cikgu

Malay

Etymology

Blend of encik +‎ guru.

Pronunciation

• (Johor-Riau) IPA^(key): [t͡ʃɪʔ.ɡu], [t͡ʃeʔ.ɡu]
• Rhymes: -u

Noun

cikgu (Jawi spelling چيقݢو, plural cikgu-cikgu, informal 1st possessive cikguku, 2nd possessive cikgumu, 3rd possessive cikgunya)

1. teacher.

   Cikgu biologi

   Biology teacher

   Synonym(s): guru, ustaz, ustazah

Usage notes

• Unlike in English where students would refer to their teachers as miss or mister, in Malay, students would only use cikgu to refer to their teachers, so "Miss Wood" and "Mister Cook" would be "Cikgu Wood" and "Cikgu Cook" in Malay.

Further reading

• “cikgu” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.