the kiasis and kiasus, there are also Singaporeans at the other end of the scale — the healthcare workers who put their lives at risk.
— 2003 May 28, Frederick Lim. Today, "Sars and the Singaporean". p.22
usage notes
Often paired with kiasi.
* 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.