gaan1 zaa3奸詐奸诈
Jyutpinggaan1 zaa3
Yalegāan ja
Definition
Crafty, deceitful, or fraudulent.
colloquialpeopledescriptions
How it's used
Focuses on the moral character of someone who uses underhanded tactics to gain an advantage. It carries a strong negative connotation and is often used to warn others about a person's untrustworthy nature. Unlike more neutral terms for being smart or clever, this specifically implies a lack of integrity.
Examples
He is very crafty and always thinks of ways to cheat people out of money.
You must not trust him, he is incredibly crafty.
Related words
Common phrases
a crafty and despicable person
crafty tactics
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 聰明, which is a positive term for intelligence. Using this to describe someone who is simply quick-witted will sound like a serious insult.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
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Classifier
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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).
