hot3 seoi2喝水
Jyutpinghot3 seoi2
Yalehot séui
Definition
To drink water.
colloquialdrinkdaily actions
How it's used
Cantonese speakers almost exclusively use 飲水 instead of 喝水 in daily life. While 喝水 is understood, it sounds formal or literary, often appearing in written texts or news reports. Using 飲水 makes your speech sound natural and local.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often use 喝 because it is the standard term in Mandarin, but using it in casual Cantonese conversation will make you sound like you are reading from a textbook.
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.
