gau3 wun4救援
Jyutpinggau3 wun4
Yalegau wùhn
Definition
Rescue; the entire process of saving someone from a disaster or dangerous situation.
neutralother
How it's used
This term is primarily used in formal, institutional, or news contexts rather than casual daily conversation. When discussing helping someone in a personal or minor situation, speakers prefer using 救 or 幫手.
Examples
The firefighters went to the scene immediately to carry out rescue operations.
An earthquake happened there, have the rescue operations started yet?
Related words
Common mistake
Avoid using this word to describe helping a friend with a small task, as it implies a serious, large scale emergency or official operation.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
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.
