Mall [sic] Perplexing Headlines

These two headlines, from a recent Great Singapore Sale ’08 special, will probably have you scratching your head if you pronounce your /l/s at the end of syllables.

For many Singaporeans, however, mall rhymes with more — this is because syllable-final dark /l/ is liable to become a vowel (i.e. it is ‘vocalized’) or be deleted altogether.