What Do People Wear in Malaysia?

The omnipresent T-shirtlah!!! What else do you expect...?What people wear in Malaysia is more or less the same as what the other earthlings wear-subject to fashion fad.

Talking about T-shirts...I was having a drink in a coffee-shop. A waitress wore a T-shirt with something written on it in English. My Australian friend looked at us with a simper after all of us had read her T-shirt. It was a word beginning with "E" describing a function of the male genital organ ideally confined within the bedroom. In the end, my friend just couldn't take it anymore, he approached the waitress and explained the word to her. You should see how the poor girl blushed...

Sometimes what people wear these days make me feel shy even to take a glance. Therefore , I must commend my fellow Malaysians because most of them are decently dressed.

In this lesson, the first two audio files describe a man and a woman respectively. Try to listen carefully to the description of the garments then guess...man or woman?

What Do People Wear in Malaysia? - audio 1

Guess...man or woman? Before you move on to the next sound file.

What Do People Wear in Malaysia ?- audio 2

Make another guess. The answers are at the bottom of this page as usual and please don't peek until you have tried the next two activities.

What Do People Wear in Malaysia ?- audio 3

Here, I shall mention essential clothes items for ladies and see if you know what are they.

Here's your clues, and you know I love to put one irrelevant answer just to make life hard for you... ha ha ha!

A. Bra B. Girdle C. Dress D. Blouse E. Petticoat F.Skirt

What Do People Wear in Malaysia ? - audio 4

This sound file contains essential clothes items for men.The same rule above applies.

A. Briefs B. Singlet C. Shirt D. Jacket E. Tie F. Skull cap

My Personal Favourite

What is decent, practical and elegant even when you take a bus? For me the answer is Salwar Kameez. The price is very reasonable, too. Best of all, like other traditional costumes, it does not go out of fashion.

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Transcript and Translation

Audio 1

"Dia memakai kemeja batik dan seluar panjang untuk menghadiri majlis penting. Dia gemar memakai pelekat apabila berada di rumah."

"He wears batik shirt and long pants to attend important functions. He prefers to wear pelekat ( a kind of sarong which is usually striped or chequered) when (he) is at home."

Audio 2

"Dia memakai kain tudung, baju kurung dan kasut bertumit tinggi di tempat kerja. Di rumah, dia memakai kemeja T dan kain sarung."

" She wears head covering, baju kurung ( a malay traditional garment for ladies ) and high heels at work. At home, she wears T-shirt and sarong."

Audio 3

Kain dalam=petticoat, coli=bra, skirt=skirt, gaun=dress, bengkung=girdle

Audio 4

Kopiah=skull cap, seluar dalam= briefs( the same term applies to panties ), baju panas= singlet, tali leher=tie, kemeja=shirt

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