maa5 hei3馬戲马戏
Jyutpingmaa5 hei3
Yalemáh hei
Definition
Circus; a performance featuring trained animals and acrobats.
colloquialpeople
How it's used
Refers specifically to the traditional performance style involving animal acts and acrobats, rather than modern theatrical productions. While the term literally translates to horse show, it is used broadly for any circus performance regardless of whether horses are featured. It is almost exclusively used in the context of attending a show as an audience member.
Measure word
coeng4場chèunghExamples
When I was small, my dad took me to see the circus.
Do you know where there is a circus to watch?
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with a general performance or show, which would be 表演. Using it to describe a regular stage play or a concert will sound confusing to native speakers.
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).
