zung1 man4 zi6中文字
Jyutpingzung1 man4 zi6
Yalejūng màhn jih
Definition
Chinese characters; the written characters used in Chinese.
colloquialschoolcommunication
How it's used
Refers specifically to individual written units rather than the language as a whole. While Mandarin speakers often use 字 to refer to words in general, Cantonese speakers use 中文字 to distinguish a single character from a word, which is usually referred to as 詞.
Measure word
go3個goExamples
The strokes of this Chinese character are very complicated.
Related words
Common phrases
write Chinese characters
recognize Chinese characters
Common mistake
Avoid using this to mean Chinese language, which is simply 中文. Using 中文字 when you mean the language sounds like you are talking about the individual glyphs rather than the communication system.
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.
