tou2 zaai3討債讨债
Jyutpingtou2 zaai3
Yaletóu jaai
Definition
To demand repayment of a debt or loan.
colloquialmoneydaily actions
How it's used
While 討債 is understood in Cantonese, it sounds slightly more formal or literary compared to the everyday term 追債. In casual conversation, people almost exclusively use 追債 to describe the act of asking someone to pay back money they owe. Using 討債 can sometimes carry a slightly more serious or aggressive tone, often associated with formal collection processes.
Examples
He keeps going to people's homes to demand repayment, it's so annoying.
Related words
Common phrases
to go to someone's door to demand repayment
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 借錢, which means to borrow money. Remember that 討債 is the action taken by the lender to get the money back, not the act of borrowing itself.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
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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.
