Dictionary

kan cheong en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• [ˌk˭än˧ ˈt͡ʃ˭jɔŋ˦] (Singapore)
• [- ˈt͡ɕ˭j-] (Singapore)

Etymology

From Cantonese 緊張 /紧张 (gan² zoeng¹), by way of Singapore Hokkien 緊張 /紧张 (kán-chiong, “nervous; stressed”).

Meanings

1. (Manglish, Singlish) Nervous, anxious, keyed up
   • I was so ‘kancheong’ (Cantonese for worried) about his tests that I woke him up at 5:30 am to remind him not to make mistakes. 2002 August 13, Michelle Ho, quoting Diana Liaw, The Straits Times, Singapore, page L8:
   • I wasn’t always this kan cheong about elections. 2008 November 2, Colin Goh, The Sunday Times, Singapore, page 14:
   • […] they will just become more kan cheong and think that all the mata and SCDF kena nuked or something […] 2004, The Void Deck, soc.culture.singapore (Usenet):

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