cai1 caam2悽慘凄惨
Jyutpingcai1 caam2
Yalechāi cháam
Definition
Miserable, tragic, and deeply saddening.
colloquialemotionpeople
How it's used
Focuses on the emotional weight of a situation or life story rather than just physical discomfort. It is often used to describe someone's life path or a tragic turn of events that evokes deep sympathy from the observer. While it can describe a person, it is more commonly applied to their circumstances or fate.
Examples
Seeing how miserable they are, I don't know how to help.
Why is their experience so miserable?
Related words
Common mistake
Avoid using this to describe minor inconveniences or temporary bad luck, as it implies a level of tragedy or profound suffering that feels heavy and serious.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- LocationHow to say where something is using 喺 (hai2), place words like 度, and the common coverbs that work like English prepositions.
- Serial verbsStringing two or more verbs together without any joining word, like go to the shop buy things. Extremely common in Cantonese.
- 將 disposalHow to move the object in front of the verb with 將, to focus on what happens to it. Common in instructions and writing.
