Question regarding the word tsiah lat 食力?

In Singapore hokkien it means tiring which makes sense.

But it also has a second meaning which is that something bad has happened. For example if a fire burnt down a building, we could say its a very tsiah lat situation. Usually we spell it as jialat.

Is the second usage only specific to Singapore or is it common to other hokkien speakers?

Posted Dec 1, 2025, 3:14 AM UTC

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