jau1呦
Jyutpingjau1
Yaleyāu
Definition
An exclamation of dismay, surprise, or physical pain, or the bleating sound of a deer.
- colloquialoh!; an exclamation of dismay, surprise, or pain
- literarythe bleating sound of a deer
colloquialparticle
How it's used
Functions as an interjection to express surprise, realization, or mild mockery. It is often used to signal that the speaker has just noticed something unexpected or has suddenly understood a situation. The tone can shift from genuine surprise to a sarcastic or teasing quality depending on the context.
Examples
Oh! Why are you here?
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with the Mandarin exclamation 喲, which is used much more frequently in daily speech. In Cantonese, 呦 is quite rare and often sounds like a deliberate imitation of Mandarin or a literary affectation, as native speakers typically use 咦 or 哎呀 for surprise.
Grammar color guide
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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).
