saang1生
Jyutpingsaang1
Yalesāang
Definition
Raw, uncooked, or unheated food.
colloquialfooddescriptions
How it's used
Beyond describing uncooked food, this word often implies a lack of familiarity or experience when applied to people or skills. It carries a sense of being unrefined or not yet fully developed. In the context of meat or seafood, it is the standard way to distinguish between raw and cooked items.
Examples
This sashimi is very fresh.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with the Mandarin usage where it can mean to give birth or a student. In Cantonese, use 生仔 for giving birth and 學生 for a student.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
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).
