wo1 ngau4蝸牛蜗牛

Jyutpingwo1 ngau4

Yalewō ngàuh

名詞Uncommon

Definition

Snail; a slow-moving shelled terrestrial gastropod mollusk.

neutralanimalsnature

How it's used

People often use this term metaphorically to describe someone who is extremely slow or sluggish in their actions. Unlike the English term, it is strictly used for the land-dwelling creature and is never confused with aquatic species like 螺. It is a common observation that these creatures appear in abundance after a heavy rain, which is a frequent topic of conversation.

Measure word

zek3隻jek

Examples

faa1花jyun2園go2嗰dou6度jau5有zek3隻wo1蝸ngau4牛hai2喺dou6度paa4爬。

There is a snail crawling in the garden.

nei5你zou6做je5嘢maan6慢dou3到hou2好ci5似zek3隻wo1蝸ngau4牛gam3咁。

You work as slowly as a snail.

Related words

see alsokut3 jyu4蛞蝓kut yyùhsee alsolo2螺ló

Common phrases

wo1蝸ngau4牛cuk1速dou6度

snail's pace

Common mistake

Learners sometimes confuse this with 蛞蝓, which is the shell-less version commonly known as a slug. Remember that 蝸牛 must have a shell to be referred to by this name.