lou4 man4 soeng1 coi4勞民傷財劳民伤财
Jyutpinglou4 man4 soeng1 coi4
Yalelòuh màhn sēung chòih
Definition
To waste money and manpower; describing policy decisions that squander human and financial resources.
colloquialworkmoney
How it's used
Carries a strong critical tone, often used to condemn government projects or corporate initiatives that seem unnecessarily elaborate or inefficient. It implies that the effort expended is disproportionate to the actual benefit gained, making it a common choice for expressing public frustration.
Examples
Organizing this event is a real waste of money and manpower, better save the money.
Do you think this plan is a waste of money and manpower?
Related words
Common phrases
simply a waste of money and manpower
a project that wastes money and manpower
Common mistake
Often mistaken for a simple statement of expense, but it specifically highlights the dual waste of both human labor and financial resources, so it sounds overly dramatic if used for minor personal spending.
Grammar color guide
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Grammar guides
- 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.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
