gei1 lei5 baa1 si1基里巴斯
Jyutpinggei1 lei5 baa1 si1
Yalegēi léih bā sī
Definition
Kiribati, an island nation in the Pacific Ocean and a former British colony.
neutralplaces
How it's used
Geographical names in Cantonese often follow the English pronunciation closely, though they are adapted to fit the syllable structure of the language. When discussing island nations in the Pacific, speakers frequently add the classifier 個 or 國家 to clarify the context. It is treated as a proper noun and does not typically take a measure word on its own.
Examples
Kiribati is a Pacific island nation.
Do you know where Kiribati is?
Related words
Common phrases
Republic of Kiribati
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.
