sau2 hau2 jyu4 ping4守口如瓶
Jyutpingsau2 hau2 jyu4 ping4
Yalesáu háu yùh pìhng
Definition
To be tight-lipped; to keep a secret and be extremely careful about what one says.
neutralcommunicationpeople
How it's used
This idiom carries a strong sense of deliberate secrecy and reliability. It is often used to praise someone for their loyalty or discretion when handling sensitive information. Unlike simply being quiet, it implies a conscious effort to keep a secret locked away.
Examples
You must keep this quiet and absolutely do not tell anyone.
He is tight-lipped about company secrets and won't say anything no matter how you ask.
Related words
Common phrases
to be tight-lipped about something
Common mistake
Learners often mistake this for a general description of someone who is shy or introverted. It specifically refers to keeping a secret or withholding information, not to a person's overall personality trait of being quiet.
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).
