be1 paai4啤牌

Jyutpingbe1 paai4

Yalebē pàaih

Uncommon

Definition

Playing cards; poker cards.

colloquialother

How it's used

Refers specifically to the standard 52 card deck used in Western games. While it can refer to the game of poker itself, it is most commonly used as a general term for any deck of playing cards regardless of the specific game being played. It is distinct from traditional Chinese card games like 牌九 or 麻雀.

Measure word

fu3副fu

Examples

nei5你uk1屋kei2企jau5有mou5冇pe1啤paai2牌wun6玩aa4呀？

Do you have any playing cards at home to play with?

ngo5我dei6哋gam1今maan5晚ling1拎fu3副pe1啤paai2牌ceot1出lai4嚟wun6玩laa1啦。

Let's take out a deck of cards and play tonight.

Common phrases

daa4打bi1啤paai2牌

to play cards

jat1一fu3副pe1啤paai2牌

a deck of cards

Common mistake

Do not confuse this with the English loanword 啤, which is often used in Cantonese to mean beer. The context of playing or holding cards will clarify that you are talking about cards rather than a drink.