ngou4 je6熬夜
Jyutpingngou4 je6
Yalengòuh yeh
Definition
To stay up late or work through the night despite feeling sleepy.
colloquialdaily actionswork
How it's used
Focuses specifically on the physical and mental toll of sacrificing sleep to complete a task. While it implies working through the night, it carries a stronger sense of suffering or endurance compared to simply staying up late. It is often used to express exhaustion or to complain about a heavy workload.
Examples
Why are you staying up all night again?
Related words
Common phrases
staying up all night to rush a project
staying up all night to study
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with the simple act of staying up late for entertainment, which is more naturally described as 唔瞓覺 or 遲瞓. 熬夜 implies a sense of obligation or struggle.
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.
