sik6 zo2食咗

Jyutpingsik6 zo2

Yalesihk jó

Definition

Have eaten

colloquialfooddaily actions

How it's used

The particle 咗 indicates the completion of an action, functioning similarly to the perfective aspect in other languages. It is frequently used in casual greetings to check if someone has had their meal, which is a common way to show care or start a conversation in Hong Kong. Unlike Mandarin, where 了 can sometimes be placed at the end of a sentence for a change of state, 咗 is almost always placed immediately after the verb.

Examples

nei5你sik6食zo2咗faan6飯mei6未aa1呀？

Have you eaten yet?

ngo5我tau4頭sin1先sik6食zo2咗go3個。

I ate a piece of bread earlier.

Common phrases

sik6食zo2咗faan6飯

have eaten a meal

sik6食zo2咗joek6藥

have taken medicine

Common mistake

Learners often mistakenly use 咗 to describe future events or general habits. It strictly marks an action that has already concluded, so it cannot be used to say 'I will eat' or 'I eat every day'.