



There is that added touch of gratefulness in one’s beauty. To the locals, this word, in particular, emanates a sense of loveliness, delicacy, and gracefulness. However, as a native speaker, I would like to assert the fact that there’s more than just beauty in the meaning of menawan. What else do Malay speakers use to assert that something is beautiful? We use the word menawan – the translation still remains the same it means beautiful. Example: Penyanyi jelita itu berasal dari Sarawak. However, you can find this word so many times on Malaysia’s local newspaper, magazine, or any local website. We don’t use it casually here in Malaysia, nope. And yes, like lawa, the word jelita is only used to describe a person’s beautiful image.Īlso, if you take a close look since this adjective holds an elevated degree of beauty, it is pretty rare to hear people use it. Yes – that means that you’re super-duper gorgeous. But if people describe you as jelita, that equates to being stunningly gorgeous or exquisitely ravishing. If people claim you’re cantik, that means you’re beautiful. If you can categorize beautiful into three levels, this would be the number 1. But this word is quite remarkable – the depth of “beauty” in its meaning, according to the Malay linguistic culture, is one of the highest levels. Jelita is my personal favorite word when it comes to beauty – it’s a word that equally means beautiful if I were to translate it into English. Yup, lawa is mostly used to describe an individual’s beauty. Like cantik, the locals also frequented this word when they want to state that a person is beautiful.

Lawa, when translated to English, simply means pretty. This is another word to add to your Malay vocabulary – lawa. Example 1: Aina, kamu nampak sangat cantik hari ini! Aina, you look very beautiful today! Example 2: Wah Ali, ni ke kereta baru kau? Cantik gila! Wow, Ali, is this your new car? It’s so gorgeous! 2) Lawa (la-wa) So, feel free to use the word cantik with your Malay friends. Due to that, I would like to highlight that this particular word can be used in both formal and informal situations. It’s very common to find a Malay native using this word in spoken conversation day-to-day. What does cantik mean in English? It means beautiful, pretty, stunning, and everything alike. I’m absolutely sure you’ll find them using the word cantik very frequently. Try listening to your Malay friends or acquaintances – what adjective they use to point out one’s beauty. Cantik is the typical word Malay native speakers use to describe something beautiful – a person, a type of weather, a phenomenon, an animal, a plant, or a scenery. If you ask any Malay locals, “how to say beautiful in Malay?” trust me, this will be the most common answer. How To Say Beautiful In Malay – Cantik (chant-tik)
