waai6 sam1壞心坏心
Jyutpingwaai6 sam1
Yalewaaih sām
Definition
Evil intentions; bad thoughts or malice.
colloquialpeopleemotion
How it's used
Describes a person who harbors malicious intent or takes pleasure in the misfortune of others. Unlike the Mandarin term 壞心眼 which is a noun phrase, 壞心 functions more like an adjective in Cantonese to describe someone's character or specific actions. It carries a strong moral judgment and is often used when someone is being spiteful or deliberately obstructive.
Examples
He is very malicious and always thinks about how to prank others.
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often mistake this for a physical description of a heart condition, but it is strictly used to describe personality and moral character. Do not use it to talk about medical issues or heart disease.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
