hei2 gai1 pei4起雞皮起鸡皮
Jyutpinghei2 gai1 pei4
Yalehéi gāi pèih
Definition
To get goosebumps, either from being cold or from hearing something cringey or cheesy.
- to get goosebumps from being cold
- figurativeto get goosebumps or feel cringed out by sappy, cheesy, or corny words
colloquialbodyemotion
How it's used
Beyond the literal physical reaction to cold, this phrase is frequently used to describe a visceral reaction to something cringeworthy or overly sentimental. It functions similarly to the English expression "to get the creeps" or "to have one's skin crawl" when someone says something awkward or embarrassing. Using the particle 晒 emphasizes that the goosebumps have appeared all over the body.
Examples
I got goosebumps immediately after hearing him say such cheesy things.
The air conditioning is so strong here, are you getting goosebumps from the cold?
Related words
Common phrases
to be covered in goosebumps
to get goosebumps from the cold
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with the Mandarin term 雞皮疙瘩, which is not used in spoken Cantonese. Stick to the shorter, more idiomatic 起雞皮 to sound natural.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
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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).
