sou3 ceoi4掃除扫除

Jyutpingsou3 ceoi4

Yalesou chèuih

動詞Rare

Definition

To clean up; to sweep and clean a place.

colloquialdaily actionshome

How it's used

While 掃除 is understood in Cantonese, it carries a slightly formal or literary tone compared to everyday verbs like 執屋 or 清潔. It is most frequently encountered in the compound 大掃除, which refers to the traditional deep cleaning of a home before the Lunar New Year. Using it in casual conversation to describe simple tidying can sound a bit stiff or overly dramatic.

Examples

gwo3過loeng5兩jat6日jiu3要daai6大sou3掃ceoi4除，hou2好攰gui6呀。

I have to do a deep clean in two days, it's so tiring.

nei5你bong1幫sau2手sou3掃ceoi4除haa6下gaan1間fong2房hou2好m4唔hou2好？

Could you help me clean up the room?

Related words

synonymcing1 git3清潔chīng gitsynonymzap1 uk1執屋jāp ūksee alsocaan2 ceoi4剷除chán chèuih

Common phrases

daai6大sou3掃ceoi4除

deep cleaning

Common mistake

Learners often confuse 掃除 with 剷除, which means to eradicate or wipe out something like weeds or a criminal gang. Using 掃除 to describe removing something negative or abstract can lead to confusion, as it is strictly associated with physical cleaning.