samseng

English

Noun

samseng (plural samsengs)

1. (Singapore) A thug; a gangster.

Indonesian

Etymology

From Malay samseng, from Chinese Hokkien 三牲 (sam-seng, sam-sng, “gangster”, literally “three domestic animals”).

Pronunciation 1

• IPA^(key): [ˈsamsɛŋ]
• Hyphenation: sam‧sèng

Noun

samseng (plural)

1. warrior.

   Synonyms: jagoan, pendekar

Pronunciation 2

• IPA^(key): [ˈsamsəŋ]
• Hyphenation: sam‧sêng

Verb

samseng

1. to mourn the dead.

   Synonym: melayat

Further reading

• “samseng” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Malay

Etymology

From Hokkien 三牲 (sam-seng, sam-sng, “gangster”, literally “three domestic animals”).

Noun

samseng (plural samseng-samseng, informal 1st possessive samsengku, 2nd possessive samsengmu, 3rd possessive samsengnya)

1. thug; gangster
   • 2018, Bung Moktar Radin, “Waktu Mesyuarat dan Urusan Dibebaskan Daripada Peraturan Mesyuarat”, in Hansard of the Dewan Rakyat‎^[1], archived from the original on 2023-10-16, page 41:

     Yang Berhormat tidak layak duduk di sini, samseng. What you want? You hendak gaduh dengan saya? Anytime.

     Your Honor (Willie Mongin) doesn't deserve to sit here, gangster. What do you want? You want to fight with me? Anytime.