hau2 tau4口頭口头
Jyutpinghau2 tau4
Yaleháu tàuh
Definition
Oral or verbal; communicated by speaking rather than writing.
neutralcommunication
How it's used
Focuses on communication that happens through speech rather than written records. It is frequently used in formal or legalistic contexts to highlight the lack of a written contract or evidence. While it describes the mode of delivery, it often implies that the information might be less reliable or binding than something written down.
Examples
He only gave me a verbal promise.
Do you need to notify him verbally about this?
Related words
Common mistake
Learners sometimes confuse this with 講嘢, but 口頭 is a modifier used to describe a type of communication, whereas 講嘢 is the action of speaking itself. You cannot say 佢口頭我, you must use a noun like 承諾 or 警告 after it.
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.
