zi3至
Jyutpingzi3
Yaleji
Definition
Most; to the highest degree or greatest extent.
colloquialdescriptions
How it's used
Often interchangeable with 最, but 至 carries a slightly more emphatic or subjective tone. It is frequently used in expressions of personal preference or strong feelings, such as 至憎 or 至鍾意. In some contexts, it can also imply a sense of being the ultimate or final point in a sequence.
Examples
Related words
Common mistake
Learners sometimes confuse it with the Mandarin usage of 至, which often functions as a preposition meaning until or to. In Cantonese, it is almost exclusively used as an adverb of degree to mean the most.
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.
