喺 + Person + 度

At Someone's Place

Level 3

Use 喺 (hai2) + [Person] + 度 (dou6) to say something is 'at' a person's place or 'with' them (in their possession).

How It Works

The pattern 喺 + [Person] + 度 is essential for daily spoken Cantonese. It serves three main functions:

  • Physical Location: It indicates being at someone's home, office, or general vicinity. For example, 'at the teacher's place.'
  • Physical Custody: It indicates that a person is currently holding or carrying an object. In English, we often use 'with' for this (e.g., 'The keys are with me').
  • Source or Origin: When used with verbs like 'hear' or 'buy', it indicates the source of information or an item, translating to 'from' in English (e.g., 'I heard it from him').

Grammar Rules:
1. The preposition 喺 (hai2) must always be followed by a location. Since a person (like 我 ngo5) is a noun and not a place, the particle 度 (dou6) is required to convert that person into a locative noun.
2. While most commonly used with people, this pattern also applies to non-human objects to mean 'at' or 'on the vicinity of' that object (e.g., 喺部電腦度 hai2 bou6 din6 nou5 dou6 - 'at the computer').
3. This pattern is highly colloquial. In formal writing, you might see 處 (syu3) used instead of 度 (dou6).
4. Note the tone: 度 is pronounced in the 6th tone (dou6) in this specific construction.

Examples (6)

  1. 啲鎖匙喺我度。

    The keys are with me.

    Word by Word: Those keys at me [place].

    Here, the pattern indicates physical custody. The speaker is literally holding the keys or has them in their pocket.

  2. 聽日我哋喺你度見面。

    Tomorrow we will meet at your place.

    Word by Word: Tomorrow we at you [place] meet face.

    In this context, the pattern refers to a physical location, likely the listener's home or office.

  3. 份文件仲喺老師度。

    The document is still with the teacher.

    Word by Word: Classifier document still at teacher [place].

    This shows the pattern used with a title (teacher) rather than just a pronoun.

  4. 你部電話喺唔喺佢度呀？

    Is your phone with him?

    Word by Word: You [classifier] phone at not at him [place] [question]?

    This combines the pattern with the A-not-A question form to ask about possession.

  5. 我喺佢度聽返嚟嘅。

    I heard it from him.

    Word by Word: I at him [place] hear back come [assertion].

    This demonstrates the 'Source' function, where the pattern translates to 'from' in English when used with verbs of receiving or hearing.

  6. 我擺咗喺部電腦度。

    I put it by the computer.

    Word by Word: I put [perfective] at [classifier] computer [place].

    The pattern can also be used with objects to indicate 'at' or 'in the vicinity of' that item.

Common Mistakes

  • Omitting the locative particle '度' (dou6).

    我喺你。
    我喺你度。

    Without '度', the sentence '我喺你' sounds like 'I am you' or is grammatically incomplete. You must add '度' to make 'you' a location.

  • Using '同' (tung4) to express physical possession.

    啲錢同我。
    啲錢喺我度。

    English speakers often use 'with' (同) for possession, but in Cantonese, '同' implies accompaniment (doing something together). To say an object is physically 'with' you, use the '喺...度' pattern.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

喺 + Person + 度Level 3At Someone's Place

Learn This First

To understand '喺 + Person + 度', you first need to know how to express basic location using '喺' and how to use the locative suffix '度' to specify a place. Since this pattern specifically involves people, familiarity with basic pronouns is also essential.

Words in This Pattern