Top 10 English Loanwords In Malay

I had already made a list about the Dutch words used in Indonesian. So, I will do the same list except that's all about the English words used in Malay language or the Malaysian language.

Malay language and Indonesian language look the same when it is written but they have some differences. They have differences in vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. This list is one of the major reasons for the differences between those two languages.

Malay Language is an official language of Malaysia as well as Brunei and Singapore. It is also known as Bahasa Melayu. Like Indonesian, the Malay language also borrows some words but not as much as Indonesian.

In this list, we will talk about the Malay words that came from the English language. The English language is one of the major contributors in Malay language together with Arabic because Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore were under British rule in 1826. Just because of that, the English language affects Bahasa Melayu when it comes to pronunciation and vocabulary.
The Top Ten
1 Ais (Ice)

First item in this list is the word "ais". It came from an English word "ice" so we obviously know it. Based on its spelling, it pronounce the same way as ice. However, in Bahasa Indonesia, the word "es" were used for ice. It came from a Dutch word "ijs" of the same meaning.

2 Televisyen (Television)
3 Komuniti (Community)
4 Doktor (Doctor)

Both the two languages have the same meaning. In Indonesian, they used the word "dokter" instead which came from a Dutch word of the same name.

5 Oren (Orange)

Both the two words have the same meaning. This term is mainly used in Malay and recently in Indonesian. Indonesian uses the term "oranye" which came from a Dutch word oranje though Indonesian also use this word. It is also interchangeable with the word "jeruk".

6 Sos (Sauce)

By the spelling, it also shows how to pronounce it. Both the two languages have the same meaning. In Indonesian, the term "Saus" was used.

7 Polis (Police)

Both the two words have the same meaning. It has a false friend with the same word in Indonesian. False Friends are the words or expressions that are similar in form but have a different meaning. The Malay term means police or police officer while the Indonesian term means insurance policy. The Indonesian term came from a Dutch word of the same spelling. On the other hand, polisi was used in Indonesian. In Malay, polisi means policy which came from English.

8 Sains (Science)

The spelling of this word is based on the pronunciation of its origin. Both the two words mean science. Both Malay and Indonesian use that word even though Indonesian also use the word "ilmu".

9 Coklat (Chocolate)

By its form, it means chocolate. Mainly used in Malay language and it has the same cognate in Indonesian "cokelat". Take note that the letter C in both languages is pronounced as "ch" just like in Italian. However, Indonesian "cokelat" came from a Dutch word "chocolade". Both the two words came from Spanish "chocolate"which is rooted in a Nahuatl word "xocolatl".

10 Amerika (America)
The Contenders
11 Bas (Bus)

Both of the words mean bus which is the clipping of the word "omnibus". It has a false friend with the Indonesian word for bass and boss/chief (colloquial). The Indonesian word came from two different Dutch words "bas and baas". The word "bas" means bass while "baas means boss or chief. The word "bus" was used instead.

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