Singaporean Mandarin Database

This database contains a collection of Mandarin terms which have cultural, historical or sentimental value unique to Singapore. These terms may be used by Singaporeans in the past or at present. Some of the terms are read in print while others are used in our everyday conversations.

shēng huó
Speech
回返
huí fǎn
to return to
鸡婆
jī pó
busybody (colloquially known as kaypoh)
咖啡钱
kā fēi qián
bribe
懒惰眼
lǎn duò yǎn
amblyopia (lazy eye)
灵犬
líng quǎn
rescue dog or police dog
隆帮
lóng bāng
to hitch a ride, reside with or have someone pass an item to another person along the way (colloquially known as tumpang)
迷你
mí nǐ
mini
木虱
mù shī
bedbugs (colloquially known as bak sat)
to take
脑力激荡
nǎo lì jī dàng
brainstorming
闹双包
nào shuāng bāo
two similar things appearing together unexpectedly
怕输
pà shū
afraid of losing to others (colloquially known as kiasu)
拍拖
pāi tuō
To date somebody (colloquially known as paktor)
骗话
piàn huà
lies
屏门
píng mén
platform screen door
坡底
pō dǐ
downtown
日行一善计划
rì xíng yī shàn jì huà
Singapore Kindness Movement
散钱
săn qián
small change
山龟
shān gūi
a person who is ignorant or not well informed (colloquially known as sua ku)
水草
shuǐ cǎo
straw