hoi6 sau1害羞
Jyutpinghoi6 sau1
Yalehoih sāu
Definition
Shy or bashful; feeling nervous and uneasy around other people, especially strangers.
colloquialemotionpeople
How it's used
While 害羞 is understood in Cantonese, it is considered a formal or written term. In everyday spoken Cantonese, the word 怕醜 is used almost exclusively to describe someone who is shy or bashful. Using 害羞 in casual conversation can sound slightly stiff or like you are reading from a textbook.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often use 害羞 because it matches the Mandarin term, but it sounds unnatural in casual speech. Stick to 怕醜 to sound like a local.
Grammar color guide
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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.
