畀 + Person + Verb

Let Someone Do It

Level 4Sounds Like bei2

The pattern 畀 (bei2) + Person + Verb is the standard way to say 'let' or 'allow' in Cantonese. It is a neutral causative construction used in everyday speech.

How It Works

The word 畀 (bei2) is one of the most versatile words in Cantonese. While it often means 'to give' or marks the passive voice, in this specific structure, it functions as a permissive causative verb.

1. Structure:
Subject + 畀 (bei2) + Person + Verb Phrase.
Example: 我 (Subject) + 畀 (bei2) + 佢 (Person) + 去 (Verb) = 'I let him go.'

2. Permission vs. Compulsion:
Unlike the Mandarin equivalent 讓 (ràng), which can mean both 'let' and 'make', Cantonese 畀 (bei2) is strictly for permission ('let' or 'allow'). It does not carry the sense of ordering or forcing someone to do something. To express 'making' or 'ordering' someone to do something, you should use verbs like 叫 (giu3; 'to call/order') or 令 (ling6; 'to cause' - more formal).

3. Character Variants:
In written Cantonese, you will frequently see the character 俾 (bei2) used for this pattern. While 畀 is the traditional form for 'give', many writers use 俾 specifically for the 'let' and 'passive' functions to distinguish them from the literal act of giving.

4. Negation:
To say 'don't let' or 'won't let', place the negator 唔 (m4) or 唔好 (m4 hou2) before 畀 (bei2).
Example: 唔好畀佢知 (m4 hou2 bei2 keoi5 zi1) - 'Don't let him know.'

5. Distinguishing from Passive:
It is important to distinguish this from the passive 畀. In the causative 'let' pattern, the person is the one performing the action. In the passive pattern, the person is the one performing the action upon the subject, and the verb usually has an aspect marker like 咗 (zo2).

  • Causative: 畀佢食 (bei2 keoi5 sik6) - 'Let him eat.'
  • Passive: 畀佢食咗 (bei2 keoi5 sik6 zo2) - 'Was eaten by him.'

Examples (5)

  1. 畀佢講落去啦。

    Let him carry on talking.

    Word by Word: Let him speak down-go [particle].

    Here, 畀 (bei2) is used as a command to allow the third party to continue speaking. The particle 啦 (laa1) softens the suggestion.

  2. 媽咪唔畀我出去玩。

    Mom won't let me go out to play.

    Word by Word: Mom not let me out-go play.

    Negating 畀 (bei2) with 唔 (m4) expresses a lack of permission.

  3. 你畀我諗吓先。

    Let me think about it first.

    Word by Word: You let me think a-bit first.

    This uses the delimitative aspect marker 吓 (haa5) to mean 'think for a moment' and 先 (sin1) to mean 'first'.

  4. 唔好畀佢哋入嚟。

    Don't let them come in.

    Word by Word: Not good let them enter-come.

    唔好 (m4 hou2) is used here to create a negative imperative (a prohibition).

  5. 佢畀咗我睇嗰封信。

    He let me see that letter.

    Word by Word: He let [past] me see that [classifier] letter.

    Unlike the passive marker, the causative 畀 (bei2) can take the aspect marker 咗 (zo2) to show the permission was granted in the past.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding 做 to 畀錢我 when you mean ‘give me money’.

    Different Meaning畀錢我做。
    畀錢我。

    畀錢我做 is a good sentence, but it means ‘give me the money to do it’. For plain ‘give me money’, use 畀 (bei2) + thing + person: 畀錢我.

  • Using the Mandarin-style 讓 (joeng6) in casual speech.

    Different Meaning讓佢去啦。
    畀佢去啦。

    While 讓 (joeng6) is understood, it sounds like 'translationese' or overly formal in spoken Cantonese. 畀 (bei2) is the natural choice.

  • Assuming 畀 (bei2) always signals something unfortunate.

    媽媽畀我去旅行，好倒霉。
    媽媽畀我去旅行，我好開心。

    Learners often hear that the passive 畀 (bei2) is for unfortunate events. In 媽媽畀我去旅行, 畀 means ‘let’, which is neutral, so the trip is a happy thing and calling it unlucky does not follow from 畀.

How It Connects

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畀 + Person + VerbLevel 4Let Someone Do It

Learn This First

To understand '畀 + 人 + V', learners first need to understand the causative use of '畀' (meaning 'to let' or 'to allow') and how it interacts with a person (pronoun or noun) and a following verb. Knowledge of basic pronouns and common verbal suffixes like '落去' helps in constructing natural sentences with this pattern.

Words in This Pattern