CHOPE is a favourite and amusing past-time in Singapore. To “chope” is simply to reserve a seat, table or coveted item (in shop or online). Basically it boils down to a “you snooze, you lose” mentality.
In a busy hawker centre, especially during lunch time (weekdays, 12-2 pm), where it’s peak seat/table season for the working population, the Chope Culture reaches its apex.
It probably originated from the English word “chop” – which implies putting your stamp on a document, item or spot. If you see tissue packs or business cards on a table in a hawker centre, that means the space is “choped”. Don’t even think about it, buddy! It’s an unwritten, respected rule/etiquette among Singaporeans.
To Chope is Chop Chop. Do not hesitate.
My Used Official “CHOPED” US License Plate (above image). From Kentucky! When I first saw this license plate up for sale, I immediately choped it! Chop Chop!
Extreme Chope (above image). Utterly Hilarious. Internet image.
Another Singaporean enduring and quirky word is “LAH”. Singaporeans like to end their sentence with “lah”. It gives emphasis to the sentence lah.
My LAH Used Authentic March 1991 US License Plate (above image). I can imagine amusingly seeing this license plate being driven around in Mississippi.
Another Singapore-centric enduring and quirky word is “KIASU”. It literally means “scared to lose”. A close cousin to “FOMO” – Fear Of Missing Out.
My official “KIASU” Coca Cola Cans Collection (above image). A highly successful and fun Coca Cola Singapore-centric “Share A Coke” campaign in 2025.
The Big Kiasu Kahuna (above image). Photo by Ben Liew. Check out my Pink Floyd’s “Oh, by the way, which one’s Pink?” T-shirt.
To quote a light-hearted famous Shenton Way (Singapore’s Wall Street) adage, borrowed heavily from a famous investment-themed movie – “Kiasu, for lack of a better word, is good. Kiasu is right, kiasu works. Kiasu clarifies, cuts through and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Kiasu in all of its forms. Kiasu for life, money, love, knowledge, has marked the upward surge of mankind.”
Be Kiasu or be Home lah! I choped (copyrighted) the above famous “Kiasu is good” quote already lah!
