Standard Lemma guide

jialat

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Singapore: /ˌt͡s˭jɑːˈlʌt/
  • Singapore: /ˌt͡ʃj-/
  • Singapore: [ˌt͡s˭ja(ː)˨ˈlat̚˦]
  • Singapore: [ˌt͡ɕ˭j-]

1

adj

Meaning 1

Sapping one’s strength; tiresome.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Manglish, Singlish, archaic

Qualifier: original sense

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Terrible, disastrous; (of a person) affected by difficulties, in a dire situation.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Manglish, Singlish, broadly

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Hokkien 食力 (chia̍h-la̍t, “to be exhausting”), with spelling influenced by Mandarin Pinyin.