dit3 gaau1跌跤
Jyutpingdit3 gaau1
Yaledit gāau
Definition
To stumble or trip; to lose one's balance while walking or running.
colloquialdaily actionsbody
How it's used
Focus on the physical act of losing balance rather than the final state of being on the ground. While 跌低 implies the person has successfully landed on the floor, 跌跤 captures the moment of stumbling or losing one's footing. It is frequently used to describe a near miss where someone recovers their balance just in time.
Examples
He was careless walking and almost tripped.
Did you just trip?
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 跌倒, which is a more formal or written term that implies actually hitting the ground. Using 跌跤 in a formal report or written essay would sound out of place as it is strictly a colloquial expression.
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.



