Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use liao in a sentence

20 example sentences · particle, noun

Liao means indicates action completion, or more generally, perfective aspect. Example: “I run 4 laps liao.”

Examples of liao by meaning

particleIndicates action completion, or more generally, perfective aspect.

  • I run 4 laps liao.
  • You decorate the cake liao?
  • I’ve been working for six months liao.

particleMarks a change in state, more or less in the same manner as the inchoative aspect (see usage notes).

  • It’s going to rain liao.
  • Reach liao, give me a call.
  • Damn shag liao, need to go back and sleep.

nounMeats, vegetables, and other ingredients added to an otherwise plain dish.

  • No extra liao today.2012, Tan Tarn How, Fear of Writing, Epigram Books, →ISBN, scene: 35, page 72
  • But for all the eggs and liao (ingredients) you have, it isn’t gao (strong).2019 August 24, Yeo Boon Ping, quoting Zachary Tang, “If Zi Char Dishes Were In A Battle Royale, Which Would Come Out Tops?”, in...

More sentences with liao

  • Can liao, don’t need to use so much glue.From the entry can
  • Actually, the term seems more Hokkien that Singlish - "chut pattern, liao".2013, Patsy G, There is enough for all..: “Chut pattern, liao” [blog entry]. From the entry chut pattern
  • Doing such things is called ‘bo liao‘ (nothing better to do).2013, Airstrike, “13 school websites defaced by hacker who signed off as 'Jack Riderr'”, in Stomp (Singapore), retrieved 01 Apr 2016. From the entry bo liao
  • I had a friend who would SMS me the most bo liao messages.1999, Steven Tan, “Petition against M1 charging for SMS”, in soc.culture.singapore (Usenet), retrieved 01 Apr 2016. From the entry bo liao
  • Everyday must cook lah, clean lah, simi sai mah pao kah liao lor.1998 August 9, K§_Chew, tmnet.communities (Usenet). From the entry simi
  • Wah this type of response, win liao lor, typical singaporean hehe.1997 November 28, soc.culture.singapore (Usenet). From the entry win liao lor
  • But ya, the postal service stopped liao.2016 September 19, James Harbeck, “The language the government tried to suppress”, in BBC. From the entry liddat
  • From now on, NEA bao ga liao.2014 August 17, “National Day Rally 2014”, in Prime Minister's Office (Singapore). From the entry NEA
  • Some would say I’m boh liao for writing this post.2014 June, Dan Kerson, “Singlish Will Soon Become Extinct”, in angmohdan.com, archived from the original on 13 Sep 2017. From the entry boh liao
  • I have already buanged two midterms liao.2010 September 28, Yoshi_fanboy, “NUS ppl lip lai”, in forum.hardwarezone.com.sg. From the entry buang
  • Like that all insurance companies win liao lor.2007 August 21, soc.culture.singapore (Usenet). From the entry win liao lor
  • That ex-lecturer-to-be confirm gone case liao.2006, DanielS, soc.culture.singapore (Usenet). From the entry confirm

Meaning of liao

  1. particle Indicates action completion, or more generally, perfective aspect.
  2. particle Marks a change in state, more or less in the same manner as the inchoative aspect (see usage notes).
  3. particle Used to emphasize that something has to be done now.

Full definition of liao

Questions about liao in a sentence

How do you use liao in a sentence?
Liao is used as a particle and noun. For example: “I run 4 laps liao.”
What is a short sentence with liao?
“No extra liao today.”
What does liao mean?
Liao means indicates action completion, or more generally, perfective aspect.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: liao (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use liao in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/liao. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.