or not
See also: ornot
English
Alternative forms
Etymology 1
Calque of Hokkien 抑無 / 抑无 (a̍h-bô / á-bô, literally “or not; or no; or none”). See also Hokkien 是毋是 (sī-m̄-sī / sǐ-m̄-sǐ, “whether or not”), 是抑毋是 (sī á-m̄-sī / sǐ á-m̄-sǐ, “isn't?”, literally “is it? or is it not?”), Mandarin 是不是 (shìbùshì, “whether or not”), forming a question, and similar interrogative expressions with 不, 無 / 无, 唔 and other dialectal synonyms.
Pronunciation
- (Singapore) IPA(key): [ɔ˨ nɔt˨], [ə.nɔt˨]
Particle
- (Singapore, Malaysia, colloquial) Final interrogative particle, forming a yes/no question from a declarative statement.
Usage notes
In contrast to most English dialects, where "or not" is only optionally appended to a yes-no question formed syntactically ("He called" → "Did he call?" → "Did he call or not?"), in Colloquial Singaporean English, "or not" functions as a final particle and forms a question by itself: "He got call" → "He got call or not?".
Synonyms
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
Audio (Mid-Atlantic US): (file)
Phrase
- Emphasizes that a particular claim or idea makes no difference regarding what can or has happened.
- A sardonic response to a new event that contradicts what the speaker has just stated.
- "I bet the green car will make it unscathed!" said Mildred. Suddenly, there came a loud crunch from the racetrack. "Or not," she sighed.