haam4 mei6鹹味咸味
Jyutpinghaam4 mei6
Yalehàahm meih
Definition
Salty or saline taste.
colloquialfooddescriptions
How it's used
Focuses specifically on the sensory quality of saltiness rather than the act of seasoning. It is frequently used to describe an unexpected or overwhelming presence of salt in food. When describing a dish that is simply too salty, people often prefer using the adjective 鹹 instead of the noun phrase.
Examples
Related words
Common mistake
Avoid using this to describe savory flavors in general, as it specifically refers to saltiness. For savory flavors like umami, Cantonese speakers use terms like 鮮味 instead.
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.
