<blockquote>
  <p>ngo5 hai6 baau2</p>
</blockquote>

<p>--> 我係飽 is "unnatural", hmmm, non-native way to express.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>ngo5 hou2 baau2</p>
</blockquote>

<p>--> 我好飽</p>

<p>native way to say it :)</p>

<p>just like the english "being", in other language, the verb changes:</p>

<p><strong>i'm 70 years old</strong> </p>

<p>(being is used to describe age), which is translated to:</p>

<p><strong>j'ai 70 ans</strong></p>

<p>(avoir [to have], is used, not être [to be]; then, in cantonese, it should be:</p>

<p><strong>我七十歲</strong></p>

<p>technically, the verb is omitted</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>gei(unsure of tone or meaning) </p>
</blockquote>

<p>it is 嘅(u+5605), roughly "my, his, her, their"; ask you friend how to pronounce it ;-)</p>

<p>last, i would suggest learning cantonese from dramas, videos, and news, forget grammar books.</p>

<p>have fun :)</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-11-08T09:15:31.670Z
Hmm I think I must have misheard/misremembered gei then, I thought it maybe "a little"? As in: I am a little hungry. Thanks for the response! Not sure if you happen to know Spanish or not, but it seems like hai6 vs hou2 is similar to ser vs estar?
Ell
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-11-08T09:50:51.123Z
spanish? no lah :( "i am a little hungry" would be: 我有啲餓. 啲(u+5572) means "a little", pronounced similar to "d" in "a, b, c, d", according to english. http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=啲
水巷孑蠻
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-11-08T08:53:57.683Z
2017-11-08T08:53:57.683Z
水巷孑蠻
<p>I am trying to learn Cantonese. </p>

<p>I want to be able to say (speak, not write) after a meal:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>I am full.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Which I could translate directory to:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Ngo5 hai6 baau2</p>
</blockquote>

<p>But, my local (student in HK) friend says this is incorrect and that the following is preferred:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Ngo5 hou2 baau2</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Which I would read as</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>I very full</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Sentences like this come up quite often, where sometimes I need to say the verb hai6, or sometimes a "degree" such as hou2 and additionally gei(unsure of tone or meaning) has been suggested.</p>

<p>What is the correct structure of a sentence where you want to tell somebody your current state of being?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-11-08T08:39:22.043Z
You wouldn't use *hai6* to tell people you are tired or hungry or thirty or full - you would use *hai6* to tell people you are a doctor or a teacher or a principle or a big brother. *hou2* while seemingly meaning *very* is often used with things like tired or hungry or thirty or full to make the sentence more natural and understandable - you shouldn't take it literally. Like your friend suggested Ngo5 hou2 baau2 just means I'm full.
Mou某
<grammar><cantonese><spoken>
When is a degree required? or: hai6 vs hou2 vs gei
# When is a degree required? or: hai6 vs hou2 vs gei

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-11-08)

I am trying to learn Cantonese.

I want to be able to say (speak, not write) after a meal:

> I am full.

Which I could translate directory to:

> Ngo5 hai6 baau2

But, my local (student in HK) friend says this is incorrect and that the following is preferred:

> Ngo5 hou2 baau2

Which I would read as

> I very full

Sentences like this come up quite often, where sometimes I need to say the verb hai6, or sometimes a "degree" such as hou2 and additionally gei(unsure of tone or meaning) has been suggested.

What is the correct structure of a sentence where you want to tell somebody your current state of being?

**Tags:** grammar, cantonese, spoken

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: You wouldn't use *hai6* to tell people you are tired or hungry or thirty or full - you would use *hai6* to tell people you are a doctor or a teacher or a principle or a big brother. *hou2* while seemingly meaning *very* is often used with things like tired or hungry or thirty or full to make the sentence more natural and understandable - you shouldn't take it literally. Like your friend suggested Ngo5 hou2 baau2 just means I'm full.  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2017-11-08. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

> ngo5 hai6 baau2

--> 我係飽 is "unnatural", hmmm, non-native way to express.

> ngo5 hou2 baau2

--> 我好飽

native way to say it :)

just like the english "being", in other language, the verb changes:

**i'm 70 years old**

(being is used to describe age), which is translated to:

**j'ai 70 ans**

(avoir [to have], is used, not être [to be]; then, in cantonese, it should be:

**我七十歲**

technically, the verb is omitted

> gei(unsure of tone or meaning)

it is 嘅(u+5605), roughly "my, his, her, their"; ask you friend how to pronounce it ;-)

last, i would suggest learning cantonese from dramas, videos, and news, forget grammar books.

have fun :)

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Hmm I think I must have misheard/misremembered gei then, I thought it maybe "a little"? As in: I am a little hungry. Thanks for the response! Not sure if you happen to know Spanish or not, but it seems like hai6 vs hou2 is similar to ser vs estar?  
> **username_2**: spanish? no lah :( "i am a little hungry" would be: 我有啲餓. 啲(u+5572) means "a little", pronounced similar to "d" in "a, b, c, d", according to english. http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=啲  

---

