fong3 se4放蛇
Definition
To conduct a sting operation, particularly by undercover police officers.
How it's used
Originally referring to the practice of releasing a snake into a house to flush out pests, this term has been fully adopted into legal and journalistic contexts to describe police sting operations. It specifically implies an active attempt to lure a suspect into committing a crime in front of undercover officers. While it is common in news reports, it remains a vivid, colloquial metaphor rather than a formal legal term.
Examples
Related words
Common phrases
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with literal snake handling, as the context of police work is almost always implied. Learners should also avoid using it to describe general undercover surveillance, as it specifically requires the element of entrapment or a trap set to catch someone in the act.
Grammar color guide
Grammar guides
- 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.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
