je5冶
Jyutpingje5
Yaleyéh
Definition
Seductively beautiful or garish; to smelt or mould metals.
- overly made-up, garish, or seductive
- technicalto smelt metal, heating it to purify and strengthen it
colloquialdescriptionspeople
How it's used
Primarily used in the compound 冶豔 to describe someone who is overly decorated or seductively dressed. It carries a negative connotation of being flashy or gaudy rather than elegant. While the character also refers to smelting metals, that usage is restricted to formal or technical contexts and is rarely encountered in daily speech.
Examples
She is dressed very seductively today.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 冶煉, which refers to the industrial process of smelting metal. Using 冶 to describe a person's appearance is quite specific to a provocative or over the top style and should not be used as a general compliment for someone who looks nice.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
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Classifier
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Grammar guides
- Aspect markersCantonese has no tenses, but it does have aspect markers. Learn how zo2, gwo3, gan2, and hai2 dou6 show completion, experience, and ongoing action.
- 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.
