gam1 muk6 seoi2 fo2 tou2金木水火土
Jyutpinggam1 muk6 seoi2 fo2 tou2
Yalegām muhk séui fó tóu
Definition
The five elements in Classical Chinese philosophy: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
colloquialother
How it's used
People often refer to this concept collectively as 五行 when discussing fortune telling or traditional medicine. It serves as a foundational framework for understanding balance in the universe, and you will frequently hear it mentioned when someone is analyzing their birth chart or health conditions.
Examples
Do you know how the five elements are ordered?
The fortune teller said my name is missing the water element.
Related words
Common phrases
the five elements and the eight trigrams
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- QuestionsFrom yes or no questions to asking who, what, where, and when. The patterns you need to ask questions naturally in Cantonese.
- ClassifiersCantonese puts a classifier between a number and a noun, and a bare classifier on its own can mean the. Learn the common ones and how to use them.
- ComparisonsHow to say bigger than, the most, the same as, and not as good as. Cantonese uses 過 where Mandarin uses 比, and that catches a lot of learners out.
