kut3聒
Jyutpingkut3
Yalekut
Definition
Raucous, clamorous, or unpleasantly noisy.
colloquialdescriptions
How it's used
Used primarily to describe sounds that are not just loud, but specifically irritating or intrusive to the listener. It often implies a sense of mental disturbance or annoyance caused by the noise, rather than just the decibel level itself. While it can describe machines or construction, it is frequently applied to people talking incessantly or in a shrill manner.
Examples
You guys are talking so loudly and annoyingly, can you be quiet?
The neighbors are renovating and it is so noisy that I cannot sleep.
Related words
Common phrases
grating to the ears
noisy and annoying
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 嘈, which is the more general and common word for noisy. 聒 carries a stronger nuance of being grating or persistent, making it sound more descriptive and slightly more literary than the everyday 嘈.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- LocationHow to say where something is using 喺 (hai2), place words like 度, and the common coverbs that work like English prepositions.
- Serial verbsStringing two or more verbs together without any joining word, like go to the shop buy things. Extremely common in Cantonese.
- 將 disposalHow to move the object in front of the verb with 將, to focus on what happens to it. Common in instructions and writing.
