balai mata-mata

Malay

Etymology

Compound of balai (“station, hall, public building”) +‎ mata-mata (“police, spy”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈbalaj ˈmata ˈmata/ [ˈba.lai̯ ˈma.t̪a ˈma.t̪a]

Noun

balai mata-mata (Jawi spelling بالاي مات٢)

  1. (Malaysia, dated) police station (building of police force)
    Synonyms: balai polis, (Indonesian, Indonesian Malay) kantor polisi

Descendants

  • → Chinese: 馬打厝 / 马打厝, 馬打寮 / 马打寮 (partial calque)

See also

  • pondok polis

Further reading

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