cung1 daai6 baan1充大班
Jyutpingcung1 daai6 baan1
Yalechūng daaih bāan
Definition
To pretend to be rich or powerful.
colloquialpeoplemoney
How it's used
This term carries a strong sense of disapproval, implying that the person is insecure or desperate for social status. It is frequently used to describe someone who spends beyond their means to impress others. The pun involving 石斑 and 石狗公 is a classic example of Hong Kong wordplay, where the cheap fish is disguised as the expensive one to fool the observer.
Examples
He always pretends to be rich, but he only has a few hundred dollars in his account.
Don't try to act like a big shot, we're all friends, why act like that?
Related words
Common phrases
to go broke from trying to act like a big shot
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with simply being generous or wealthy. It specifically refers to the act of faking status, so using it to describe someone who is genuinely rich would be incorrect and confusing.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
