san1辛

Jyutpingsan1

Yalesān

語素Common

Definition

Spicy or hot; also hard, laborious, and suffering.

spicy; hot in taste
hard; laborious; suffering; bitter

colloquialfooddescriptions

How it's used

While 辛 technically means spicy, it is almost exclusively used in compound words like 辛辣 or 艱辛 in modern Cantonese. When describing the actual taste of food, native speakers almost always use 辣 instead. Using 辛 on its own to describe a dish will sound archaic or overly literary to most people.

Examples

ni1呢dip2碟sung3餸hou2好san1辛，ngo5我sik6食m4唔lok6落aa3呀。

This dish is too spicy, I cannot eat it.

nei5你zung1鍾m4唔zung1鍾ji3意sik6食san1辛laat6辣ge2嘅je5嘢sik6食㗎？

Do you like eating spicy food?

Common phrases

san1辛laat6辣

spicy and pungent

gaan1艱san1辛

arduous or difficult

Common mistake

Do not confuse 辛 with 辣 when talking about food. 辣 is the standard, everyday word for spicy, whereas 辛 is usually reserved for formal contexts or when referring to the sensation of bitterness and hardship.