daa2 maa4 zoeng3打麻將打麻将

Jyutpingdaa2 maa4 zoeng3

Yaledá màh jeung

Definition

To play mahjong.

colloquialdaily actionsfestival

How it's used

Mahjong is a deeply ingrained social activity in Hong Kong culture, often serving as a bonding ritual during festivals like Lunar New Year. While the term is a verb phrase, it functions as a single unit of action that implies a long, multi-round session rather than a quick game. It is common to hear people refer to the act simply as 打牌 when the context of mahjong is already established.

Examples

gam1今maan5晚heoi3去m4唔heoi3去daa2打maa4麻zoeng3將aa4呀？

Are you going to play mahjong tonight?

keoi5佢dei6哋seng4成jat6日喺hai2屋uk1企kei2打daa2麻maa4將。

They play mahjong at home all the time.

Common phrases

daa2打tung1通siu1宵maa4麻zoeng3將

play mahjong all night

goek3腳

a player needed to complete a set of four

Common mistake

Avoid using the Mandarin structure of placing the object directly after the verb if you want to add a duration or frequency, as Cantonese speakers prefer to repeat the verb or use a specific structure like 打咗幾圈麻將 instead of just saying 打麻將咗.