hoeng1 lei5 gwai2 gwai2鄉里鬼鬼乡里鬼鬼
Jyutpinghoeng1 lei5 gwai2 gwai2
Yalehēung léih gwái gwái
Definition
Fellow villager or fellow townsman.
colloquialpeopledescriptions
How it's used
Despite the literal meaning of fellow-villager, this term is almost exclusively used as a derogatory or mocking way to describe someone who seems unsophisticated, naive, or out of touch with modern city life. It carries a strong sense of condescension, implying that the person is behaving like a stereotypical rural outsider. It is rarely used to actually identify someone from the same hometown.
Examples
He acts like a total country bumpkin, as if he has never seen the world.
Don't act so unsophisticated, this is a big city.
Related words
Common phrases
always acting like a country bumpkin
Common mistake
Do not use this term to describe someone from your own hometown in a friendly or neutral way, as it will likely be perceived as an insult regarding their intelligence or social awareness.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- LocationHow to say where something is using 喺 (hai2), place words like 度, and the common coverbs that work like English prepositions.
- Serial verbsStringing two or more verbs together without any joining word, like go to the shop buy things. Extremely common in Cantonese.
- 將 disposalHow to move the object in front of the verb with 將, to focus on what happens to it. Common in instructions and writing.
