lou4癆痨
Jyutpinglou4
Yalelòuh
Definition
Tuberculosis or a consumptive disease.
colloquialhealth
How it's used
Historically, this term was widely used to describe tuberculosis, but it is now considered quite dated and carries a slightly derogatory or old-fashioned nuance. Modern medical contexts almost exclusively use 肺癆 or 肺結核. Using it to describe someone who looks sickly or thin is offensive and should be avoided in polite conversation.
Examples
He seems to have tuberculosis, he is coughing all the time.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not use this word to describe someone who is simply thin or weak, as it implies a serious, chronic, and historically stigmatized disease. It is not a casual synonym for being skinny.
Grammar color guide
Noun
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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).
