dak1 leot6 fung1德律風德律风
Jyutpingdak1 leot6 fung1
Yaledāk leuht fūng
Definition
Telephone; a transliteration of the English word.
datedtechnologycommunication
How it's used
This term is a direct phonetic loan from the English word telephone, popularised in the early 20th century. It is now considered highly dated and is rarely used in modern speech, having been almost entirely replaced by the more common term 電話. Using it today often carries a nostalgic or deliberately old-fashioned tone.
Measure word
bou6部bouhExamples
People in the past really liked calling telephones 'telefun'.
Do you still have that old-fashioned telephone at home?
Related words
Common phrases
to make a phone call
Common mistake
Do not use this in modern business or casual contexts as it will sound extremely archaic or confusing to younger speakers. It is strictly a historical term.
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.
