pin3 jin4 zek3 jyu5片言隻語片言只语
Jyutpingpin3 jin4 zek3 jyu5
Yalepin yìhn jek yúh
Definition
A few words; a brief or fragmentary utterance.
colloquialcommunicationdescriptions
How it's used
This idiom carries a slightly formal or literary tone despite being used in everyday speech to describe a lack of detail. It is often employed to express frustration when someone provides insufficient information or when a message is too brief to convey a complex situation. While it functions as a noun, it frequently appears in contexts where the speaker feels let down by the brevity of a communication.
Examples
His letter only had a few words, I can't see any main point.
You only gave me a few words, how do you expect me to help you?
Related words
Common phrases
only have a few words
only a few words remain
Common mistake
Learners often mistake this for a verb phrase, but it is strictly a noun phrase referring to the content itself. Avoid using it to describe the act of speaking briefly, as it specifically refers to the fragments of text or words provided.
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.
