bou6 dung6暴動暴动
Jyutpingbou6 dung6
Yalebouh duhng
Definition
Riot; insurrection; a violent and disorderly public uprising.
neutralother
How it's used
This term carries a heavy political and legal weight, often used in news reports or formal discussions about public unrest. Unlike everyday words for chaos like 混亂, it specifically implies organized or semi-organized collective violence against established authority. It is rarely used in casual lighthearted conversation unless one is making a hyperbolic joke about extreme social dissatisfaction.
Examples
A riot broke out back then, and the whole street was blocked off.
Do you think doing it this way will trigger a riot?
Related words
Common mistake
Learners sometimes confuse this with general protest terms like 示威. While 示威 refers to a demonstration or protest which can be peaceful, 暴動 strictly denotes violent, illegal, and destructive activity.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
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Grammar guides
- QuestionsFrom yes or no questions to asking who, what, where, and when. The patterns you need to ask questions naturally in Cantonese.
- ClassifiersCantonese puts a classifier between a number and a noun, and a bare classifier on its own can mean the. Learn the common ones and how to use them.
- ComparisonsHow to say bigger than, the most, the same as, and not as good as. Cantonese uses 過 where Mandarin uses 比, and that catches a lot of learners out.
