Singapore English
Template:Short description Template:Distinguish Template:Use Singapore English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox language Template:Listen Template:English language
Singapore English (SgE, SE, en-SG) is the set of varieties of the English language native to Singapore. In Singapore, English is spoken in two main forms: Singaporean Standard English, which is indistinguishable grammatically from British English, and Singaporean Colloquial English, which is better known as Singlish.<ref name=bunkyo.ac.jp>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Singapore is a cosmopolitan society.<ref name="UN">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2020, nearly half of Singaporeans of Chinese descent reported English as their main language at home, while only a third spoke Mandarin. The remaining spoke various varieties of Chinese such as Hokkien, Cantonese or Teochew.<ref name="census2020"/><ref name="SGEng">Template:Cite web</ref> Most Singaporeans of Indian descent speak either English or a South Asian language. Many Malay Singaporeans use Malay as the lingua franca among the ethnic groups of the Malay world, while Eurasians and mixed-race Singaporeans are usually monolingual in English.
English is the medium of communication among students from preschool to university in Singapore. Many families use two or three languages on a regular basis, and English is often one of them. The level of fluency in English among residents in Singapore also varies greatly from person to person, depending on their educational background, but English in general is nevertheless understood, spoken and written as the main language throughout the country.
Classification of Singapore English
Singapore English can be classified into Singapore Standard English (SSE) and Singapore Colloquial English (Singlish).<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The language consists of three sociolects: Acrolect, Mesolect, and Basilect.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Both Acrolect and Mesolect are regarded as Standard Singapore English, while Basilect is considered as Singlish.<ref name="ReferenceA">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Acrolect; there is no substantial difference from Standard British English (SBE), though there may be some features of pronunciation that indicate the speaker is Singaporean, such as use of a full vowel in unstressed syllables and a relatively monophthongal realisation of the Template:Sc2 vowel.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
- Mesolect; it has some features distinct from SBE<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
- Question tenses in an indirect form; e.g. "May I ask where is the toilet?"
- Indefinite article deletion (copula absence); e.g. "May I apply for car licence?" (Instead of saying "a" car licence)
- Lack of marking in verb forms (Regularisation); e.g. "He always go to the shopping centre."
- Basilect (Singlish);<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
- Generalised "is it" question tag; e.g. "You coming today, Is it?"
- Consistent copula deletion; e.g. "My handwriting no good, lah."
- Use of particles like ah; lah, e.g. "Wait ah; Hurry lah, I need to go now!"
Singaporeans vary their language according to social situations (Pakir 1991) and attitudes that they want to convey (Poedjosoedarmo 1993).<ref name="videoweb.nie.edu.sg">Template:Cite journal</ref> Better educated Singaporeans with a "higher" standard of English tend to speak "Standard" Singapore English (the acrolect), whereas those who are less-educated or whose first language is not English tend to speak Singlish (the basilect).<ref name="videoweb.nie.edu.sg"/> Gupta (1994) said that most Singaporean speakers systematically alternate between colloquial and formal language depending on the formality of the situation.<ref name="videoweb.nie.edu.sg"/>
Standard Singapore English
Standard Singapore English is the standard form of English used in Singapore. It generally resembles British English and is often used in more formal settings such as the workplace or when communicating with people of higher authority such as teachers, bosses and government officials.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Singapore English acts as the "bridge" among different ethnic groups in Singapore.<ref name="Leimgruber"/> Standard Singapore English retains British spelling and grammar.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
History
The British established a trading post on the island of Singapore in 1819, and the population grew rapidly thereafter, attracting many immigrants from Chinese provinces and from India.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The roots of Standard Singapore English derive from nearly a century and a half of British control. Its local character seems to have developed early in the English-medium schools of the 19th and early-20th centuries, where the teachers often came from India and Ceylon, as well as from various parts of Europe and from the United States of America. By 1900 Eurasians and other locals were employed as teachers.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Apart from a period of Japanese occupation (1942–1945), Singapore remained a British colony until 1963, when it joined the Malaysian federation, but this proved a short-lived alliance, largely due to ethnic rivalries. Since its expulsion from the Federation in 1965, Singapore has operated as an independent city-state. English served as the administrative language of the British colonial government, and when Singapore gained self-government in 1959 and independence in 1965, the Singaporean government decided to keep English as the main language to maximise economic prosperity. The use of English as the nation's first language serves to bridge the gap between the diverse ethnic groups in Singapore; English operates as the lingua franca of the nation. The use of English as a global language for commerce, technology and science has also helped to expedite Singapore's development and integration into the global economy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Public schools use English as the main language of instruction, although students are also required to receive part of their instruction in their mother tongue; placement in such courses is based on ethnicity and not without controversy.<ref> Template:Cite journal </ref> The standard Singaporean accent used to be officially RP. However, in recent decades,Template:When a standard Singaporean accent, quite independent of any external standard, including RP, started to emerge. A 2003 study by the National Institute of Education in Singapore suggests that a standard Singaporean pronunciation is emerging and is on the cusp of being standardised.<ref name="emergent-patterns" /> Singaporean accents can be said to be largely non-rhotic.<ref name="non-rhotic">Template:Cite book</ref>
In 2023, opposition leader Pritam Singh advocated for English proficiency testing for immigrants seeking Singaporean citizenship.<ref name="proposal">Template:Cite web</ref> Polling data of native-born Singaporeans show broad support for the proposal.<ref name="polling">Template:Cite web</ref>
Singapore's Speak Good English Movement
The wide use of Singlish led the government to launch the Speak Good English Movement in Singapore in 2000 in an attempt to replace Singlish with Standard English. This movement was made to show the need for Singaporeans to speak Standard English. Nowadays, all children in schools are being taught Standard English with one of the other official languages (Chinese, Malay, Tamil) being taught as a second language. In Singapore, English is a "working language" that serves the economy and development and is associated with the broader global community. Meanwhile, the rest are "mother tongues" that are associated with the country's culture. Speaking Standard English also helps Singaporeans communicate and express themselves in their everyday life.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In 2014, the Singaporean government made an announcement entitled "Speak Good English Movement brings fun back to Grammar and good English", where the strategies that would be used to promote their program in the following years were explained. Specifically, the government would release a series of videos demystifying the difficulty and dullness of the grammatical rules of the English language. These videos provide a more humorous approach to learning basic grammar rules. Singaporeans will now be able to practise the grammatical rules in both written and spoken English thanks to a more interactive approach.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Update inline
Malay, Indian, and Chinese influences
Although Standard Singapore English (SSE) is mainly influenced by British English and, recently, American English, there are other languages that also contribute to its use on a regular basis. The majority of Singaporeans speak more than one language, with many speaking three to four.<ref name="Singapore Colloquial English">Template:Cite web</ref> Most Singaporean children are brought up bilingual. They are introduced to Malay, Chinese, Tamil, or Singapore Colloquial English (Singlish) as their native languages, depending on their families' ethnic backgrounds and/or socioeconomic status. They also acquire those languages from interacting with friends in school and other places. Naturally, the presence of other languages in Singapore has influenced Singapore English, something particularly apparent in Singlish.<ref name="Singapore Colloquial English"/>
Both Singapore English and Singapore colloquial English are used with multiple accents. Because Singaporeans speak different ethnic mother tongues, they exhibit ethnic-specific features in their speech such that their ethnicity can be readily identified from their speech alone.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The strength of one's ethnic mother tongue-accented English accent depends on factors like formality<ref>Deterding, D. & Poedjosoedarmo, G. (2000). To what extent can the ethnic group of young Singaporeans be identified from their speech? In A. Brown, D. Deterding, & E. L. Low (Eds.). The English Language in Singapore: Research on Pronunciation, (pp. 1–9). Singapore: SAAL.</ref> and their language dominance.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Words from Malay, Chinese, and Tamil are also borrowed, if not code-switched, into Singapore English. For example, the Malay words "makan" (to eat), "habis" (finished), and the Hokkien word "kiasu" (Template:Lang-zh) are constantly used, having been adopted into the lexicon, to the point that Singaporeans are not necessarily aware of which language those words are from. The nativisation process has progressed so far that the word "kiasu" has been used in the Singapore press since 2000 without being italicised,<ref name="Singapore Colloquial English"/> and went onto claim international recognition, being admitted to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2007.<ref name="Leimgruber">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Overview of Singaporean accents
Broadly speaking, Singaporean English accents are based on the sound systems of standard non-rhotic Southern British English accents, as is often the case with dialects of English spoken in Commonwealth nations aside from Canada.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Like many of these dialects, the vowels in Template:Sc2 Template:IPAblink and Template:Sc2 Template:IPAblink are distinct in Singapore English, and the word plant is generally pronounced with the Template:Sc2 vowel Template:IPAblink, [[Trap–bath split|rather than the Template:Sc2 vowel]] Template:IPAblink.<ref name=lim2004 /><ref name=starr2019>Template:Cite journal</ref>
As English becomes more often used as a day-to-day language in Singapore, mass adoption of local norms have led to the formation of a standard, endonormative Singaporean accent with characteristics primarily driven by conventions and language change within the country.<ref name="emergent-patterns" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Nowadays, the accents of many Singaporeans reflect a compromise between local characteristics and standard language given that English has been institutionalised in the country for decades.<ref name=lim2004>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Accents still vary, depending on age, upbringing and the race or heritage language of the speaker.<ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref><ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref>
Rhoticity
Template:See also Template:Listen Template:Listen
Singapore English is predominantly non-rhotic, like Australian and Nigerian accents, so most speakers will leave out the r sound in words like far.<ref name="non-rhotic" /> Semi-rhotic accents are, however, quite commonly heard on radio, where some presenters have adopted more North American-like accents.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Studies suggest that final r sounds are more likely to be realised by younger speakers and women among Chinese and Indian Singaporeans, and that this tendency is more common in content words than in function words, and in reading than in conversation.<ref name="rvariation">Template:Cite thesis</ref><ref name=tanyy2016>Template:Cite book</ref> Rhoticity is nevertheless generally uncommon and seldom consistent,<ref name="rhotic2">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="rhotic3">Template:Cite journal</ref> even in environments where a linking r could occur, e.g., my brother is and my sister is.<ref name="rhotic2" /><ref name="rhotic">Template:Cite journal</ref> In a 2018 study examining the speech of 104 Singapore English speakers, r sounds were dropped at the end of syllables more than 90% of the time in conversational speech, while linking r was used less than 20% of the time. Cases of intrusive r (e.g., pronouncing drawing as draw-ring) were negligible.<ref name="rvariation" />
High vowels
The Template:Sc2 vowel is closer to the vowel in Template:Sc2 than in most other dialects, and at its most extreme, it can be as high and front as the latter vowel, making sit and seat potential homophones.<ref name=educatedsge /> Several studies confirm significant overlap between these two vowels,<ref name=eaemerger>Template:Cite conference</ref><ref name="lin2021">Template:Cite thesis</ref><ref name="tan2010" /> however Template:Harvcoltxt and Template:Harvcoltxt demonstrate that a distinction is still actively maintained by most people. Speakers may also rely on vowel length to distinguish words like ridTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA and readTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA; in this case the Template:Sc2 vowel is markedly shorter.<ref name="tan2010" /><ref>Template:Cite conference</ref><ref name=low2025 />
The Template:Sc2 vowel is relatively high and back in vowel space.<ref name="educatedsge" /> Like Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2, formant plots show significant overlap between the Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 vowels, raising the possibility of a [[Phonological history of English close back vowels#FOOT–GOOSE merger|Template:Sc2–Template:Sc2 merger]].<ref name="lin2021" /><ref name="deterding1" /><ref>Template:Cite conference</ref> Other studies report a robust distinction in vowel quality and duration.<ref name="tan2010" /><ref name=low2025 /> While previous research has categorised Template:IPAc-en as a back vowel Template:IPAblink, more recent ones suggest that [[Fronting (sound change)#Vowel shifts|Template:Sc2-fronting]] is now prevalent among younger speakers, and that it is more accurate to classify this variant of Template:IPAc-en as a near-back Template:IPAblink or centralised Template:IPAblink vowel.<ref name="lin2021" /><ref name="tan2010" /><ref name="deterding1" />
High-mid vowels
The Template:Sc2 vowel Template:IPA is a short Template:IPAblink or long monophthong Template:IPAblink, if not a diphthong with minimal change in quality.<ref name="deterdingbook" /> Measurements indicate that in general, this vowel tends to be more diphthongal for Chinese Singaporeans than for Malays.<ref name="deterding-measurements">Template:Cite book</ref> Likewise, the Template:Sc2 vowel has little change in quality over time, coming close to Template:IPAblink or Template:IPAblink for many speakers.<ref name="educatedsge" /><ref name="deterding-measurements" /> Findings from Template:Harvcoltxt lend weight to the proposition that Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 are somewhat diphthongal and not entirely monophthongs.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Low vowels
Template:Sc2–Template:Sc2 merger
The vowels in metTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA and matTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA are seldom distinguished Template:IPAblink in conversational speech, meaning kettle and cattle, better and batter, and wreck and rack have identical pronunciations.<ref name=eaemerger /><ref name="suzanna-brown2000">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="deterding2010">Template:Cite book</ref> Any distinction is less likely between words ending in stop consonants, like met and mat, though bedTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink and badTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink are kept distinct (see Template:Section link).<ref name=educatedsge /> Some studies report that Template:IPA tends to be less centralised in vowel space, and that Malays are more likely than Indian and Chinese speakers to merge Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 in everyday speech.<ref name="tan2010">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="deterding1" /><ref name="suzanna-brown2000" /> Template:Harvcoltxt reports a vowel shift suggesting that the Template:Sc2–Template:Sc2 merger is more apparent among the younger generation.
Next–text split
For nearly all speakers, next and text do not rhyme, owing to a vowel split affecting the Template:Sc2 lexical set. The word next is realised with the raised vowelTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink, which is distinguished from the low-mid vowelTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink in text.<ref name="deterding1" /> The raised vowelTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink occurs unsystematically in a small subset of words including leg, dead and head (and their derivatives). Other words like fed and neck do not have this vowel. For many speakers, it is equivalent to the vowel in Template:Sc2, in which case dead rhymes with made, but not with fed. Taking this into account, speakers with the complete [[Met–mat merger|Template:Sc2–Template:Sc2 merger]] will distinguish lagTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink from legTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink, but not the words lad Template:IPAblink and led Template:IPAblink. Besides next, leg, dead and head, the raised vowel also occurs in egg, bed and red, making redTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink and readTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink (as in I've read the book) non-homophones.<ref name="emergent-patterns" /><ref name="deterdingbook" /><ref name=nwavconference />
The next–text split appears to be motivated by the Template:Sc2–Template:Sc2 merger in the speech of younger Singaporeans,<ref name=eaemerger /><ref name=nwavconference /> who are more likely than older speakers to raise the vowel in next, though younger speakers raise it to a lower height on average.<ref name=nwavconference /> While words with the raised vowel tend to end in voiced stop consonants like Template:IPA and Template:IPA, this split is not phonologically conditioned, unlike Template:IPA raising in Pacific Northwest English — given that leg Template:IPA and beg Template:IPA do not rhyme.<ref name=eaemerger />
Low back vowels
[[Image:SgE vowel shift.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|Representation of vowel shift in Singapore English, showing the differences between older (grey) and younger speakers (black), from Template:Harvcoltxt. This study provides evidence that certain sound changes are becoming more common, like [[Fronting (sound change)#Vowel shifts|Template:Sc2-fronting]], the merging of Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 into a single vowel, and the lowering of the low back vowels Template:IPA.]] The Template:Sc2 vowel is a rounded, low back vowel Template:IPAblink. The vowel in Template:Sc2/Template:Sc2 may be longer and closer to cardinalTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink and this tendency is stronger before voiced consonants and in open syllables. Investigations by Template:Harvcoltxt show that speakers produce an allophone of the Template:Sc2 vowel that is higher and further backTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink in words not closed by final consonants, like more and saw. The Template:Sc2 vowel is otherwise the same as Template:Sc2 for many speakers, resulting in identical pronunciations for cot and caughtTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink,<ref name="tan2010" /><ref name="deterding1" /> though new research suggests that older English speakers may still distinguish them.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
| Lexical set | Phoneme | Realisation | Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Sc2, Template:Sc2 |
Template:IPA or Template:IPA | Template:IPAblink | law, more, gaudy |
| Template:IPAblink | court, taught | ||
| Template:Sc2 | Template:IPA | stop, drop | |
| Template:Sc2 | Template:IPA or Template:IPA | Template:IPAblink | sun, month |
| Template:Sc2, Template:Sc2 |
Template:IPA | Template:IPAblinkTemplate:NbspTemplate:Efn-ua | dark, drama |
| Template:Sc2 | ask, glance | ||
| Template:Sc2 | Template:IPA | Template:IPAblink | cat, relax, hand |
| Template:Sc2 | set, neck, men | ||
| Template:IPA or Template:IPATemplate:NbspTemplate:Efn-ua (see Template:Section link) |
Template:IPAblink | red, leg, head | |
| Template:Sc2 | Template:IPA or Template:IPA | Template:IPAblinkTemplate:NbspTemplate:Efn-ua | wear, scared |
| Template:Notelist-ua | |||
For the vast majority of speakers, Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 have identical or near-identical vowel qualities, in the vicinity of open centralTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink. Sometimes a length distinction is maintained, with Template:Sc2 being longer in terms of duration.<ref name="educatedsge">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=low2025>Template:Cite journal</ref> Like all free vowels, the Template:Sc2 or Template:Sc2 vowel is generally longer in open syllables, e.g. ramen Template:IPA or marker Template:IPA, than in closed ones, e.g. tart Template:IPA. The Template:Sc2 vowel, on the other hand, is always short.<ref name="educatedsge" /><ref name="tan2010" /> Template:Harvcoltxt regards Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 as distinct vowels with contrasting vowel lengths.
Generally speaking, words from the Template:Sc2 lexical set, like ask, last and half, are realised with the Template:Sc2 vowelTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink—the a in father—like most dialects of English from the south of England.<ref name=starr2019 /><ref name="deterding1">Template:Cite book</ref> Unlike some varieties of North American English, aunt ("ahnt") and ant do not sound the same. Usage of the Template:Sc2 vowel extends to the words plastic and elastic. The Template:Sc2 vowel, on the other hand, has been reported to occur quite commonly in gasp, and rarely, in dance and can’t.<ref name=tanyy2016 /> In sample, command and demand, whether the Template:Sc2 or Template:Sc2 vowel is used depends on the speaker.<ref name=starr2019 />
Diphthongs
Assuming that Template:Sc2, Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 are analysed as monophthongs, there are five remaining distinct diphthongs—namely, the closing diphthongs Template:Sc2Template:NbspTemplate:IPA, Template:Sc2Template:NbspTemplate:IPA and Template:Sc2Template:NbspTemplate:IPA, and the centering diphthongs Template:Sc2Template:NbspTemplate:IPA and Template:Sc2Template:NbspTemplate:IPA.<ref name="low2014" /> Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 have low central startpoints, and their trajectories end near the spaces of Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 respectively.<ref name="low2025" /> Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2 are alternatively realised as rising diphthongs beginning with glidesTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA.<ref name="low2014" />
Template:Harvcoltxt notes that, while words like Template:Sc2, tour and sure are always realised with the diphthong Template:IPA or Template:IPA, many speakers will use the Template:IPAblink vowel after Template:IPAc-en, like in Template:Sc2, endure and security Template:IPA, though Template:IPA and Template:IPA are also commonly observed.<ref name="emergent-patterns">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Words like fire Template:IPA are normally broken down into two syllables.<ref name="educatedsge" /><ref name=triphthongs>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="sea1">Template:Cite book</ref>
Vowel length
As in most varieties of English, free vowels are shorter when there is a following final consonant (i.e., in closed syllables), so bee Template:IPAblink has a long vowel while beat Template:IPAblink has a relatively shorter one.<ref name="Bao Zhiming 1998 pp. 152-174">Template:Cite book</ref> The length of a vowel is determined by its environmental context, coda voiceless stop consonants are consistently associated with reduced vowel lengths, while coda fricatives like Template:IPA prompt longer vowel durations.<ref name=low2025 />
Template:Sc2–Template:Sc2 minimal pairs may also contrast durationally, with Template:Sc2 being a longer open-mid vowelTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink in most contexts.<ref name="low2014">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Bao Zhiming 1998 pp. 152-174" /> Many studies have classified the Template:Sc2 vowel as a monophthong, in the neighbourhood of Template:Sc2 and Template:Sc2.<ref name=low2025 /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Consonants
Pronunciation of ⟨th⟩
Th-stopping is common at the start of syllables, making tree and three homophones. This is generally more common in informal settings.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Dental fricatives may undergo th-fronting at the end of words, so teeth sounds like teef.<ref name="deterdingbook" /><ref name="sea1" /> The word mathsTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA is an exception, given that Template:IPA is more commonly observed in this word.<ref name="deterdingbook" /> For some Tamil bilinguals, word-final th sounds are alternatively realised as stops.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Stop consonants
Stop consonants in Singapore English are usually not released at the end of wordsTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA, and voiceless stops can be aspirated or unaspirated in initial positions—how strongly a stop is aspirated can be determined by its place of articulation, the heritage or home language of the speaker and the level of formality of the conversation. In general, speakers with strong Malay or Tamil accents are less likely to aspirate initial stops, while Chinese Singaporeans are more predisposed to using aspiration.<ref name=educatedsge /><ref name="Bao Zhiming 1998 pp. 152-174" /> Measurements of voice onset time indicate that, in initial positions, Template:IPA is more likely to be aspirated, or exhibit stronger aspirationTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA across all major Singaporean racial groups, whereas Template:IPA are characterised by weaker and even weaker aspiration respectively.<ref name=ng2005>Template:Cite thesis</ref> Out of all the language groups surveyed in the study, Tamil speakers of Singapore English have the lowest average voice onset time measurements for the word-initial lenis stopsTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA.<ref name=ng2005 />
- Initial, unaspirated Template:IPA are found in loanwords from Hokkien and Malay, e.g. kopitiam Template:IPA. Additionally, aspirated Template:IPA also appear in Hokkien loanwords, alongside voiced stops.<ref name=ng2005 />
- Final Template:IPA may show some degree of glottal reinforcementTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA, final t and k are also prone to being completely replaced by a glottal stop Template:IPA in fast speech. The use of glottalisation is more common in Malay-accented English.<ref name=hung1996>Template:Cite journal</ref>
- Some speakers weaken t and d into alveolar tapsTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA in words like little and ladder, like in North American and Australian English. This could be regarded as an marker of sociolinguistic prestige,<ref name=lim2004 /><ref name=tanyy2016 /><ref name=lincolntamminga2025>Template:Cite journal</ref> even though it is generally uncommon.<ref name=tanyy2016 /> T-flapping has been reported at higher incidences in compound numbers (e.g., in forty-five) and across word boundaries (e.g., get up).<ref name=lincolntamminga2025 /><ref>Template:Cite conference.</ref>
Pronunciation of final "l"
There are three variants of final "l" in widespread use in Singapore English: dark "l"s, clear "l"s and vocalised "l"s.<ref name=hong2023>Template:Cite journal</ref> Vocalised "l"s are realised as high back vowels Template:IPAblink with varying degrees of lip rounding, e.g. feelTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA.<ref name=lim2004 /> For speakers who vocalise their "l"s, the "l" sound can be dropped entirely after back vowels, diphthongs with back vowels, and sometimes mid central vowels, so that mole sounds like mowTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA, and small like smawTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA. Moreover, the Template:Sc2 diphthong Template:IPA is monophthongised into Template:IPA before a vocalised "l", so Nile and now are similar-sounding.<ref name=lim2004 /><ref name="vocalisation">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=wee08>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="heggarty2013">Template:Cite web</ref>
Chinese Singaporeans, especially older speakers, are more likely to vocalise final "l"s. Vocalised "l"s are regarded as an attribute of the speech of middle-aged, or middle-class Chinese Singaporeans. The use of clear "l"s Template:IPA at the end of words is observed in more pronounced Malay accents, though they also regularly occur in the speech of some Indian Singaporeans. Dark "l"s are not tied to any particular ethnic accent or identity, and they are more likely to be recognised as a "pan-Singaporean" feature, being more common in formal speech.<ref name=hong2023 />
Pronunciation of "r"
The most common and predominant realisation of the "r" sound in Singapore English is the postalveolar approximant Template:IPAblink, roughly the same sound found in most native varieties of English worldwide. The alveolar tap Template:IPAblink or trill Template:IPAblink is an alternative realisation of "r" among Malay and Indian Singaporeans and older speakers in general.<ref name="rvariation" /> Among Tamil Singaporeans, the trilled variant appears to be extremely rare in comparison to the approximant and tapped "r".<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> A rare and emergent variant of "r", indicative of R-labialisation and described as a labiodental approximantTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPAblink, has also been reported.<ref name="rvariation" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Alternation
Some degree of final-obstruent devoicing has been reported to occur in Singapore English, at least among some speakers. Devoicing seldom takes place between vowels, so is it? Template:IPA maintains theTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA.<ref name=hung1996 /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Newer studies dispute the idea that devoicing leads to ambiguity, and argue that underlying voicing is still recoverable from factors like the length of the consonant involved and the duration of the preceding vowel.<ref name="emergent-patterns" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Conversely, there is an opposite tendency to voice coronal fricatives between vowels in some words like December → DeTemplate:IPAemberTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA and pressure → pre[zh]ureTemplate:NbspTemplate:IPA, and even across word boundaries, so this is becomes thiTemplate:IPA is, though this tendency seems to be somewhat sporadic, with regard to which words are affected.<ref name=hung1996 /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Final consonant cluster reduction
Some final consonant clusters tend to be simplified in conversational Singapore English—for example, list Template:IPA drops its final t and flask Template:IPA its k, though speakers are seldom consistent in doing so. The sequence Template:IPA, as in gold, is also commonly reduced to Template:IPA, and since those who vocalise their "l"s tend to drop them completely after mid central and back vowels, gold may be rendered as "go", with both the l and d dropped (see Template:Section link). This does not apply to the past tense ending -ed.<ref name="deterdingbook" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
| Template:Background Template:Background Consonant clusters subject to reduction in Singapore English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Lexical incidence
While words generally follow the pronunciation patterns of Southern British English accents, so lieutenant is pronounced Template:Respell, and new is nyoo, never noo like in some North American dialects, there are several exceptions.<ref name="deterdingbook" /><ref name="heggarty2013" /> Template:Col-begin Template:Col-2
- The words want and what are pronounced with the open central Template:Sc2 vowel instead of the rounded Template:Sc2 vowel, like most varieties of North American English. In the English spoken in Southern England and Australia, these words are usually pronounced with the Template:Sc2 vowel.<ref name="emergent-patterns" />
- Many speakers will use the Template:Sc2 vowel for won (win in the past tense), so that it rhymes with con and no longer sounds like one.<ref name="emergent-patterns" />
- Their is pronounced Template:IPA in informal or conversational speech, making it distinct from there Template:IPA, which rhymes with mare.
- Flour is pronounced Template:Respell, and is clearly distinct from flower.<ref name=triphthongs />
- Seems and seen are sometimes realised with the lax i vowel found in words like Template:Sc2.<ref name="deterdingbook">Template:Cite book</ref>
- Many speakers will use a mid central vowel Template:IPA for love, above and glove rather than the open Template:Sc2 vowel Template:IPAblink.<ref name="deterdingbook" />
- Twelve is sometimes pronounced Template:Respell.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Stress and intonation
| Single phonological word | Multiple phonological words | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| example | pitch contour | example | pitch contour |
| rat | HTemplate:NoteTag | greenhouse | H–H |
| today | L–H | underneath | M–H–H |
| peanut | M–H | unimpressed | H–L–H |
| creative | L–M–H | watermelon<ref name=chongintonation>Template:Cite journal</ref> | M–H–M–H |
| minimum | M–M–H | anticlockwise | M–H–H–H |
Singapore English is characterised by a unique intonational system where pitch tends to be slightly raised at the end of a word with lexical stress. According to one analysis, the rightmost syllable of a stressed word or phonological word is marked with higher pitch, while words with no stress (e.g. my house) and unstressed initial syllables (e.g. again) carry relatively lower pitch. Meanwhile, all other non-final stressed syllables (e.g. writer) coincide with a mid level tone, or a similar pitch contour between low and high levels. There is also a tendency for pitch contours to be accentuated near the start of a sentence and diminished towards the end, and for pitch to drop or level out at the end of declarative sentences. For example, in the phrase I don't remember [[Tone letter|Template:IPA]], pitch starts off low in I, then rises to a higher level in don't. The word remember is then realised with a less accentuated low–mid–high pitch contour.<ref name=ngintonation /><ref name=chongintonation />
Tone assignment only takes place within the scope of the phonological word. Cranberry takes on a high–mid–high pitch contour [[Tone letter|Template:IPA]], since cran and berry are analysed as separate words. Similarly, in brainstorm [[Tone letter|Template:IPA]], brain and storm are both assigned high pitch.<ref name=wee08 /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Prefixes with stress constitute their own phonological words, so the re in reenact [[Tone letter|Template:IPA]] is high-pitched. In words where the prefix is unstressed or less salient, like unfortunate [[Tone letter|Template:IPA]] and nonsense [[Tone letter|Template:IPA]], the prefix is not treated as a separate unit with stress and is therefore not assigned high pitch.<ref name=chongintonation />
Words are not restricted to discrete level tones. One alternative analysis posits that high pitch is associated with the right edge of an accentual phrase, and low pitch with the left edge; an accentual phrase may consist of a content word with zero or any number of preceding unstressed function words. For instance, in a sentence like I joined the call, in which I joined is analysed as a single accentual phrase, joined can be realised with rising pitch starting from the low pitch in I, in lieu of consistently high pitch.<ref name=chongintonation /><ref name=chongprominence>Template:Cite journal</ref> In this model, phonological words (e.g. cran and berry in cranberry) and prefixes with stress are analysed as belonging to separate accentual phrases.<ref name=chongintonation /> Other intonational variants have also been noted. For instance, flat pitch contours can sometimes span the entire length of words and accentual phrases where rising contours would normally be expected.<ref name=chongprominence /><ref>Template:Cite conference</ref>
Wider pitch range is associated with the introduction of a topic near the start of a sentence.<ref name=deterdingintonation>Template:Cite journal</ref> Elsewhere in the sentence, differences in pitch are less prominent, so low, mid and high tones may collapse into roughly the same pitch level. Moreover, at the end of declarative sentences and open-ended questions, "high-pitched" syllables are weaker and often replaced with a drop or leveling out in pitch.<ref name=chongintonation /><ref name=deterdingintonation /> For example, in the sentence I left all my things on the table, pitch is much higher on left than it is on the second syllable of table, which has underlying high pitch but tends to be realised instead with a fall or leveling out in pitch. Yes-no questions are accompanied with rising pitch, as is the case in many other dialects of English.<ref name=chongintonation /> Rising pitch is also commonly used when there is non-final information at the end of an utterance, sometimes to indicate a non-final item in a list.<ref name="deterdingbook" />
Timing
Unstressed initial syllables are often realised with shorter duration and lower intensity.<ref name=chongprominence /> There is also a tendency for the last syllable in an utterance to be lengthened or dragged out.<ref name="deterdingbook" />
Singapore English tends towards syllable timing, unlike British English, which is considered stress-timed.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Foreign dialects of English in Singapore
A wide range of foreign English dialects can be heard in Singapore. American and British accents are often heard on local television and radio due to the frequent airing of foreign television programmes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Singapore Colloquial English / Singlish
Unlike Singapore Standard English, Singlish includes many discourse particles and loan words from Malay, Mandarin and Hokkien. Many of such loan words include swear words, particularly Hokkien profanities such as "kanina" and "chee bai".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hence, it is commonly regarded with low prestige in the country and not used in formal communication.<ref name="bunkyo.ac.jp"/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
However, Singlish has been used in several locally produced films, including Army Daze,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Mee Pok Man<ref>[1] Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref> and Talking Cock the Movie,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> among others. Some local sitcoms, in particular Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> also feature extensive use of Singlish.
The proliferation of Singlish has been controversial and the use of Singlish is not endorsed by the government. Singapore's first two prime ministers, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong, have publicly declared<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> that Singlish is a substandard variety that handicaps Singaporeans, presents an obstacle to learning standard English, and renders the speaker incomprehensible to everyone except another Singlish speaker. The country's third, Lee Hsien Loong, has also said that Singlish should not be part of Singapore's identity.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In addition, the government launched the Speak Good English Movement in 2000 to encourage Singaporeans to speak proper English.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Despite strong criticisms of Singlish, linguist David Yoong has put forward the argument that "Singaporeans who subscribe to Singlish and have a positive attitude towards the code see Singlish as a language that transcends social barriers" and that the language can be used to "forge rapport and, perhaps more importantly, the Singaporean identity".<ref name="latrobe.edu.au">[2] Template:Webarchive</ref> Sociolinguist Anthea Fraser Gupta also argues that Singlish and standard English can and do co-exist, saying that "there is no evidence that the presence of Singlish causes damage to standard English". This was followed by organisers of the Speak Good English Movement clarifying that they are "not anti-Singlish", with their primary intention instead to ensure that Singaporeans are able to speak standard English first. A spokesperson was quoted as saying: "The presence of Singlish causes damage to standard English only when people do not have a good grounding in standard English".<ref>Anthea Fraser Gupta, "Singapore Colloquial English and Standard English", Singapore Journal of Education 10/2 (1989): 33–39. Online at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02188798908547659 and https://doi.org/10.1080/02188798908547659</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
English language trends in Singapore
In 2010, speakers of English in Singapore were classified into five different groups:
- Those who have no knowledge of English (extremely few people, most of whom were born before the 1940s);
- Those who regard English as a foreign language, have limited command of, and seldom speak the language (mostly the older age groups);
- Those who learnt English at school and can use it but have a dominant other language (many people, of all ages);
- Those who learnt English at school and use it as their dominant language (many people, of all ages);
- Those who learnt English as a native language (sometimes as a sole native language, but usually alongside other languages) and use it as their dominant language (many people, mostly children born after 1965 to highly educated parents).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Template:As of, English is the most commonly spoken language in Singaporean homes. One effect of mass immigration into Singapore since 2000, especially from China, has been an increase in the proportion of the population to whom English is a foreign language. The most recent trend in Singapore favours an increasing use of English as well as stability in the use of Mandarin at the expense of other varieties of Chinese (apparently as the Chinese population switches first to Mandarin, then to English) while the use of Malay slowly erodes.
| Language | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2015 | 2020<ref>General Household Survey 2015 Template:Webarchive p. 18</ref> |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | 18.8 | 23.0 | 32.3 | 36.9 | 48.3 |
| Mandarin | 23.7 | 35.0 | 35.6 | 34.9 | 29.9 |
| Chinese varieties | ? | 23.8 | 14.3 | 12.2 | 8.7 |
| Malay | 14.3 | 14.1 | 12.2 | 10.7 | 9.2 |
| Tamil | 2.9 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 2.5 |
| Others | ? | 0.9 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 1.4 |
In 2010, 52% of Chinese children and 26% of Malay children aged between 5 and 14 speak English at home, as compared to 36% and 9.4% respectively in 2000.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref>
Other official languages in Singapore
English is Singapore's main and one of the four official languages, along with Malay, Chinese and Tamil.<ref name="Constitution of Singapore">153A Official languages and national language, Part XIII General Provisions, Constitution of the Republic of Singapore.</ref> The symbolic national language is Malay for historical reasons.<ref name="Constitution of Singapore" /> All official signs, legislation and documents are required to be in English, although translations in the other official languages are sometimes included, though it is not necessary. Under the education system, English is the language of instruction for all subjects except the official Mother Tongue languages (the other three official languages) and the literatures of those languages.
See also
Notes
References
Further reading
Template:Library resources box Template:Languages of Singapore Template:English dialects by continent Template:Singapore topics