Photo: Oqbas/Shutterstock 13 of the Most Hilarious Malaysian Expressions Travel by Gyneth Tan Jul 21, 2015 1. Malaysians are not ‘horny’ … we are ‘salty wet.’ (Ham sap) 2. Malaysians don’t say someone is ‘uptight’ or ‘anxious’…we say ‘you are a tight long spider.’ (Kan cheong spider) 3. Malaysians don’t ‘get confused’ … we ‘scramble around making a lot of banging noise.’ (Kalang kabut) 4. Malaysians don’t say someone has a ‘casual attitude’ … we say they’re ‘green vegetables.’ (Cincai) 5. Malaysians don’t ‘go on vacation’ … we ‘eat wind.’ (Makan Angin) 6. Malaysians aren’t curious to the point of being annoying …we’re ‘home grannies’. (Kaypoh) 7. Malaysians don’t say something is ‘super difficult’ … we say ‘eat strength.’ (Chia lat) 8. We Malaysians have a mental state somewhere between oblivious and silly … we call it ‘blur like a squid.’ (Blur like sotong) 9. Malaysians don’t say something is ‘second-rate’ … we say it’s ‘half-past six.’ 10. Malaysians don’t say ‘forget it’ … we say ‘wait long time.’ (Tan ku ku) This story was produced through the travel journalism programs at MatadorU.Learn More 11. We don’t refer to our slang as a “mix of Malay, English, Hokkien, Cantonese and Tamil’ … we say it’s ‘vegetables and a fruit salad’. (Rojak) 12. Malaysians don’t say ‘Oh wow! … we say ‘Is it’ or ‘Izzit’ (Ya ke!) 13. When someone points out the obvious, we don’t say ‘What else did you expect?’ … we say ‘ah, but then?’ (Abuden) Trending Now A Guide to the Chicago Skyline Through 28 Buildings That Define It Apr 7, 2026 Don't Hit the Road Without Reading This Perfect Las Vegas to Zion Itinerary Apr 14, 2026 New Mexico Is the Best Place in the US for a Winter Road Trip Apr 20, 2026 Sponsored Corpus Christi, Where Your Inner Coastal Cowboy Comes Alive Apr 2, 2026 40 European Small Towns That Are Straight Out of a Storybook Apr 27, 2026
