Cantonese frequency adverbs: usually, sometimes, never
Cantonese keeps one slot for how often something happens, between the subject and the verb. 通常, 有時, 成日 and 好少 all live in it. 從來 lives there too, but only when a negative follows it.
The five words
| Word | Use | Rough English |
|---|---|---|
| tung1 soeng4 通常 | The default state of things | usually |
| jau5 si4 有時 | Some of the time, not most | sometimes |
| seng4 jat6 成日 | Constant, often with a hint of complaint | all the time |
| hou2 siu2 好少 | Almost never, but not never | rarely |
| cung4 loi4 從來 | Never, and it needs a negative behind it | ever, never |
One slot, in front of the verb
English moves these words around freely. I usually get up at seven, I get up at seven usually, usually I get up at seven: all three are fine. Cantonese has one place for them, between the person and the action, and they stay there however long the rest of the sentence gets. It is the same slot that time and place use, covered on the word order page.
成日 is not a whole day
成日 reads literally as a whole day, but it is used for anything that keeps happening, over any stretch of time. 佢成日遲到 works for someone who is late every week, not only for someone who was late all day. It often carries a note of complaint, which is worth knowing before you use it about your boss.
The other four stand on their own. 從來 does not. It means ever rather than never, so it waits for 唔 or 冇 to finish the thought, and it usually picks up 都 along the way: 我從來都唔遲到, I am never late. 我從來遲到 on its own is not a sentence. For 都 itself, see the also and only page.
Common mistakes
Trailing the adverb
我起身通常七點 copies the English habit of adding usually as an afterthought. The frequency word belongs before the verb: 我通常七點起身.
從來 without the negative
從來 is not a standalone never. Left on its own it says almost nothing. Pair it with 唔 for a habit and 冇 for something that has not happened.
Reaching for a Mandarin word
經常 and 總是 are written Chinese. In speech Hong Kong uses 成日 and 通常, which is what you want in a conversation.
