In Singapore, we often hear people speaking with an ending ah or lah during conversations. These are known as tail-words and they do not carry any meaning by themselves. The rules in using tail words will come naturally when we get exposed to Singlish (Singapore English). Here are some commonly used tail-words that can be found in Singapore.

(1) Ah – Has a wide array of meanings, ranging from emphasis to being used as a question, depending on the intonation.
Examples : (a) You’re not coming-ah? (b) Thanks so much-ah. I really appreciate your help.

(2) Lah – Borrowed from Malay or the Chinese dialects. Does not have any meaning by itself but it is used for a variety of reasons, ranging from emphasis to softening the message.
Examples : (a) So sorry-lah. I completely forgot. (b) I don’t know lah. You ask her and see-lah!

(3) Meh – Usually used as a mild form of questioning. It is of Cantonese origin.
Examples : (a) I want to talk to you, cannot-meh? (b) You think you are so big-meh?

(4) One – This is pronounced as ‘waan’.
Examples : (a) Everything you ask, you sure get one! (b) I don’t want to go one but they asked me to come.

(5) What – Pronounced as ‘wut’. Used for emphasis.
Examples : “I don’t want to go what. Cannot-meh?”. “I told you already what! Why you always ask me the same questions?”

(6) Man – Not borrowed from any of the local languages or dialects. It might have originated from the Black English, as a result of influence from the mass media.
Examples : “Don’t try to be funny, man”. “I don’t get it, man!”

Source : “Manglish: Malaysian English at its wackiest!” by Lee Su Kim. Published by Times Books International, an imprint of Times Editions Pte Ltd.