hoi1 mun4 gin3 saan1開門見山开门见山
Jyutpinghoi1 mun4 gin3 saan1
Yalehōi mùhn gin sāan
Definition
To get straight to the point and speak directly without beating around the bush.
colloquialcommunicationwork
How it's used
Used primarily in professional or formal settings where efficiency is valued over social niceties. It carries a sense of urgency or impatience, suggesting that the speaker wants to avoid wasting time on pleasantries. While it is a four character idiom, it is fully integrated into spoken Cantonese and does not sound overly literary or pretentious.
Examples
We don't have much time, let's just cut to the chase and talk about the main points.
His report gets straight to the point, you can tell what he wants as soon as you look at it.
Related words
Common phrases
to speak in a straightforward manner
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 講重點, which is a neutral way to ask for the main point. Using 開門見山 can sound slightly aggressive or demanding if the context is not appropriate for such directness.
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.
