Explore slang and expressions in Cantonese
Unbeatable; so good nothing can top it.
呢間店嘅燒味真係冇得頂。
This place’s roast meats are seriously unbeatable.
"Eat lemons." To get rejected / turned down (esp. romantically).
我鼓起勇氣約佢食飯，最後食檸檬。
I worked up the courage to ask them to dinner, but got rejected.
Jaw dropped; shocked speechless (mouth forms an “O”).
聽到佢話中咗一百萬，我即刻O嘴。
When I heard he won a million, my jaw dropped.
“Ow!/Oops!/Aw man!” (a reaction to pain or mishaps).
哎呀！我撞親隻腳趾。
Ouch! I banged my toe.
"Blast rocks." Super urgently need to poop.
ngo5 ji4 gaa1 gap1 dou3 jiu3 baau3 sek6, nei5 faai3 di1 haang4 hoi1!
I’m so desperate I need to poop—move!!
Overpowered/unfairly strong; “this is cheating” (from gaming, now used generally).
你用滿裝打新手，根本屈機。
You’re fully geared fighting newbies—that’s totally unfair/OP.
“Hong Kong girl”; often a stereotype meaning picky/high-maintenance (can be derogatory depending on tone).
佢買嘢要揀到最完美先肯走，朋友笑佢港女。
She won’t leave until she finds the perfect one—her friends tease her as a “Hong...
An “embarrassed/awkward” face (internet emoticon vibe).
俾老師點名嗰陣我即刻囧晒。
When the teacher called on me, I instantly got super embarrassed.
To level up; improve noticeably.
佢呢排返工好勤力，真係升呢咗。
He’s been working super hard lately—he really leveled up.
Putting on a front / posing / trying too hard to look cool (often comes off cringey).
你唔好喺IG度擢樣啦，好尷尬。
Don’t try-hard pose on IG—this is so awkward.
“Train man”: a socially awkward otaku-type guy (games/manga, doesn’t socialize much).
阿明成日匿喺屋企打機睇漫畫，完全電車男。
Ming is always at home gaming and reading manga—total “train man.”
“Princess syndrome”: high-maintenance, picky, expects others to cater to them.
佢乜都要人哋做，真係有公主病喎。
She expects everyone to do everything for her—she’s got major princess syndrome.
Overseas-born Chinese who feels more Western than Chinese (a “bamboo rod”: hollow inside)
佢係典型竹升，唔識講廣東話。
He’s a typical jook-sing—can’t even speak Cantonese.
“Crazy / nuts,” lit. “wires crossed.”
你痴線呀？呢個價買唔到啦!
Are you crazy? You can’t buy it at that price!
