tang4疼
Jyutpingtang4
Yaletàhng
Definition
To love dearly; to dote on.
colloquialpeopleemotion
How it's used
While 疼 can stand alone in some contexts, it is almost exclusively used in the compound 疼錫 in spoken Cantonese to express deep affection or doting. It carries a warm, protective nuance often associated with the love an elder has for a child or a partner has for their significant other. Using it alone can sometimes sound slightly literary or regional, so pairing it with 錫 is the standard way to sound natural.
Examples
Grandma loves that grandson the most.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with the Mandarin usage where 疼 means to hurt or ache. In Cantonese, the word for physical pain is 痛, so avoid using 疼 to describe a headache or a stomachache.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
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Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
