catch no ball

English

Alternative forms

catch no balls

Etymology

A calque of Hokkien 掠無球／掠无球 (lia̍h bô kiû, “to not understand”, literally “catch no ball”).

Pronunciation

(Singapore) IPA^(key): /kætʃ nəʊ bɔːl/

Phrase

catch no ball

(Singapore, Malaysia, colloquial) To fail to understand something; be unable to comprehend what others are saying.
- 1992 March 19, soc.culture.asean, Usenet‎:
  Being someone who doesn't understand Hokkien, I catch no ball as to what you say :-).
- 1993 October 15, soc.culture.malaysia, Usenet‎:
  From the way he described population trend, he may well be right. He mentioned something about expo something function. Boy, we all catch no balls.
- 1999 April 29, soc.culture.malaysia, Usenet‎:
  Ah! I see the problem. Fearless is only semi-literate. In which case, I can understand why he catch no ball. I guess we must ALL show patience to the slow-witted.
- 2000, Chong Yen Chung, Clarence Plays the Numbers: A Novel, page 83:
  "Infini... what? Sorry, I catch no ball. Again, please."
  "Infinitessimal - small, small winnings, Chin," said Clarence...
- 2005 March 23, soc.culture.malaysia, Usenet‎:
  "The sense of meaning halal should debated on either symbolic reminder of hygiene also define the level of hygiene to the level of a stomach ache or death that is what make sense!"
  Huh? What kind of English is this? Catch no ball....LOL.
- 2010 December 15, “The 'catch no ball but will keep trying’ award Inception”, in TODAY‎:
  THE ‘CATCH NO BALL BUT WILL KEEP TRYING’ AWARD INCEPTION Only the incomparable Christopher Nolan, after reviving the superhero genre, could have had the cojones to convince a tightfisted big movie studio to greenlight a movie as ridiculously convoluted and richly layered as this.
- 2012, Regina Long, Singapore and the Supernatural: The Weight of Fate Rests Great on Those Who Must Relate, page 55:
  "And now you cry...go lah...sleep with that old man...for what? Nothing! Totally liak Bo Kiu!...catch no balls!" Meaning her action was incomprehensible.
- 2013 August 14, soc.culture.china, Usenet‎:
  Catch no ball of what you're talking and saying in your content.  Talking and saying, and writing are different ways of expressions.  They are not the same.

Usage notes

The phrase is commonly used in spoken Singapore Colloquial English. It is not usually found in formal speech or discourse.

单词	catch no ball
释义	catch no ball English Alternative forms catch no balls Etymology A calque of Hokkien 掠無球／掠无球 (lia̍h bô kiû, “to not understand”, literally “catch no ball”). Pronunciation (Singapore) IPA^(key): /kætʃ nəʊ bɔːl/ Phrase catch no ball (Singapore, Malaysia, colloquial) To fail to understand something; be unable to comprehend what others are saying. 1992 March 19, `soc.culture.asean`, Usenet‎: Being someone who doesn't understand Hokkien, I catch no ball as to what you say :-). 1993 October 15, `soc.culture.malaysia`, Usenet‎: From the way he described population trend, he may well be right. He mentioned something about expo something function. Boy, we all catch no balls. 1999 April 29, `soc.culture.malaysia`, Usenet‎: Ah! I see the problem. Fearless is only semi-literate. In which case, I can understand why he catch no ball. I guess we must ALL show patience to the slow-witted. 2000, Chong Yen Chung, Clarence Plays the Numbers: A Novel, page 83: "Infini... what? Sorry, I catch no ball. Again, please." "Infinitessimal - small, small winnings, Chin," said Clarence... 2005 March 23, `soc.culture.malaysia`, Usenet‎: "The sense of meaning halal should debated on either symbolic reminder of hygiene also define the level of hygiene to the level of a stomach ache or death that is what make sense!" Huh? What kind of English is this? Catch no ball....LOL. 2010 December 15, “The 'catch no ball but will keep trying’ award Inception”, in TODAY‎: THE ‘CATCH NO BALL BUT WILL KEEP TRYING’ AWARD INCEPTION Only the incomparable Christopher Nolan, after reviving the superhero genre, could have had the cojones to convince a tightfisted big movie studio to greenlight a movie as ridiculously convoluted and richly layered as this. 2012, Regina Long, Singapore and the Supernatural: The Weight of Fate Rests Great on Those Who Must Relate, page 55: "And now you cry...go lah...sleep with that old man...for what? Nothing! Totally liak Bo Kiu!...catch no balls!" Meaning her action was incomprehensible. 2013 August 14, `soc.culture.china`, Usenet‎: Catch no ball of what you're talking and saying in your content.  Talking and saying, and writing are different ways of expressions.  They are not the same. Usage notes The phrase is commonly used in spoken Singapore Colloquial English. It is not usually found in formal speech or discourse.
随便看	ไอเสีย ไอโซโทป ไอโฟน ไอโอ ไอโอดีน ไอโอวา ไอ้ ไอ้สัตว์ ไอ้สัตว์กูขำ ไอ้สัส ไอ้สึส ไอ้หยา ไอ้เข้ ไฮ ไฮดรา ไฮยีน่า ไฮเตอร์ ไฮเปอร์ลิงก์ ไฮเพอร์โบลา ไฮโซ ไฮโดรคาร์บอน ไฮโดรเจน ไฮ้ ไ◌ ๅ