seoi2 zung1水中
Jyutpingseoi2 zung1
Yaleséui jūng
Definition
In the water; underwater.
writtennature
How it's used
Refers specifically to the state of being submerged or located within a body of water. It is a formal or literary construction that is rarely used in casual spoken Cantonese, where people prefer using 喺水入面 instead. Using it in daily speech can make you sound like you are reading from a textbook or a documentary script.
Examples
Have you ever seen creatures in the water?
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often use it as a direct translation of 'in water' for all contexts, but it sounds unnatural when describing everyday situations like washing hands or drinking water. Stick to 喺水入面 for natural conversation.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- LocationHow to say where something is using 喺 (hai2), place words like 度, and the common coverbs that work like English prepositions.
- Serial verbsStringing two or more verbs together without any joining word, like go to the shop buy things. Extremely common in Cantonese.
- 將 disposalHow to move the object in front of the verb with 將, to focus on what happens to it. Common in instructions and writing.
