loeng5 gung1 po4 gin3 gwai2兩公婆見鬼两公婆见鬼

Jyutpingloeng5 gung1 po4 gin3 gwai2

Yaleléuhng gūng pòh gin gwái

Definition

A two-part allegorical saying meaning that one of the two people involved must be responsible or true.

colloquialpeopleother

How it's used

This is a classic Cantonese xiehouyu, or two-part allegorical saying, where the second part is often implied as 唔係你就係我. It is used to narrow down responsibility to two specific people when something goes wrong. The imagery of a couple seeing a ghost suggests a shared, private experience that only the two involved parties can account for.

Examples

le1呢gin2件si6事jat1一ding6定hai6係loeng5兩gung1公po2婆gin3見gwai2鬼，m4唔hai6係nei5你zau6就hai6係ngo5我。

This matter must be one of us, either you or me.

gau3究ging2竟bin1邊go3個zing2整laan6爛zo2咗bou6部gei1機？loeng5兩gung1公po2婆gin3見gwai2鬼aa4呀？

Who exactly broke the machine? Is it one of us?

Common phrases

m4唔hai6係nei5你zau6就hai6係ngo5我

either it is you or it is me

Common mistake

Learners often try to use this literally to describe a couple seeing a ghost, but it is strictly used as an idiom for assigning blame between two people. Do not use it in a context involving more than two individuals.