kat1咳
Jyutpingkat1
Yalekāt
Definition
To cough, or a cough.
- to cough
- a cough
colloquialhealthbody
How it's used
While 咳嗽 is the formal term used in medical contexts or writing, 咳 is the standard way to refer to the action or the symptom in daily speech. It functions flexibly as both a noun and a verb without needing any morphological change. When describing the sound of a cough, speakers often use the classifier 聲 to quantify it.
Examples
How long have you been coughing?
Their throat is uncomfortable, and they are coughing very severely.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse the verb 咳 with the sound-effect word 咳咳, which is used to clear one's throat or to get someone's attention. Using 咳咳 in a sentence to describe a medical symptom will sound like you are physically making the sound rather than describing a condition.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Aspect markersCantonese has no tenses, but it does have aspect markers. Learn how zo2, gwo3, gan2, and hai2 dou6 show completion, experience, and ongoing action.
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
