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In this chapter, we learn about particles, a particularly important component in constructing sentences in Penang Hokkien. Particles are bits of words that are neither nouns or verbs, but which help sentences complete their meaning. They are not common in English, but in Hokkien, you can barely escape them. In English, when you say, "You're not happy, right?" the word "right" is a particle that helps to complete the meaning of the sentence. Most participles are placed at the end of the sentence. Most particles are meaningless on their own; they need to attach themselves to a sentence to modify its meaning.
Here are some particles that you need to use to speak Hokkien.
Lah4
By far the most common, and one that has most often crept into common usage in Manglish (Malaysian English), lah is used for emphasis. You can call it the Emphatic Particle. Useful when you urge or beseech someone to do something for you. For example:Lai lah!
Do come!
Ceh ci-peng lah.
Please sit here.
Lai ceh ci-peng lah!
Come and sit here please!
Lai2= come
Ceh3= sit
ci1-peng2= here
Don't be surprised to see it used in Manglish as "Come lah", or "Sit here lah". Even in Manglish, it takes its place at the end of the sentence. While "please" can be moved to the end of the sentence, "lah" cannot be moved to the front.
Eh2
Eh2 is used to show possessiveness. It is attached to personal pronouns to show belonging, for example, changing "lu" (you) to "lu-eh" (your/yours). It is also used to show selectiveness (this one, that one, the white one).See the use of eh as underlined below:
Wah4-eh2 ang3-sek3-eh2.
Mine is red. (Literally, my-one the-red-one.)
Nia2
This is the true interrogative particle. It corresponds to "kah" in Malay and "desuka" in Japanese. It is added to a sentence, to turn a statement into a question. For example:Ie lai. Ie lai nia?
He comes. Does he come?
Ie1= He/She (third person singular)
Liau4
This is the "completion particle". It corresponds to the Perfect Tense in English as well as to the adverb "already", to show that an action has been completed. For example:Ie lai liau.
He has come.
Boh2
This is a verifying particle, used to verify an action, turning a statement into a question. For example:Ie lai boh? Ie uh lai boh?
Is he coming? Is he going to come?
uh3 is an adverb to emphasize an action, to mean "yes", and to show possession corresponding to the verb "to have". You can add boh to it to form "uh-boh?" meaning "is it?"
Boay3
This is an affirmative particle, used to reaffirm whether an action has been completed. Usually used immediately following liau. It corresponds to "yet". For example:Ie lai liau boay?
Has he come yet?
Kork3
Another particle that corresponds with "still ... yet". For example:Ie boh lai kork.
He still hasn't come yet.
Tua3
This is a continuous particle, corresponding to Continuous Tense in English. It carries the meaning of "in the midst of". For example:Ie lai tua.
He's on his way. (literally, he's in the midst of coming)
Mah1
This particle has an interrogative quality to it. It is used to carry the meaning of "isn't that so" or "you see". It is also used to make a sentence sound less abrupt. For example:Hamiksu ie mm-chai? Ie boh lai mah.
Why he doesn't know? You see, it's because he didn't come.
Ha1mik1su3=why, how come
mm3-chai1=doesn't know (it's the opposite of chai, to know).
Leh3
This particle is similar to mah to a certain degree, and can be used interchangeably with it, in many cases. However, there are subtle differences to the meaning of the two, which you can only detect through familiarity.Eh-sai khee liau boay? Tapi ie boh lai kork leh.
Can we get moving? (literally, can go already?) But he's still not here yet.
khee3=go
eh3-sai1= can, when used to ask a question, as in, "Can I ..." The response can then be eh3-sai4, meaning "yes you can". You can also shorted it to just eh3
Eh cho hamik, asi ie boh lai leh?
What can we do (literally, "can do what"), if he doesn't come?
cho3=do, also can be pronounced as cho1
ha1mik1=what
a3si3=if
Nee4
This particle is used to ask "and how about".Wah mm-chai. Lu nee?: I didn't know (about it). And you?
Wah tun1 mm-chai.: I also didn't know (about it).
View Glossary of Penang Hokkien Words
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