cai1 lai6淒厲凄厉
Jyutpingcai1 lai6
Yalechāi laih
Definition
Screaming, shrieking, or wailing in a sad, miserable, and piercingly loud manner.
colloquialdescriptionsemotion
How it's used
Focuses specifically on high pitched, piercing sounds that evoke a sense of deep sorrow or horror. It is frequently used to describe the cries of animals or the wailing of people in extreme distress, rather than just general sadness. The term carries an intense, almost unsettling quality that makes the listener feel uneasy.
Examples
Hearing that miserable, piercing cat cry in the middle of the night scared me to death.
She let out a miserable, piercing scream and then fainted.
Related words
Common phrases
a miserable, piercing scream
a miserable, piercing cry
Common mistake
Do not use this to describe a person who is simply sad or crying quietly. It requires the sound to be loud, sharp, and piercing enough to be physically jarring to the listener.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Aspect markersCantonese has no tenses, but it does have aspect markers. Learn how zo2, gwo3, gan2, and hai2 dou6 show completion, experience, and ongoing action.
- 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.
