gou1 lei6 taai3高利貸高利贷

Jyutpinggou1 lei6 taai3

Yalegōu leih taai

名詞

Definition

Usury; the practice of lending money at an extremely high interest rate.

neutralmoney

How it's used

While this term refers to the act of lending at exorbitant rates, it is often used in formal or news contexts to describe the practice itself. In daily speech, people almost always refer to the person doing the lending as 大耳窿 rather than using the formal term for the act. It carries a strong negative connotation and is associated with illegal or predatory financial activities.

Examples

keoi5佢ze3借zo2咗gou1高lei6利taai3貸，ji4而gaa1家hou2好daai6大wok6鑊。

He took out a high-interest loan and is in big trouble now.

nei5你cin1千kei4祈m4唔hou2好heoi3去ze3借gou1高lei6利taai3貸aa4呀。

You must never go and borrow money from loan sharks.

Common phrases

fong3放gou1高lei6利taai3貸

to engage in usury

ze3借gou1高lei6利taai3貸

to take out a high-interest loan

Common mistake

Do not use this term to describe a standard bank loan, even if the interest rate is high. It specifically implies predatory, often illegal, lending practices.