can1 sau2親手亲手
Jyutpingcan1 sau2
Yalechān sáu
Definition
Personally; with one's own hands.
colloquialdaily actions
How it's used
Emphasizes the physical act of doing something yourself rather than delegating it to others. It carries a sense of sincerity or personal effort, often used when talking about gifts, cooking, or crafts. It is rarely used for abstract tasks like writing an email or making a phone call.
Examples
I made this gift with my own hands.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 自己, which simply means self. 親手 specifically highlights the manual labor or the personal touch involved in the action.
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.
