ciu4 fu1樵夫
Jyutpingciu4 fu1
Yalechìuh fū
Definition
Woodcutter; a person who cuts down trees and gathers firewood.
neutralpeopleother
How it's used
This term is almost exclusively encountered in traditional folktales, fables, or historical dramas. It carries a strong literary or archaic flavor, as the occupation of gathering firewood for a living is largely obsolete in modern urban Hong Kong. Using it in daily conversation to describe someone who works with wood or trees would sound very strange or overly dramatic.
Measure word
go3個goExamples
There used to be a woodcutter chopping wood on the mountain.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with modern professions like 伐木工人, which refers to a professional logger or lumberjack who uses modern machinery. 樵夫 specifically evokes the image of a person from a pre-industrial era carrying a bundle of sticks on their back.
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.
