(also spelt lho) is a particle commonly used in slang or conversational Indonesian to show surprise or instigate a warning. In these cases of combined, interlingual phrases, the original spelling (and quite often the pronunciation) of the foreign word(s) are retained. Hence, the English component of the Indonesian slang phrase "so what gitu loh!" remains relatively unchanged as far as spelling and pronunciation are concerned. Grammar The overall structure of Indonesian slang is not all that different from formal Indonesian, although in many cases sentences are simplified or shortened when necessary. The differences between formal and colloquial Indonesian are most evident in vocabulary and grammatical structures (e.g. affixes). Vocabulary The structure of the Indonesian slang language is mostly derived from formal Indonesian. However, its vocabulary is a different story altogether. Indonesian slang vocabulary is enriched by a combination of derivatives or loan words/structures from foreign languages such as Min Nan commonly referred to as Hokkien, English, and Dutch, as well as local ethnic languages such as Batavian, Sundanese, and Javanese. However, in many cases, new words are simply created at random and their origins often quite obscure. A large proportion of the vocabulary used in Indonesian slang language was developed from formal Indonesian through several methods, most of which are listed below: Shortening the prefix men-, me-, mem-, or meng- into n- or nge-. For example: mengambil → ngambil 'to take' (from ambil 'to take') menyapu → nyapu 'to sweep' (from sapu 'broom') merasa → ngerasa 'to feel' (from rasa 'taste; feel') membuat → ngebuat 'to make' (from buat 'to make') Replacing the suffix -kan or -i with -in (Balinese and Betawi influence). For example: menanyakan → nanyain 'to ask about something' (from tanya 'to ask') diajari → diajarin 'to be taught' (from ajar 'to teach') Using ke- at the beginning of non-volitional passive verbs instead of using ter-. For example: tertangkap → ketangkep 'to be caught' (from tangkap 'to catch') terpeleset → kepeleset 'to accidentally slip' (from peleset 'to miss a target') Elimination of s or h from a word. For example: habis → abis 'deleted, emptied' tahu → tau 'to know' hitung → itung 'counthitam → item 'black'hijau → ijo 'green'sudah → udah 'already'saja → aja 'just'lihat → liat 'see' Contraction of two or more words into one word. For example:terima kasih → makasih 'thank'jaga imej → jaim 'to safeguard one's social image'percaya diri → pd or pede