caa1 koeng5 jan4 ji3差強人意差强人意
Jyutpingcaa1 koeng5 jan4 ji3
Yalechā kéuhng yàhn yi
Definition
Barely satisfactory; just barely acceptable.
writtendescriptions
How it's used
Despite the presence of the character 差, which often implies poor quality, this idiom describes something that is just good enough to pass or meet a minimum requirement. It is frequently misused by native speakers and learners alike to mean 'disappointing' or 'very poor'. Always remember that it represents a baseline of acceptability rather than a failure.
Examples
His exam results this time were only barely satisfactory.
Do you think the service quality at this restaurant is barely satisfactory?
Related words
Common phrases
performance is barely satisfactory
Common mistake
Many people mistakenly use this to mean 'disappointing' or 'bad'. If you want to say something is poor, use 差勁 instead.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
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.
