sai3 sam2細嬸细婶
Jyutpingsai3 sam2
Yalesai sám
Definition
The wife of one's husband's younger brother.
colloquialfamilypeople
How it's used
Kinship terms in Cantonese are highly specific and reflect the hierarchical nature of traditional family structures. While English speakers might use the generic term aunt to cover many different relatives, Cantonese distinguishes between the wife of an older brother, 伯娘, and the wife of a younger brother, 細嬸. Using the wrong term can be seen as disrespectful or confusing, as it signals your relative position within the family tree.
Measure word
go3個goExamples
My husband's younger brother's wife is coming to my house for dinner today.
Your aunt bought a gift for you.
Related words
Common phrases
to address someone as aunt
Common mistake
Learners often mistakenly use 阿姨, which refers specifically to a mother's sister, or 姑姐, which refers to a father's sister. These are blood relatives, whereas 細嬸 is an affinal relative by marriage.
Grammar color guide
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Verb
Adjective
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Pronoun
Classifier
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Connector
Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
