mei6昧

Jyutpingmei6

Yalemeih

Rare

Definition

Dim, dark, or obscure; also meaning muddled or ignorant.

dim; dark; obscure
muddled; confused; ignorant

writtendescriptionsother

How it's used

Used almost exclusively as a bound morpheme in modern Cantonese, appearing most prominently in the compound 曖昧. It carries a sense of being obscured, dim, or morally clouded. While it can imply a lack of clarity in a situation, it is rarely used as a standalone verb or adjective in daily speech.

Examples

keoi5佢dei6哋loeng5兩go3個gwaan1關hai6係hou2好oi2曖mui6昧aa4呀。

The relationship between the two of them is very ambiguous.

nei5你m4唔hou2好zoi3再baan6扮mung2懵baan3扮mui6昧laa3喇。

Stop playing dumb and acting like you don't know what's going on.

Common phrases

oi2曖mui6昧

ambiguous or flirtatious

against one's conscience

Common mistake

Learners often mistake it for a standalone word, but it is effectively a morpheme that requires a partner to form a complete concept. Do not attempt to use it to describe a dark room or a dim light, as other terms like 昏暗 or 烏燈黑火 are far more natural for those contexts.