3R

phrase

a violation of Malaysian law that involves insulting or attacking either one of those three topics.

“Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has issued a final warning to all parties to not exploit issues touching on race, religion and the royal institution (3R) which can split the country.”

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Meanings

phrase
  1. abbreviationAbbreviation of reduce, reuse, recycle (“a waste management strategy”).
  2. MalaysiaabbreviationgovernmentAbbreviation of race, religion, royalty (“referring to the Malay race, Islam, and the monarchy of Malaysia, three sensitive topics in the country”).

    Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has issued a final warning to all parties to not exploit issues touching on race, religion and the royal institution (3R) which can split the country.

  3. Malaysiabroadlygovernmenta violation of Malaysian law that involves insulting or attacking either one of those three topics.

Origin

For sense 2, first popularised in 2014 in Malaysian academic journals and political commentaries. Adopted by the Malaysian government in August 2019 to discourage hate speech in light of the general elections on that year, which it began to refer as 3R.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

3R. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/3R

MLA

“3R.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/3R. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “3R,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/3R.

Source: 3R on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.