gu1 lei5咕哩
Jyutpinggu1 lei5
Yalegū léih
Definition
Coolie; a low-status unskilled laborer who performs heavy physical work.
colloquialpeoplework
How it's used
Historically referring to manual laborers, this term now carries a strong sense of being exploited or treated like a servant. It is frequently used in a self-deprecating or sarcastic way to complain about being assigned menial, repetitive, or physically demanding tasks that one feels are beneath their status. Using it to describe someone else can sound derogatory or classist.
Measure word
go3個goExamples
Coolies in the past had a very hard life, having to move cargo every day.
Related words
Common mistake
Avoid using this term to describe modern professional manual workers, as it carries a heavy historical stigma and can be highly offensive. It is strictly reserved for informal, often frustrated, complaints about one's own workload.
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.
