fiu3覅
Jyutpingfiu3
Yalefiu
Definition
Do not; used to express prohibition or advice against an action.
colloquialcommunication
How it's used
This term is a contraction of 唔要, functioning as a negative imperative. It is primarily used in specific regional dialects and is considered highly colloquial or even archaic in standard Hong Kong Cantonese, where 唔好 is the overwhelmingly preferred choice for expressing prohibition or advice against an action.
Examples
Don't speak so loudly.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often mistake this for a standard Cantonese word, but it is rarely heard in modern Hong Kong speech and may sound unnatural or overly literary to native speakers. Using 唔好 is always the safer and more natural choice.
Grammar color guide
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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.
