jyu4予
Jyutpingjyu4
Yaleyùh
Definition
First-person pronoun; I or me.
writtenpeople
How it's used
This pronoun is strictly literary and archaic in nature. It is never used in spoken Cantonese, where the standard pronoun is 我. You will only encounter this in classical Chinese texts, formal written poetry, or when someone is intentionally adopting a highly pretentious or ancient persona.
Examples
I also do not know what to do.
I am very tired today.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners should avoid using this in any modern communication, as it sounds bizarrely out of place. It is not a dialectal variant of 我 but a classical pronoun that has been entirely replaced in the spoken language.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- QuestionsFrom yes or no questions to asking who, what, where, and when. The patterns you need to ask questions naturally in Cantonese.
- ClassifiersCantonese puts a classifier between a number and a noun, and a bare classifier on its own can mean the. Learn the common ones and how to use them.
- ComparisonsHow to say bigger than, the most, the same as, and not as good as. Cantonese uses 過 where Mandarin uses 比, and that catches a lot of learners out.
