hap1恰
Jyutpinghap1
Yalehāp
Definition
To bully or take advantage of the weak.
colloquialpeopleemotion
How it's used
Often used interchangeably with 蝦 in spoken Cantonese, though 恰 carries a slightly more deliberate nuance of taking advantage of someone perceived as weak. It is frequently paired with adjectives like 好 to describe someone with a pushover personality. You will hear it most often in casual arguments or when discussing unfair treatment among peers.
Examples
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse 恰 with the Mandarin word 恰, which means to eat or to happen to. In Cantonese, 恰 is strictly used for bullying, so do not use it to mean 'to eat' or 'just right'.
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).
