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Hong Kong Code-mixing Dictionary

A contemporary Cantonese-English dictionary


362 results found

meeting room

Definition: A code-mixing term used by working class Hong Kongers to refer to a smaller kind of conference room for general purpose, such as having a small group meeting, 1 on 1 interview, zoom call, etc. However, it does not mean people should do all sorts of things in it such as chitchatting loudly and having a social party.

Usage: E.g. 呢排轉咗工,但公司係Shared Office。入面大部分都後生仔女。就算唔係坐埋一張枱都聽到佢哋大聲講大聲笑。啲meeting room又唔係多,長期俾人霸哂。到真係俾我book到都仲聽到出面啲聲 (E.g. I changed job recently, but the company is a shared office and most people are young, Even when I was not sitting at their table, I could still hear them talking and laughing out loud. There were also not many meeting rooms, so they were occupied for a long time. And when I booked a room, I could still hear their noise outside.)

Synonym: 會議室

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/4007435/page/1

miss

Definition: A code-mixing term that Hong Kong girls love to use to ask their boyfriends whether they feel sad or regret about not having their presence at times, as ‘掛住‘ in Cantonese could just be merely thinking about someone without such emotions, which is not enough to satisfy a Hong Kong girl’s demands.

Usage: E.g. 呢幾日我地冇見。有冇miss我呀? (We have not seen each other these several days. Do you miss me?)

Synonym: 掛住, 想念

Reference: https://www.discuss.com.hk/viewthread.php?tid=17173491

naughty

Definition: A code-mixing term that a Jayden Mami uses to refer to a more playful misbehaviour in a lighthearted way rather than describing a child genuinely bad and unmanageable that the Cantonese equivalent terms tend to denote.

Usage: E.g. Jayden呀,唔好再咁naughty啦。你唔食菜,又唔飲湯,你唔會healthy架!(Jayden, don't be so naughty. If you don't eat vegetables and don't drink soup, you will not be healthy!)

Synonym: 曳;百厭

Reference: https://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/characters/7397/

negative

Definition: A code-mixing term used by working class Hong Kongers as a neutral and factual way of referring to interview feedback of disapproval.

Usage: E.g. 今次interview既feedback都冇D咩negative野。(The interview feedback this time did not have anything negative.)

Synonym: 負面

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/1058101/page/1

no comment

Definition: A code-mixing phrase that working class Hong Kongers often use as a response to something they don't know an answer to.

Usage: E.g. Q: 返工最撚憎聽到咩口頭蟬?A: No Comment 唔係開會/回覆其他部門啲 email. 係同 team 同事有嘢唔識走嚟問你意見,答乜撚嘢 No Comment (Q: What is a catchphrase that you hate hearing the most at work? A: "No comment". But not when it is used in meetings or replying other department's email. It is when a colleague in your team doesn't know something and asks for your opinion, you reply with "No comment". XDXDXD)

Synonym: 冇意見

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/2692508/page/3

no show

Definition: A noun phrase-looking code-mixing verb that native Hong Kongers use to refer to someone who did not turn up at an event or occasion.

Usage: E.g. 大日子遲到同no show無分別 (On an important occasion, there is no difference between being late and not showing up.)

Synonym: 冇到, 缺席

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/3844386/page/9

no thank

Definition: Often mistaken as 'no thanks' or refusal to an offer, this is a code-mixing term used by Gen Z native Hong Kongers to acknowledge someone's gratitude, which is comparable to 'You are welcome'.

Usage: E.g. 岩岩做野果時幫佢手 佢同我講Thanks。我諗唔到除左No Thanks/ It’s Fine之外仲有咩回應。(When I started working for him at that time, he used to say 'thanks'. But I could not think of any phrases other than 'No Thanks/It's fine' as a response.)

Synonym: 唔洗唔該

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/599066/page/1

O mouth

Definition: Derived from 'O嘴', this is a Kongish code-mixing term that refers to feeling surprised and astonished to the point where your mouth literally opens in an O shape.

Usage: E.g. I was O mouth to see the football match turned around! (今次場波反敗為勝,真睇到我O哂嘴。)

Synonym: O嘴

Reference: https://www.scmp.com/yp/discover/lifestyle/features/article/3096419/learn-cantonese-slang-many-faces-hongkongers

odd

Definition: A code-mixing adjective term used by native Hong Kongers to describe something that is peculiar or unexpected, which is usually milder compared to the Cantonese equivalent word '怪' meaning strange.

Usage: E.g. 莊雅婷有點odd odd 哋的美學,和鍾培生可說是絶配,但鄉港人唔會識欣賞。 (Angel Chong is a bit of odd in aesthetics, which is a perfect match with Derek Chung, but Hong Kong people will not appreciate.)

Synonym: 怪

Reference: https://www.threads.com/@timorese2332/post/DVnTY5-jiQo?xmt=AQF0qy0bkiofGtnpzBvRV8K80eRv2Va6md233oSjBwnVGUCCMt_lLP7oN7zuNkcGOPG9nm0h&slof=1

off topic

Definition: A code-mixing term used by Hong Kong local students as a casual way of labelling something as not related to the topic matter at hand.

Usage: E.g. off topic講兩句: 文理都緊要,理科是硬道理,但文科(文學、歷史;或者是哲學)才是中學教育中唯一認真(seriousness)的科目。(Let me make a few off-topic remarks: Both arts and sciences are important, with sciences being the most important, but arts (literature, history, or philosophy) are the only subjects in secondary education that require seriousness.)

Synonym: 跟話題無關

Reference: https://www.threads.com/@yuxichau/post/C5vuQ64SgYQ?hl=en

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