親（受損）

Do It and Get Hurt

Level 3Sounds Like can1

The particle 親 (can1) is added to a verb to show that someone got hurt or suffered a negative consequence often by accident. It's the standard way to say 'I fell and hurt myself' or 'I caught a cold' in spoken Cantonese.

How It Works

In Cantonese, simply using a verb doesn't always convey the consequence. To specify that an action resulted in a negative impact—like pain, injury, or a sudden change in state—we use the resultative particle 親 (can1).

Key Characteristics:

  • Adverse Impact: The focus is on the victim or object being negatively affected. This includes physical injury (跌親 dit3 can1, 'fell and got hurt'), illness (凍親 dung3 can1, 'caught a cold'), or psychological states (嚇親 haak3 can1, 'startled').
  • Intent vs. Result: While often used for accidents, the agent (the person doing the action) can still be acting intentionally. The particle 親 (can1) describes the result on the victim, not necessarily the intent of the doer.
  • Word Order: For transitive verbs, the object follows the particle: Verb + 親 + Object. For example, 嚇親我 (haak3 can1 ngo5, 'scared me').
  • Redundancy with 咗: Because 親 (can1) already implies a completed result, it is rarely used with the aspect marker 咗 (zo2). Using them together is usually considered redundant in colloquial speech.

Common Verb Pairings:
1. Physical Impact: 撞親 (zong6 can1, 'bumped/hit'), 仆親 (puk1 can1, 'tripped/fell flat').
2. Environmental: 熝親 (luk6 can1, 'scalded'), 辣親 (naat3 can1, 'burned by a surface').
3. Sudden States: 悶親 (mun6 can1, 'bored someone'), 哽親 (gang2 can1, 'choked').

Examples (4)

  1. 小心啲呀，費事跌親。

    Be careful, so you don't fall and hurt yourself.

    Word by Word: Small heart a-bit [particle], avoid fall [hurt-particle].

    跌 (dit3) means 'to fall'. Adding 親 (can1) specifies that the fall results in an injury.

  2. 你突然間行出嚟，嚇親我呀！

    You walked out so suddenly, you startled me!

    Word by Word: You sudden-time walk out come, scare [hurt-particle] me [particle]!

    嚇 (haak3) means 'to scare'. 嚇親 (haak3 can1) describes the negative state of being startled or shocked.

  3. 着多件衫啦，費事凍親。

    Wear more clothes, so you don't catch a cold.

    Word by Word: Wear more [classifier] shirt [particle], avoid cold [hurt-particle].

    凍 (dung3) means 'cold'. 凍親 (dung3 can1) refers to the adverse result of being cold, i.e., catching a chill or getting sick.

  4. 我頭先撞親個頭。

    I just bumped my head.

    Word by Word: I just-now bump [hurt-particle] [classifier] head.

    撞 (zong6) is 'to bump'. When used with a body part, 親 (can1) indicates that the bump caused pain or injury.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding 咗 (zo2) after 親 (can1).

    Different Meaning我跌親咗呀。
    我跌親呀。

    我跌親咗呀 can be heard, but 咗 (zo2) with 親 (can1) is usually redundant because 親 already implies the result happened. In natural speech 親 is usually used alone.

  • Thinking 親 (can1) can only be used for accidents.

    Different Meaning佢專登打親我。
    佢專登打我。

    佢專登打親我 is natural. 親 (can1) often marks accidents, but it can also stress that the person was hurt, even when the act was on purpose. 佢專登打我 just says he hit me on purpose.

  • Confusing the simple completion of an action with the adverse result.

    我跌親，但係冇事。
    我跌咗，但係冇事。

    If you fall but are not hurt, you should use the perfective marker 咗 (zo2). Using 親 (can1) specifically tells the listener that you suffered an injury or negative impact. You wouldn't say 'I fell-and-got-hurt, but I'm fine'.

How It Connects

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親（受損）Level 3Do It and Get Hurt

Learn This First

To understand the adversative use of 親 (can1), learners need to be familiar with the basic structure of Cantonese verbs followed by particles. Specifically, they should understand the concept of resultative complements, as 親 (can1) acts as a specific type of resultative that indicates an accidental or harmful outcome (like 'falling and hurting oneself').