The phrase "Ïoh motion" is an example of a humorous Khasi colloquialism where the Khasi word "Ïoh" has been combined with the English word "motion".
"Ïoh" means to get and "motion" (literally momentum) symbolically refers to the motivation for something. "Ïoh motion" may be described as a sense of enthusiasm and the impetus a person feels in order to do something. For instance, feeling happy and motivated after a good conversation or after having a delicious meal 😂😂 Thus, "Ïoh motion" is usually associated with doing and completing a task at hand.
In a Khasi sentence, it may be used thus:
"Ani hadien ba ïa kren bad i Pa, nga ïoh motion ban pyndep syndon ïa ka shna kali."
"Ïoh motion" is an interesting example of "Khalish", the combination of English and Khasi, in a way that the English is modified to suit the Khasi language.
It is interesting how the merging of indigenous languages with English is happening around the world and shows the development and evolution of language. For Shillong, Meghalaya this is present mainly in urban areas where people use English daily in their communication with others.
Khalish in particular leads to funny phrases and jokes which have a distinct ring and flavour to them. Though there will be many critiques, this phenomenon is here to stay and seems inevitable in the evolution of language.