ngaang2 hai6硬係硬系
Jyutpingngaang2 hai6
Yalengáang haih
Definition
Always or persistently acting against the wishes of others or oneself; obstinately.
colloquialdescriptionsemotion
How it's used
This adverb captures a sense of stubbornness or defiance against common sense or advice. It implies that the subject is acting against the grain of what is expected or desired by others. It is frequently used to express frustration with someone's persistent, annoying, or irrational behavior.
Examples
He insists on buying this shirt, even though it clearly doesn't fit.
Why do you insist on saying these things at this moment?
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with the adjective 硬, which means hard or stiff. While it contains the character for hard, it functions purely as an adverbial intensifier for stubborn actions and cannot be used to describe physical hardness.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- QuestionsFrom yes or no questions to asking who, what, where, and when. The patterns you need to ask questions naturally in Cantonese.
- ClassifiersCantonese puts a classifier between a number and a noun, and a bare classifier on its own can mean the. Learn the common ones and how to use them.
- ComparisonsHow to say bigger than, the most, the same as, and not as good as. Cantonese uses 過 where Mandarin uses 比, and that catches a lot of learners out.
