Malay

American  

[mey-ley, muh-ley] / ˈmeɪ leɪ, məˈleɪ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a racially intermixed people who are the dominant population of the Malay Peninsula and adjacent islands.

2. of or relating to the language or culture of these people.

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noun

1. a member of the Malay people.

2. an Austronesian language of Malaysia and Singapore, differing from Indonesian only in orthography.

Malay British  

/ məˈleɪ /

noun

1. a member of a people living chiefly in Malaysia and Indonesia who are descendants of Mongoloid immigrants

2. the language of this people, belonging to the Malayo-Polynesian family

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adjective

1. of or relating to the Malays or their language

Other Word Forms

• non-Malay adjective
• pre-Malay adjective

Example Sentences

A conviction could add years to Najib's sentence and deal a further blow to his lingering influence within Malaysia's oldest political party, the United Malays National Organisation, which lost power in the 2018 election.

From Barron's

A conviction could further hamper his lingering influence within Malaysia's oldest political party, the United Malays National Organisation, which was ousted from power in 2018.

From Barron's

For centuries the Maniq -- one of Thailand's smallest ethnic minorities — lived as hunter-gatherers, roaming the rainforests of the Malay Peninsula, moving with the seasons in search of food.

From Barron's

Orangutan, in Malay, means “person of the forest,” the zoo noted.

From Los Angeles Times

De' Conti acknowledged the fruit's esteem throughout the Malay archipelago, but considered its odour nauseating.

From Salon