sit3 siu3竊笑窃笑
Jyutpingsit3 siu3
Yalesit siu
Definition
To laugh secretly or to snicker; to laugh quietly and suppressedly, often with amusement or schadenfreude.
colloquialemotionpeople
How it's used
Carries a distinct sense of malice or secret satisfaction, often implying that the person is laughing at someone else's misfortune. While it is a verb, it is frequently used in a continuous aspect with 喺度 to describe the act of sniggering as it happens. It sounds slightly more formal or literary than simply saying 偷笑.
Examples
He was sniggering when he saw someone else fall over.
Why are you sniggering over there?
Related words
Common phrases
to snigger to oneself
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 偷笑, which is more common in daily speech. 竊笑 is specifically used when the laughter is mean-spirited or mocking, whereas 偷笑 can sometimes just mean laughing secretly to oneself without necessarily being malicious.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- QuestionsFrom yes or no questions to asking who, what, where, and when. The patterns you need to ask questions naturally in Cantonese.
- ClassifiersCantonese puts a classifier between a number and a noun, and a bare classifier on its own can mean the. Learn the common ones and how to use them.
- ComparisonsHow to say bigger than, the most, the same as, and not as good as. Cantonese uses 過 where Mandarin uses 比, and that catches a lot of learners out.
