jyun4 gaai1沿街
Jyutpingjyun4 gaai1
Yaleyùhn gāai
Definition
Along the street; in the street.
neutralplacesdaily actions
How it's used
Focuses on the movement or positioning relative to the length of a street rather than a specific address. It often implies a continuous action or a series of objects found while walking down a road. Unlike the Mandarin usage which can sound quite formal, in Cantonese it is used to describe the physical act of moving alongside a street or finding things scattered throughout a path.
Examples
He got very tired from handing out flyers along the street.
Related words
Common phrases
hawking goods along the street
shops along the street
Common mistake
Avoid using this to mean 'on the street' when referring to a specific location or a stationary object, as it specifically implies following the path of the street. For stationary objects, it is more natural to use 街邊 or 街上.
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.
