cai1 sat1妻室
Jyutpingcai1 sat1
Yalechāi sāt
Definition
Wife; a polite or literary term for a spouse.
writtenfamilypeople
How it's used
This term is formal and literary, often carrying a slightly old-fashioned or traditional tone. It is rarely used in casual daily conversation to refer to one's own spouse, as people prefer colloquial terms like 老婆. It is most commonly encountered in written texts, period dramas, or when someone is speaking in a deliberately formal or slightly humorous, archaic manner.
Measure word
go3個goExamples
He is already married, stop looking for him.
When will you finally settle down and get a wife?
Related words
Common phrases
to have a wife
Common mistake
Do not use this in casual conversation as it sounds overly stiff or pretentious. It is strictly a noun referring to a wife and cannot be used as a verb or an adjective to describe the state of being married.
Grammar color guide
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Adjective
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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.
