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 ,  / , and other dialectal synonyms.

Pronunciation

  • (Singapore) IPA(key): [ɔ˨ nɔt˨], [ə.nɔt˨]

Particle

or not

  1. (Singapore, Malaysia, colloquial) Final interrogative particle, forming a yes/no question from a declarative statement.
    • 2009, Jean Tay, Boom, Epigram Books, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:
      You want to go see snow or not, Ma?
    • 2020 January 26, JustGreat, “I ordered Pizza Hut”, in SG Talk[1]:
      Can or not ?
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

or not

  1. Emphasizes that a particular claim or idea makes no difference regarding what can or has happened.
  2. 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.

See also

Anagrams