Filler Words.

I like to watch Chinese dramas on television because I haven't a clue of what they are saying. Anyway, I continually heard the words that sound like "nigga nigga nigga", and I was shocked because in English, it is so offensive. I finally learned from a friend that it's a filler word very much like "um" or "uh".

I then thought how interesting filler words were. They're typically not "proper" words, but they're so widely and liberally used.

In Japanese, the filler word is "e-tto".

What are filler words in your language?

In Spanish is very common to use "eeeh" when you are looking for the next phrase or word and you can't find it. I've heard that English speakers use "aaah" or "aahmm".

By the way the word for the pain is "Ay!" or "Au!" followed by other words that I won't write. ;-). In American English I've heard it's "ouch!" . Which one is in British English ?

Btw, those words are known as "muletillas" (crutches).

In British English you have a range of phrases for pain... I normally would say "oww" unless I was being profane, when a good hearty English "bollocks" would suffice. Again, you do hear "ouch", but I suspect it depends entirely on the type of pain you're experiencing.

Also, in RP at least we tend to say "err" or "erm" rather than "ahm".

in spaniash is ay mamasita

or ahyyayia

At least in the part of the US I am from (and all I have been too), the filler word is and has been um and uh - not ahm. Pretty close to er and erm, seeing as I don't think you pronounce those r's.

We make all kinds of sounds when we're in pain -- "ouch" is actually a pretty uncommon thing to hear when someone's hurt themselves. "Ow!" is more common (same sound as your "Au!"). As the level of pain increases, so does the addition of profanity -- I think we all have that common bond! ;)

And "er" or "erm" is really just the non-rhotic spelling of "uh" or "um" -- they sound the same.

And when one makes a mistake the word is again "Ay!" or "Uy! In English I've seen "oops!" is used.

A tip I once read when learning Spanish was that Spanish speakers almost never use non-words like "uh" or "um" as fillers, and I've noticed that to be true. It's one of the nice things about Spanish -- the everyday speech is not peppered with "uuuuh". I've heard a lot of people use "este" (or an elongated "esteeeee").

Of course in English we also have the always-annoying "like" and "y'know".

For pain -- I think "aaaah!" translates into most langauges....

<<I've heard a lot of people use "este" (or an elongated "esteeeee"). >>

That's correct, I had forgotten "esteee". Very used. Strange way, I have no idea where such expressions come from.

The Chinese say "Ayah!" to express pain, anger, exasperation, surprise, etc.

I also hear French people say "dis-donc" a lot.

My Mexican friend says "pos" a lot when he talks to his mom in Spanish.

<<My Mexican friend says "pos" a lot when he talks to his mom in Spanish. >>

"Pos" is the word "pues" (then) shortened the same way "tons" is from "entonces" (then). My theory is that those words, sometimes long, are shortened due to their low relevance so people try to "get rid" quickly of them while speaking since they work just like a bridge to joint the phases.

"The Chinese say "Ayah!" to express pain, anger, exasperation, surprise, etc."

That's interesting, because the native peoples of Mexico say the same thing. They say, "Ayyo" or "Ayya!".

I noticed that the Russian filler is "mm" and the the pain sound (moderate pain, at least) is "oy".

A woman in my Russian class many years ago said that on her first trip to the USSR, when she hardly knew any Russian, she was in the metro and got her arm stuck in the door. She tried saying "ow" and pointing to her arm, and got no reaction. Then she remember she was in Russia and tried "oy" and immediately several people came to her aid.

>That's interesting, because the native peoples of Mexico say the same thing. They say, "Ayyo" or "Ayya!".
Hi LAA,
Hehe, you have been reading Aztec, I can tell.
Well the truth is, that as a Mexican living in Mexico, I have never heard this Ayya in my entire life, not even among Indian people (Indian used as a neutral word, of course). Besides, after this book, the only people having this interjection were the Nahuatl people, not the rest of them.