jau1 haan4休閒休闲
Jyutpingjau1 haan4
Yaleyāu hàahn
Definition
Leisurely and relaxed; unrelated to work and allowing one to rest.
neutraldaily actionsdescriptions
How it's used
Focuses on the state of being relaxed or the nature of activities done during free time. It often describes a lifestyle or a specific type of clothing that is casual rather than formal. Unlike 休息 which is a verb meaning to take a rest, this is an adjective describing a quality of time or an atmosphere.
Examples
I'm off today, I really want to spend the day in a leisurely way.
What kind of leisure activities do you like to do after work?
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 休息. While 休息 refers to the act of stopping work to recover energy, 休閒 describes the quality of an activity or a period of time that is free from pressure.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
