jan4人
Jyutpingjan4
Yaleyàhn
Definition
Human being; person; people.
colloquialpeople
How it's used
When referring to a person in a specific role or nationality, it is common to place the descriptor directly before this word. It is also frequently used in the possessive sense to mean someone else, as in 唔好攞人啲嘢, which means do not take other people's things.
Measure word
go3個goExamples
There are many people queuing up for food here.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 啲人, which specifically refers to a group of people or 'those people' in a more generalized or sometimes dismissive way. Using 人 alone is neutral, whereas adding 啲 often adds a layer of distance or collective focus.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
