ah, Ah

/ int. [Mand. 啊à exclamation used at the end of sentences to indicate admiration, affirmation, exhortation, etc., or a query], 22 December, L12 Wah lau eh, so packed ah, and I thought this was a private party by invite only? 2005 ‘Mr Brown’ (Lee Kin Mun) [Today] [The Sunday Times], 20 August, L4 “Aiyah, you ahhh,” he drawls in a chiding tone, before breaking into throaty chuckles. 2006 Tabitha Wang [Today], 6 October. Another, whose grandiose plans had fallen flat, gloomily repeated to herself: “Die ah, fail already.” 2006Neil Humphreys [Weekend Today], 7 October. In Singapore, strangers crossed my path to say, “Wah, so tall, ah.” 2008 Colin Goh [The Sunday Times], 28 December, 11 Nowadays, the children ah! / prefix [Hk. 阿á a prefix to a man’s name ([Medhurst]); Mand. āprefix used with nicknames, surnames, etc. ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]] A prefix used with nicknames, surnames, etc., of Chinese origin.Comb.

ah beng, Ah Beng /beng, bɛŋ/ n. & a. [a common Chinese male name, poss. Hk. 明 beng clear, bright; to illustrate, to illumine; to display, to distinguish ([Medhurst]); Mand. míng bright, brilliant, light; clear, distinct; open, overt, explicit; sharp-eyed, clear-sighted; aboveboard, honest; sight; understand, know ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]] or [Ah Lian]. Ba. Having the nature or attributes of an ah beng.
A**1999** [Cleo], 29 December, 9 He skulked around.. watching hard-core bengs drag on their cigarettes. 2000 Arti Mulchand[The Straits Times], 21 July, 5 Tacky enough for an Ah Beng. 2001 Neil Humphreys [Notes from an Even Smaller Island] and never to get into an argument with them because they are usually armed with knives or, wait for it, parangs. 2001Cheong Suk-Wai, Tee Hun Ching & Michelle Ho (quoting Eng Jeng Hwee) [The Sunday Times], 7 January, P3 Once the younger consumers hear the world ‘cognac’, they would think, “This is what Ah Bengs would drink.” 2003Peh Shing Huei (quoting Allan Chia) [The Sunday Times], 21 July, 5 And beng or not, their radio ditties are catchier than the flu. .. Boom Boom Boom Boom is a staple in the Beng-mobile phone ringer collection. 2000 Chris Ho[The Straits Times], 29 December, L6 This is the perfect pop album few believed [Kylie] Minogue could deliver. Campy, chic and also ‘beng’, Light Years is light all right but it also has X-factor thrill and dare.

ah chek /chek, tʃɛk˺/ n. [Hk. 叔 chek an uncle, a father’s brother ([Medhurst]); Mand. jìu mother’s brother, uncle ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]] A middle-aged or elderly man.
1987 Toh Paik Choo [On the Buses] 69 It’s ‘Ah Ko’ when he doesn’t look old enough to be your father and ‘Ah Chek’ when he does. 2000 Cheong Suk-Wai[The Sunday Times], 3 September, 3 Lurking ah cheks, ah peks and ah sohs. 2005 Tan Chek Wee [Today], 9 December, 47 It could be the ah pek, ah soh, ah chek, or even the pakcik or makcik – this syndrome seat-patting [sic*: seat-patting syndrome?], transcending sex, educational level and age.

ah gua var. of [ah kua, ah kwa].

ah huay, Ah Huay /huay, hʊeɪ/ n. [a common Chinese female name, poss. Hk. 晖 hwuy bright, luminous, like the brightness of the sun ([Medhurst]); Mand. huī sunshine, sunlight ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]; or Hk. 辉 hwuy < 光)辉 (kong) hwuy bright and brilliant (Medhurst); Mand. guānghuī radiance, brilliance, glory: guāng light, ray; brightness, lustre + huī brightness, splendour; shine (Chi.–Eng. Dict.); or Hk. 煇 hwuy the brightness of fire, as bright as fire (Medhurst; according to [Lin] a variation of 辉 hwuy); or Hk. 惠hwūy favour, kindness; to be obedient; to bestow (Medhurst); Mand. huì favour, kindness, benefit (Chi.–Eng. Dict.); or Hk. 慧hwūy a pliant disposition, susceptible of instruction; intelligent, wise (Medhurst); Mand. huì intelligent, bright (Chi.–Eng. Dict.); or Hk. 蕙hwūy a fragrant plant which grows in low marshy places; if it yields but one flower on each stalk, and is very fragrant, it is called 兰 lân [Mand. lán orchid (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)]; Mand. huì a fragrant species of marshy orchid, called 蕙兰 huìlán, having many flowers on one stalk ([Giles]); a species of orchid (often 兰蕙 lánhuì), symbolic of purity, beauty or fragrance (Lin)]. 2 A generic name for a (young) Chinese woman.
2 2007Peh Shing Huei (quoting Lee Bee Wah) [The Sunday Times], 4 March. ‘Ah Huay’ MP on her Hokkien humour [title]*, 12 June, 13 [O]h then you MUST know Jane/Peter/Ah Kow/Ah Huay/Ah Huay’s dog..

ah kor /go (ko), ɡɒ (kɒ)/ n. [Hk. 哥 kor (elder) brother; Mand. gē (elder) brother ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]].
2006 Teo Pau Lin & Eunice Quek[The Straits Times], 24 June. Dressed in bow ties and maroon waistcoats, the silver-haired Hainanese ah kor (waiters) offer courtly, old-world service that harks back to post-war Singapore.

ah kua, ah kwa /kuah, kʊɑː/ n. & a. [poss. Hk. ; Mand. kuā (literary language) askew, crooked, aslant, oblique (+ xié evil, heretical, irregular) ([Comp. Chi.–Eng. Dict.])] Also ah gua, ah qua, and abbrev. to AK, AQ. derog. A n. 1 An effeminate man. 2 A male transvestite. B a. Effeminate, sissy.
A 1**1978Leong Choon Cheong [Youth in the Army] 303 a koa peng. An effeminate soldier: Hokkien. 1985Michael Chiang[Army Daze] 33 ar kwa (Hokkien) .. effeminate soldier. 2006* Leong Su-lin [The Straits Times] (from [Straits Times Interactive], 3 April. Kumar is a drag queen, not a transvestite. .. He has no desire to be a woman, he says, and he does not get a thrill from wearing women’s clothes. It is just part of his job. .. [W] from the audience ‘really hurtful’, but forced himself to put on a facade. 2 2004 ‘Mr Brown’ (Lee Kin Mun) [Today], 9 April, 20 [W] [The Sunday Times], 22 May 2005, L4 People don’t say “eee, ah kuah” anymore, at least not in front of my face. 2008 Wong Kim Hoh [The Straits Times], 6 September, D2 Make-up artist Lynette Leong aka Ginger, in her 30s, says the [transsexual][Today], 4 January, 32 They called me ah kua (Hokkien for sissy) lah, what else?

ah lian, Ah Lian /leearn, liːɛn/ n. & a. [a common Chinese female name, poss. Hk. 莲 lëên < 莲(花 lëên (hwa) the water lily ([Medhurst]); Mand. lián lotus + huā flower, blossom, bloom ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]; Hk. 荷)莲 (hô) lëên the lotus (Medhurst); Mand. hé lotus (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)]: a woman perceived to be loutish and uncouth, and who follows fashion trends but is often viewed as lacking taste. B a. Having the nature or attributes of an ah lian. A 2000 Yeow Kai Chai[The Sunday Times], 2 July, 5 He has been accused of making Fann Wong look like a cheena ah lian. 2000Theresa Tan & Neo Hui Min (quoting Jolin Tan) [The Straits Times], 29 December, L8 You can’t deny that it was a good tune. Even if the Bengs and Lians latched on six months after the general populace. 2001Michelle Ho[The Sunday Times], 14 January, P7 Often labelled as Bengs and Lians, they howl in Hokkien and gesture in unison while dancing to Euro-trance. B 2000Jason Wee [The Straits Times], 16 October, 8 An ah lian manicurist. 2001 Clarissa Oon (quoting Cynthia Lee MacQuarrie) [The Straits Times], 9 July, L5 So what’s the most lian thing about you? .. Actually, I do not think I’m lian at all, definitely not my dressing. 2004Lim Kuan Chiang [Today], 14 May, 48 [W]e’re not going to go back to those ah lian* insults published in the press last month.

ah long, ah long san /long sahn, lɒŋ sɑn/ n. [poss. Hk. 狼 lông a wolf ([Medhurst]); Mand. láng wolf ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]; compare Hk. 豺狼 ch’haê lông (Medhurst); Mand. cháiláng jackals and wolves – cruel and evil people (Chi.–Eng. Dict.) + poss. Hk. 山 sân a hill (Medhurst); Mand. shān hill, mountain (Chi.–Eng. Dict.)].. 2001 [The Straits Times] and he had to bring his girlfriend along as a guarantor! 2003Tan Shzr Ee (quoting Anthony Teo) [The Sunday Times], 20 March. Ah Longs not having it easy now [title], 26 December, 10 Ah Long Version 2.0 [title] was jailed for 10 years. .. [L]oansharks have been increasingly switching to high technology to cover their tracks. In the old days, loansharks and borrowers met in coffeeshops, often in Geylang – to discuss the terms of a loan, hand out money, and collect repayments. .. These days, communication by handphone is enough. That way, the loanshark maintains his anonymity. And runners no longer wait outside homes to confront debtors. Surprise “gifts” of pig heads are a thing of the past. Now, they deliver “hell notes” to the debtor and his neighbours through their post boxes. Others splash paint on doors in the dead of the night.

ah pek /pe, pɛ/ n. [Hk. 伯 pek a superior, an elder; (vernacular) 阿伯 an păyh an uncle ([Medhurst]); Mand. bó father’s elder brother, uncle ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]], 3 September, 3 Lurking ah cheks, ah peks and ah sohs. 2000Cheong Suk-Wai[The Sunday Times], 28 September, 6 A mangy bunch of ah peks, ah cheks and ah tees making a beeline there. 2001Tan Shzr Ee [The Sunday Times], 22 April, P8 Ah peks (old uncles) sitting on newspapers laid over dew-covered park benches sigh mournfully into the morning air. 2001Matthew Pan (quoting Nasir bin Kiram) [The Straits Times], 9 August, 9 We passed motion into a bucket, and an old ah pek collected the bucket the next morning. 2002**[The Straits Times], 12 April, L22 I often see ah peks at kopitiams shaking their legs while enjoying their kopi. [2006William Gwee Thian Hock [A Baba Malay Dictionary] 22 ah pek** [阿伯] term of address for an elderly Chinese gentleman]

ah qua var. of [ah kua, ah kwa].

ah soh /soh, səʊ/ n. & a. [Hk. 嫂 só a sister-in-law ([Medhurst]); Mand. sǎu elder brother’s wife, sister-in-law ([Chi.–Eng. Dict.]], 2 July, 5 So, weep, all you ah sohs. 2000 Tee Hun Cheng (quoting Andrew Ho) [The Sunday Times], 23 July, 2 Trendy ah sohs who want to be different. 2000Cheong Suk-Wai[The Sunday Times], 3 September, 3 Lurking ah cheks, ah peks and ah sohs. 2000 Kelvin Tong [The Straits Times], 23 November, 9 How can like that? Where got man dress like ah soh? 2001 Leong Chan Teik & Deborah Ng [The Sunday Times] ([Todayonline.com], 5 October. After the British soldiers left Singapore, she worked as a coffee lady (kopi ah soh) in offices, making drinks and carrying out cleaning chores. B 2000 Tee Hun Cheng (quoting Wendy Ng) [The Sunday Times], 23 July, 2 The image is so ‘ah-soh*’!