fai3沸
Jyutpingfai3
Yalefai
Definition
Boiling; the state of a liquid being heated to vaporization.
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How it's used
Used primarily in scientific or formal contexts like 沸點 to describe the physical state of boiling. In everyday spoken Cantonese, people almost exclusively use 滾 to describe water that has reached its boiling point. You will rarely hear a native speaker use 沸 as a standalone verb in casual conversation.
Examples
The water is boiling, be careful not to get burned.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not use 沸 in casual speech to describe boiling water, as it sounds overly formal or academic. Use 滾 instead to sound natural.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Aspect markersCantonese has no tenses, but it does have aspect markers. Learn how zo2, gwo3, gan2, and hai2 dou6 show completion, experience, and ongoing action.
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
