Eh

Eh is a spoken interjection.

Although the use of eh is regarded by some as characteristically Canadian, most usages of eh are spread throughout the English-speaking world, in the meaning of "Huh?", "What?", "Hey", or "Repeat that, please".

It is an invariant question tag, unlike the "is it?" and "have you?" tags that have, with the insertion of not, different construction in positive and negative questions.

According to the Canadian Oxford Dictionary the only usage of eh that is peculiar to Canada is for "ascertaining the comprehension, continued interest, agreement, etc., of the person or persons addressed" as in, "It's four kilometres away, eh, so I have to go by bike."

In that case, eh is used to confirm the attention of the listener and to invite a supportive noise such as "Mm" or "Oh" or "Okay". It essentially is an interjection meaning, "I'm checking to see you're listening so I can continue."

Depending on the speaker's tone or the dialectal standard, eh can also be perceived as rude or impolite, as "Repeat that!", and not a request.

"Eh?" used to solicit agreement or confirmation is also heard regularly amongst speakers of Australian and New Zealand English (where it is sometimes spelled 'ay'). It is also heard in some regions of the United States. In addition, 'eh' can also be used as an exclamation. He's all right, eh! This has its origins in Scotland, where it can also be heard.

The equivalent in South African English is hey, of Afrikaans origin.

There is some question as to the origin of the term, a popular theory is that the "eh" sound is similar to the "ey" sound that a native french speaker will steryotypically say when pronouncing the word "Hey"

See also: Canadian slang, Bob & Doug McKenzie

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Compare also to Dutch "hè" eg. "Lekker weertje hè?" "Nice weather, eh?"

In French, hein is used for the same purpose, though in Quebec, tsé (a contraction of "tu sais" e.g. "you know") is used.

Japanese "nee/ne?/naa" are also extremely similar, being statement ending particles which solicit or assume agreement, confirmation, or comprehension on the part of the listener.

In Mandarin Chinese, eh (誒 in pinyin: ê4) is a relatively infrequently used exclamation expressing disappointment or affirmation.