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Pidgin-English

This selection of Pidgin words and phrases comes from a number of sources, including Pidgin English Sing-Song, published in London in 1892, and All About Shanghai, published in Shanghai in the 1930s. Pidgin was also used in the Pacific Islands and particularly in New Guinea, where it is still spoken.
    All-plopa - quite right
    blong - is, are, belong to, etc.
    Bottom-side -- downstairs
    Bym-bye - later
    Can do Can you do, or Yes, I can do it.
    Catchee - Have, get, bring, e.g. "My look-see one piecee man.catchee chow-chow' - I saw a man eating.
    Chit - note, letter, sometimes IOU, e.g."bar chit"
    Chop - stamp, inscription, carved seal
    Chop - chop-chop, quickly
    Chow-chow - food, to eat
    Cumshaw - gratuity, sometimes a present
    Dlinkee, to drink
    Finishee - completed, done, finished
    Girley - girl
    Godown - warehouse
    Hab, have
    Hab got - is, there is, has
    How fashion? - what for? why? What is the meaning?
    Inkeli - English
    Joss-house - temple, church
    Joss-house man - clergyman
    Joss-pidgin - religion
    Largee, largey, largo - much, great Likee - to like
    Look-see - look, appear like, see
    Makee - make, do, cause, become
    Maskee - never mind
    Melican - American
    More betta - better
    Muchee - very, sometimes muchee-muchee
    My - my, me, I, sometimes we, our, ours
    Naifoo - knife
    Nightey - night
    No can - not good, I cannot, impossible
    No can do? - Can you not?
    Number one - very good
    Olo - old
    One piecee, a, an, one
    Pay - to give, bring, deliver, transfer
    Plenty - much, very, very much
    Plopa - proper, good, right, correct, nice
    Savvy - know, understand
    Shroff - dealer in money
    Side - place, country
    Smellum-water - perfume, cologne
    Solly - sorry
    Talpan - boss, important foreign businessman
    Talkee - tell, say, inform, ask
    This side - here
    Tiffin - lunch
    Tinkee - think
    Too muchee - very, excessive
    Topside - upstairs, on top
    waifo - wife
    Walkee - to go
    Wantchee - to want
    What for? - why?
    What fashion no can? Why not?
    What-side - where?


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