ziu1 bing1 maai5 maa5招兵買馬招兵买马
Jyutpingziu1 bing1 maai5 maa5
Yalejīu bīng máaih máh
Definition
To recruit and hire talented people to strengthen a business, or historically, to raise an armed force.
- figurativeto recruit talented people to strengthen a company or organization
- historicalto raise and expand an armed force by recruiting soldiers and buying horses
colloquialwork
How it's used
While the literal meaning refers to ancient military mobilization, it is now almost exclusively used in a corporate or organizational context. It carries a sense of active, aggressive, or large scale recruitment rather than just filling a single vacancy. Use this when describing a company that is scaling up or building a new team from scratch.
Examples
keoi5佢dei6哋gung1公si1司zeoi3最gan6近bat1不dyun6斷ziu1招bing1兵maai5買maa5馬，tai2睇lai4嚟soeng2想kwong3擴zoeng1張jip6業mou6務。
They have been constantly recruiting talent lately, it looks like they want to expand their business.
nei5你daa2打syun3算gei2幾si4時hoi1開ci2始ziu1招bing1兵maai5買maa5馬，wan2搵jan4人bong1幫sau2手gaau2搞dim6掂ni1呢go3個hong6項muk6目？
When do you plan to start recruiting people to help finish this project?
Related words
Common phrases
constantly recruiting talent
actively recruiting talent
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
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.
