sat1 hung3失控
Jyutpingsat1 hung3
Yalesāt hung
Definition
To lose control; to run out of control.
colloquialdaily actionsemotion
How it's used
Often used to describe situations where something or someone deviates from a normal or expected path, whether it is a vehicle, a machine, or a person's emotional state. It carries a sense of suddenness or an inability to regain stability once the threshold is crossed. Unlike some more formal terms, it is frequently applied to both physical objects and abstract concepts like emotions or budgets.
Examples
The car suddenly went out of control, luckily it didn't hit anyone.
Common phrases
emotional breakdown
completely out of control
Common mistake
Learners sometimes confuse this with 唔受控制, but 失控 implies a transition from a state of control to a state of chaos, whereas 唔受控制 simply describes the state of being unmanageable.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
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.
