hai6係
Jyutpinghai6
Yalehaih
Definition
To be; indicating that the subject and object are the same concept.
Example
colloquialdescriptions
How it's used
Unlike the Mandarin equivalent, 係 never functions as a true verb meaning 'to exist' or 'to be located' in space; for those, Cantonese uses 喺. It is strictly for equational sentences where you equate a subject to a noun phrase or a category. It is also frequently used in question tags like 係咪 to confirm information.
Examples
He is my best friend.
Related words
Common mistake
Beginners often mistakenly use 係 to say 'I am at home' or 'The book is on the table', but this is incorrect. You must use 喺 to express location or presence.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- 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.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
