baan3 haai5扮蟹
Jyutpingbaan3 haai5
Yalebaan háaih
Definition
To play dumb, pretend to be innocent, or act clueless.
colloquialpeopleslang
How it's used
Originating from the image of a crab being tied up and unable to move, this expression describes someone feigning ignorance or innocence to avoid responsibility. It is often used when a person acts as if they are clueless about a situation they are actually involved in. The tone is usually accusatory and informal.
Examples
Stop playing innocent, it is clear you broke the cup.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with literal crab-related activities. It is strictly a figurative idiom for feigning ignorance and cannot be used to describe actual crabs or seafood.
Grammar color guide
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Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
