gei1姬
Jyutpinggei1
Yalegēi
Definition
Woman; beautiful woman; concubine.
writtenpeople
How it's used
This character is almost exclusively found in historical or literary contexts referring to women in royal or wealthy households. It is not used in modern speech to refer to women in general, as that would sound archaic or confusing. It appears most frequently in compound words like 姬妾 or 歌姬.
Examples
The lives of concubines in ancient times were very miserable.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often mistake this for a common noun for woman, but it is a bound morpheme that only functions within specific historical or literary terms. Using it to describe a modern woman would be highly inappropriate and bizarre.
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.
