I tell you
English
[edit]Etymology 1
[edit]Phrase
[edit]- (idiomatic, colloquial) Synonym of I can tell you
Etymology 2
[edit]Calque of Hokkien 我共汝講 / 我共汝讲 (oá kā lí kóng, “let me tell you something; listen up”).
Phrase
[edit]- (Singapore, Singlish) Used to draw attention to something one has to say.
- 1989, Eleanor Wong, Jackson on a Jaunt, or, Mistaken Identities, page 1, lines 18–20:
- Luckily for us your son earns a good living. I tell you. I don’t know what we did when Jack was in school.
Usage notes
[edit]This phrase is commonly combined with the filler ah (rising pitch), as in I tell you ah, to show that the speaker is going to continue with what they intend to say.