hung4 luk6 dang1紅綠燈红绿灯

Jyutpinghung4 luk6 dang1

Yalehùngh lukh dāng

Definition

Traffic light

ngo5 hai2 hung4 luk6 dang1 dang2 nei5

我喺紅綠燈等你。

我喺红绿灯等你。

ngóh hái hùngh lukh dāng dáng néih

I'll wait for you at the traffic light.

colloquialtransportdaily actions

How it's used

Native speakers almost exclusively use this term to refer to pedestrian signals, even though it literally translates to red and green lights. While 交通燈 is the more formal or general term for all traffic signals including those for vehicles, 紅綠燈 is the go to word for anyone walking on the street. It is common to pair this with the verb 睇 to emphasize the act of checking the signal before stepping off the curb.

Measure word

zaan2盞ján

Examples

gwo3 maa5 lou6 gei3 dak1 jiu3 tai2 hung4 luk6 dang1 aa4

過馬路記得要睇紅綠燈呀。

Remember to look at the traffic lights when crossing the road.

cin4 min6 go2 go3 hung4 luk6 dang1 waai6 zo2 siu2 sam1 di1 aa4

前面嗰個紅綠燈壞咗，小心啲呀。

The traffic light ahead is broken, be careful.

Common phrases

tai2 hung4 luk6 dang1

睇紅綠燈

to look at the traffic lights

dang2 hung4 luk6 dang1

等紅綠燈

to wait for the traffic lights

Common mistake

Learners sometimes confuse this with the formal term 交通燈, which is used for vehicle signals. Using 交通燈 for a pedestrian crossing is not wrong, but it sounds slightly less natural in casual conversation.