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Hong Kong Code-mixing Dictionary

A contemporary Cantonese-English dictionary


982 results found

short

Definition: (adj.) insane; malfunctioning; derived from "short circuit". Often used as "sot sot deih", meaning a little insane.

Usage: E.g. 你契爺凍到short咗. (Your godfather is freezing to the point of insanity.) E.g. 部冷氣機short左。快D搵人黎整返佢啦。

show off

Definition: A code-mixing phrase used by native Hong Kongers as a less dramatic way of displaying one's abilities and achievements so that it does not deliberately make others envy you.

Usage: E.g. 帶BB 去旅行根本滿足父母show off 私慾,"阿仔未夠一歲坐飛機,勁呢" (Taking a baby on a trip is really just about satisfying the parents' desire to show off—"My kid’s been on a plane before turning one; pretty impressive, right?")

Synonym: 炫耀

Reference: https://www.threads.com/@bae146/post/Dd45t-xklle/帶bb-去旅行根本滿足父母show-off-私慾阿仔未夠一歲坐飛機勁呢/

sick leave

Definition: Often used as the short form 'SL', this is a code-mixing term used by working class Hong Kongers to refer to a day where an employee is sick and needs to notify their company of their absence, which they often have a hard time explaining to their boss that they were really sick on that day.

Usage: E.g. 最撚仆街係SL完第二日就會俾老細問候你有冇事,然後你做乜嘢老細都會黑面 (The most f***ing stupid thing is that the next day after your sick leave you will be greeted by the boss asking if you are okay, and then no matter what you do the boss will still be dissatisfied.)

Synonym: 病假

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/3995179/page/3

situationship

Definition: A code-mixing term that Gen Z native Hong Kongers use to describe a romantic relationship where there are low levels of commitment except for sexual behaviour.

Usage: E.g. A: 你同佢發展成點呀? B: 冇呀,只係situationship。(A: How is your relationship going? B: No, we are just a situationship.)

Synonym: 狀態戀情

Reference: https://www.hk01.com/談情說性/377560/約會新詞-situationship-已經-沉船-但不能隨便跳船

six seven

Definition: Originated from the song "Doot Doot (6 7)" by Skrilla, this is a code-mixing term used by Gen Z westernised Hong Kongers when they want to say 'I don't know' or refer to something 'so-so' as a rating. Sometimes, it may have no meaning at all, even when the person is juggling both hands up and down excitedly. Coincidently, six seven looks similar to the Cantonese expression '碌柒', which has the literal meaning of 'a stick of dick' and refers to an idiot.

Usage: E.g. A: How was the movie? B: Six seven. *Hands juggling up and down* (So-so.) E.g. A: What is the answer to this question? B: Six seven! (I don't f***ing know.)

Synonym: 唔撚知, 係喇掛

Reference: https://www.instagram.com/p/DQbVj-KkvEX/?hl=en (use mobile version)

skip

Definition: A code-mixing term that native Hong Kongers use to refer to bypassing or avoiding something quickly. It is also often less intentional and deliberate than the Cantonese equivalent term '跳過' and tends to be done without much thinking.

Usage: E.g. 正常人每日第一餐必定是早餐,若然經常skip,會打亂人體生物鐘及削弱身體機能,抵抗力自然變差。(For normal people, breakfast is always the first meal of the day. If you often skip it, it will disrupt your body's biological clock and weaken your bodily functions, naturally making your resistance weaker.)

Synonym: 跳過

Reference: https://hk.news.yahoo.com/記性差-原來關早餐事-044500693.html

sldpk

Definition: (textspeak, vulgar) A code-mixing term used by Gen Z native Hong Kongers when they laugh so f***ing hard that they could literally or figuratively trip and fall on the street. Sometimes, the acronym be translated into different versions in order to act like euphemism for a swear word phrase.

Usage: E.g. sldpk (少年的拼勁) (Hong Kong artist Lam Ka-hin used “sldpk” in a post on his social media, justifying his usage with a Cantonese word pun to refer to the swear word phrase indirectly.)

Synonym: 笑撚到仆街; 少年的拼勁; 成龍打保錡

Reference: https://tyr-jour.hkbu.edu.hk/2024/12/15/canto-slang-connects-gen-zers-in-hong-kong/

small talk

Definition: A code-mixing term used by Hong Kong companies to refer to a kind of casual conversation that is supposed to get people warmed up and build trust with each other, even though it often ends up consuming people's time dramatically.

Usage: E.g. 係都要 Small talk 一輪先講重點:直接入正題啦,大家返工時間好寶貴,無心情同你吹水。老實講,明白呢幾點嘅同事真係功德無量 (There always has to be a round of small talk before talking about the important points: Let's get straight to the point, our time at work is very precious, and we have no mood to talk to you. Honestly, colleagues who understand these points are contributing immensely.)

Synonym: 閒聊

Reference: https://www.instagram.com/p/Dcx8gNjpggG/?igsi=b3Z3YW80ZGo0Mm45 (use mobile version)

smart casual

Definition: A code-mixing term used by working class Hong Kongers to refer to a dress code that mixes both formal and everyday clothing, which they sometimes have a hard time deciding whether it should look a bit smarter or a bit more casual.

Usage: E.g. 由大學interview到出嚟做嘢搵intern都有一個迷思:就係到底乜嘢係Smart Casual?全套老西又太過火 牛記笠記+波鞋又太求其 名牌鞋高踭鞋又好似扮大個 每次面試前揀衫揀鞋都揀到懷疑人生 到底我係要smart啲定casual 啲?(E.g. From college interviews to finding a job as an intern, I always had a question: What exactly is Smart Casual? Wearing an entire western suit is too formal. Jeans and T-shirt plus sneakers are too casual. Designer shoes and high heels seem to pretending to be older. Every time I choose clothes and shoes before an interview, I question my life. In the end, do I want to be smarter or more casual?)

Synonym: 商務便裝; 半正式休閒裝

Reference: https://www.threads.com/share/_wcZZSBV4/

smash

Definition: A code-mixing term used by westernised Hong Kongers to refer to hitting a ball towards the ground forcefully in tennis, which not only feels good when defeating someone with such a gesture, but also it sort of gives the person a feeling of breaking something into pieces.

Usage: E.g. 咁勁?!今次我要smash返你!(So powerful?! I'm going to smash you back!)

Synonym: 殺球

Reference: https://lihkg.com/thread/3898753/page/7

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