<p>From a Hong Kong person's perspective:</p>

<p>師奶 is indeed a term that is rather offensive to most ladies in today's context.</p>

<p>In my experiences, it tends to be used to refer to one or more of the below characteristics:</p>

<ol>
<li>Horrible lady drivers</li>
<li>Ladies who love to gossip</li>
<li>Housewives with too much time on their hands</li>
<li>Bargain hunters</li>
<li>Poor fashion sense, or wearing very "aunty" clothes</li>
<li>Out of shape </li>
<li>Loves mahjong, loves drama serials on TV</li>
</ol>

<p><a href="http://evchk.wikia.com/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6" rel="noreferrer">This is a link from Hong Kong's phrase dictionary.</a></p>

<p>Sorry it is written in Cantonese Chinese. I can try translate any parts of it for you if you want.</p>

<p>I would never try calling any lady a 師奶, at all. I will stick to 家庭主婦 (jiā tíng zhǔ fù), which means housewife instead.</p>

<p>And yes it counts as slang.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-03-02T03:38:05.830Z
I disagree. The word doesn't have any negative connotation. It's probably a little vulgar (in the Chinese sense of vulgarity) but it's never offensive.
horaceT
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-10T16:43:10.200Z
2014-02-10T16:50:36.713Z
2014-02-10T16:50:36.713Z
Michael
<p>"奶" in "師奶" means a respected madam (夫人) in a family.</p>

<p>"師" means that she is a good model for other women.
(又《玉篇》範也。敎人以道者之稱也。《書·泰誓》作之師。《禮·文王世子》出則有師。師也者，敎之以事而喻諸德者也。又《玉篇》象他人也。《增韻》法也，效也。《書·臯陶謨》百僚師師。《傳》師師，相師法。)</p>

<p>Hence we had the term "馬應彪師奶".</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-06-27T03:39:20.800Z
2014-06-27T03:39:20.800Z
Henry HO
<p>See Lai is usually used in a negative light and is cantonese slang. When you use see lai, you are implying that you don't respect the person (who is female), either by making fun of their age, looks or intelligence. </p>

<p>If you want to address someone's wife, you should use tai tai （太太）or lou po （老婆）. If you want to speak to a female who you don't know their name, use siu jie （小姐）which translates to "Miss", which is more polite and likely to flatter them if they are quite old.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-30T06:26:47.400Z
2019-05-30T06:26:47.400Z
Ellie
<p>C lai further explanation</p>

<p>It is sad that it has this negative vibe to being called a C lai.
Which most importantly means being a stay at home mother taking care of either their young or older children.</p>

<p>Further important to mention: C lai's do not want to work outside at a regular job.
They want to stricly take care of their kids - which is a more than tough job already too ofcourse (not being sarcastic).</p>

<p>C lai's do have spare time on hands and make sure they plan their days with mainly fun activities too. Because they don't like being alone.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-05-20T08:00:15.107Z
2017-05-20T08:00:15.107Z
MeiLing
<p>A see lai is a (married) housewife - strictly taking care of kids
and household. A see lai has nothing to do with being middle aged. Whether you just got married and have young kids or older kids. This is no difference.</p>
<p>The husband brings in the dough. She receives money to spend. A see lai enjoys mainly the company of other see lai, because her working girlfriends of course don't have spare time.</p>
<p>This is the explanation of a modern-day see lai.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2017-05-20T07:53:08.380Z
2021-01-01T11:53:14.373Z
2021-01-01T11:53:14.373Z
MeiLing
<p>The correct word for 師奶 should be 司奶：
<a href="http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6" rel="nofollow">http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6</a> </p>

<p>司 = responsible for
奶 = milk</p>

<p>In ancient time, there were title like 司马、司徒、司空、司寇、司农。 For example 马 is horse and 司马 was equivalent to today's Defense Ministry, so 司奶 mean a person responsible for milk. In modern day, I think it is not polite to call a woman 司奶, especially young professional lady, since nowadays women have many responsibilities, not only milk.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-02-02T01:57:39.467Z
2015-02-02T01:57:39.467Z
Leo L.S. LIU
<p>"師奶(师奶)" refer to a married woman, and is popular used in Southern China. Is is rarely used in Mandarin.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>師奶（「奶」字要讀高N音，同「拉」嘅音調一樣），太太嘅俗稱。主要係街坊之間用嚟打招呼嘅用詞。哩個詞語亦都可以用嚟取笑嗰啲唔多化粧，外表睇起上嚟土土地好似傳統家庭主婦咁嘅未婚女士，有所謂「師奶仔」嘅叫法。<a href="http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6">1</a></p>
</blockquote>

<p>translate to Simplified Chinese "师奶（‘奶’字要读高N音，和‘拉’到音调一样），太太的俗称。主要是街坊邻居用来打招呼的词。也可以用来嘲笑不修边幅，看起来向像家庭主妇的未婚女士，这些未婚女士也会被叫做‘师奶仔’。"</p>

<p>translate to English "师奶，refer to 太太(太太 is not wife but married woman in here). It is often used among the neighbors. A makeup-free unmarried woman who looks like a housewife is mocked and called '师奶仔'. "</p>

<p><a href="http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6">粤语维基百科</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-09T04:54:50.047Z
I choose your post as the answer because the Wikipedia link answered all my questions.
amateur
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-09T02:12:03.870Z
2014-02-09T02:12:03.870Z
zz22
<p>I had heard a husband refer to his wife in Cantonese as 師奶 (pronounced "see lai"). The way he said it sounded like an insult but I was told it's not a bad word.</p>

<p>How would 師奶 be described in English? Is it a word that carries any negative connotations? Would certain women be offended if they are addressed as 師奶? Is it ever appropriate to call a woman 師奶? Is 師奶 unique to Cantonese? Is there an equivalent word in Mandarin?</p>

<p>The impression I get is it carries the same weight as the Japanese おばさん (obasan), which Japanese women do not like to be called. Obasan means a woman has passed her youth (青春 seishun) and is now a middle aged "aunty" who is no longer attractive to men. Is 師奶 similar or different to this?</p>

<p>I'm not sure if 師奶 is a slang. If it's not, let me know so I can remove the tag.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-08T19:38:07.017Z
Yes, I do think it's strictly a Cantonese word. Many Chinese may not know the word unless they have a lot of exposure to Cantonese culture (for instance, Hong Kong TV series or films)
user58955
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-09T07:31:41.203Z
I know 師奶杀手 (auntie-killer) refers to a man who attracts older women with his boyish charm.
杨以轩
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-10T15:11:40.160Z
I'm not Cantonese but I know the word. Mainland China has been greatly influenced by Hongkong's pop culture.
hrzhu
<topolect><cantonese><slang>
Is 師奶 (see lai) strictly a Cantonese word? Is it a neutral word or does it have a negative connotation?
# Is 師奶 (see lai) strictly a Cantonese word? Is it a neutral word or does it have a negative connotation?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-02-08)

I had heard a husband refer to his wife in Cantonese as 師奶 (pronounced "see lai"). The way he said it sounded like an insult but I was told it's not a bad word.

How would 師奶 be described in English? Is it a word that carries any negative connotations? Would certain women be offended if they are addressed as 師奶? Is it ever appropriate to call a woman 師奶? Is 師奶 unique to Cantonese? Is there an equivalent word in Mandarin?

The impression I get is it carries the same weight as the Japanese おばさん (obasan), which Japanese women do not like to be called. Obasan means a woman has passed her youth (青春 seishun) and is now a middle aged "aunty" who is no longer attractive to men. Is 師奶 similar or different to this?

I'm not sure if 師奶 is a slang. If it's not, let me know so I can remove the tag.

**Tags:** topolect, cantonese, slang

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Yes, I do think it's strictly a Cantonese word. Many Chinese may not know the word unless they have a lot of exposure to Cantonese culture (for instance, Hong Kong TV series or films)  
> **username_2**: I know 師奶杀手 (auntie-killer) refers to a man who attracts older women with his boyish charm.  
> **username_3**: I'm not Cantonese but I know the word. Mainland China has been greatly influenced by Hongkong's pop culture.  

---

## 7 answers

### Answer by username_10 on 2014-02-09. Score: 7 | Accepted answer

"師奶(师奶)" refer to a married woman, and is popular used in Southern China. Is is rarely used in Mandarin.

> 師奶（「奶」字要讀高N音，同「拉」嘅音調一樣），太太嘅俗稱。主要係街坊之間用嚟打招呼嘅用詞。哩個詞語亦都可以用嚟取笑嗰啲唔多化粧，外表睇起上嚟土土地好似傳統家庭主婦咁嘅未婚女士，有所謂「師奶仔」嘅叫法。[1](http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6)

translate to Simplified Chinese "师奶（‘奶’字要读高N音，和‘拉’到音调一样），太太的俗称。主要是街坊邻居用来打招呼的词。也可以用来嘲笑不修边幅，看起来向像家庭主妇的未婚女士，这些未婚女士也会被叫做‘师奶仔’。"

translate to English "师奶，refer to 太太(太太 is not wife but married woman in here). It is often used among the neighbors. A makeup-free unmarried woman who looks like a housewife is mocked and called '师奶仔'. "

[粤语维基百科](http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6)

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I choose your post as the answer because the Wikipedia link answered all my questions.  

---

### Answer by username_4 on 2014-02-10. Score: 7

From a Hong Kong person's perspective:

師奶 is indeed a term that is rather offensive to most ladies in today's context.

In my experiences, it tends to be used to refer to one or more of the below characteristics:

1. Horrible lady drivers
2. Ladies who love to gossip
3. Housewives with too much time on their hands
4. Bargain hunters
5. Poor fashion sense, or wearing very "aunty" clothes
6. Out of shape
7. Loves mahjong, loves drama serials on TV

[This is a link from Hong Kong's phrase dictionary.](http://evchk.wikia.com/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6)

Sorry it is written in Cantonese Chinese. I can try translate any parts of it for you if you want.

I would never try calling any lady a 師奶, at all. I will stick to 家庭主婦 (jiā tíng zhǔ fù), which means housewife instead.

And yes it counts as slang.

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: I disagree. The word doesn't have any negative connotation. It's probably a little vulgar (in the Chinese sense of vulgarity) but it's never offensive.  

---

### Answer by username_6 on 2014-06-27. Score: 1

"奶" in "師奶" means a respected madam (夫人) in a family.

"師" means that she is a good model for other women.
(又《玉篇》範也。敎人以道者之稱也。《書·泰誓》作之師。《禮·文王世子》出則有師。師也者，敎之以事而喻諸德者也。又《玉篇》象他人也。《增韻》法也，效也。《書·臯陶謨》百僚師師。《傳》師師，相師法。)

Hence we had the term "馬應彪師奶".


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### Answer by username_7 on 2019-05-30. Score: 1

See Lai is usually used in a negative light and is cantonese slang. When you use see lai, you are implying that you don't respect the person (who is female), either by making fun of their age, looks or intelligence.

If you want to address someone's wife, you should use tai tai （太太）or lou po （老婆）. If you want to speak to a female who you don't know their name, use siu jie （小姐）which translates to "Miss", which is more polite and likely to flatter them if they are quite old.


---

### Answer by username_8 on 2017-05-20. Score: 0

C lai further explanation

It is sad that it has this negative vibe to being called a C lai.
Which most importantly means being a stay at home mother taking care of either their young or older children.

Further important to mention: C lai's do not want to work outside at a regular job.
They want to stricly take care of their kids - which is a more than tough job already too ofcourse (not being sarcastic).

C lai's do have spare time on hands and make sure they plan their days with mainly fun activities too. Because they don't like being alone.


---

### Answer by username_8 on 2017-05-20. Score: 0

A see lai is a (married) housewife - strictly taking care of kids
and household. A see lai has nothing to do with being middle aged. Whether you just got married and have young kids or older kids. This is no difference.

The husband brings in the dough. She receives money to spend. A see lai enjoys mainly the company of other see lai, because her working girlfriends of course don't have spare time.

This is the explanation of a modern-day see lai.


---

### Answer by username_9 on 2015-02-02. Score: 0

The correct word for 師奶 should be 司奶：
<http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%AB%E5%A5%B6>

司 = responsible for
奶 = milk

In ancient time, there were title like 司马、司徒、司空、司寇、司农。 For example 马 is horse and 司马 was equivalent to today's Defense Ministry, so 司奶 mean a person responsible for milk. In modern day, I think it is not polite to call a woman 司奶, especially young professional lady, since nowadays women have many responsibilities, not only milk.


---

