sam1 gap1心急
Jyutpingsam1 gap1
Yalesām gāp
Definition
Impatient; anxious to achieve a goal quickly and unwilling to wait.
colloquialemotiondescriptions
How it's used
Focuses on the internal feeling of restlessness or anxiety when one wants a result to happen immediately. It is often used to describe someone who is rushing a process or unable to wait for a natural conclusion. It carries a slightly negative connotation of being unable to maintain composure under pressure.
Examples
Don't be so impatient, take your time.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 緊張, which refers to being nervous or tense due to fear or pressure. 心急 is specifically about the desire for speed or the frustration of waiting, whereas 緊張 is about the emotional state of being worried or stressed.
Grammar color guide
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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.
