tin1 loeng6天亮
Jyutpingtin1 loeng6
Yaletīn leuhng
Definition
To dawn; the sky starting to clear as the sun rises.
colloquialtimenature
How it's used
天亮 is understood by everyone but is slightly more formal or literary than the everyday spoken term 天光. While 天亮 focuses on the visual transition of the sky brightening, 天光 is the standard way to describe the time of day when the sun rises. You will often hear people say 天光咗 instead of 天亮咗 in casual conversation.
Examples
It's dawn, hurry up and get up for work.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse 天亮 with 天光, but 天光 is significantly more common in daily speech. Using 天亮 in very casual settings might sound slightly stiff or like you are reading from a book.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
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.
