Oxford Tapaus Nasi Lemak: Untranslatable Malaysianisms

08-Apr-25 18:00

Oxford Tapaus Nasi Lemak: Untranslatable Malaysianisms

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Twelve Malaysian and Singaporean words — including alamak, tapau, and the ever-confusing terror — have officially made it into the Oxford English Dictionary. So tonight, we’re asking: What’s your favourite untranslatable word? And what other Malaysianisms should the world know about?

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Produced by: Evening Edition

Presented by: Lee Chwi Lynn, Sharaad Kuttan

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Categories: education, culture, Literature/Philosophy, History/Heritage, food, travel

Tags: malaysian slang, bahasa rojak, colloquialism, literal translation, neologism, manglish, bahasa malaysia, colonisation, oxford dictionary, loanwords, linguistics,

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