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.

also can:

lair

leh

→

Hokkien:

咧

poj:

--leh

expand for details Detailed etymology

definitions

particle

  1. used to emphasize or bring attention to something that is pertinent or relevant and should be noted

    2. Eh, your letter no link one leh.

    — 30 November 2012 (quoting Mr Brown). Today, "LETTER IN M’SIAN PAPER BEWILDERS NETIZENS". p.60

  2. used to mark an opinion, or an assertion meant to convince others of a point

    3. Rebecca: It's quite you, leh.
    Desmond: Yeah, it's quite me, right?

    — 2014 May 23, Zhang Weifang (quoting Rebecca Lim and Desmond Tan). Today, "NO SWEAT". p.2

  3. used to mark a 'what about ...?' question

    4. Ah Di is poor. Zoe, leh?

    — 2011 June 23, Chen Hanwei. Today, "Hanwei grills Zoe: A lesson in journalism". p.3

  4. used after an imperative to make it a plea, request, or persuasion

    5. Eh, don't liddat leh. Cham siong a bit lah.

  5. used to express uncertainty or disagreement

    6. No leh... He never said that.

  6. used to mark a reminder of something or bring it into the context of the conversation

    7. Oh ya, we still got some CDC vouchers left leh.


usage notes

All senses are sentence- or clause-final. It is not uncommon for a use to be a mixture of more than one of these senses.


related:

eh1 what1 lah1 lor1

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