V+到 (dou3)

Reach / as Far as

Level 2Sounds Like dou3

The postverbal particle 到 (dou3) indicates an endpoint reached in location, time, or extent. It is pronounced in Tone 3 (dou3) to express 'as far as', 'until', or 'so... that...'.

How It Works

The particle 到 (dou3) acts as a directional and extent complement immediately following a verb or stative adjective.

Key Functions:

  • Spatial Endpoint (Verb + 到 + Place): Marks physical movement arriving at a destination. Unlike 喺 (hai2) which marks where an action takes place, 到 (dou3) specifies the destination resulting from movement (e.g., 返到屋企 - 'got home').
  • Temporal Endpoint (Verb + 到 + Time): Marks an action continuing up to a specific time (e.g., 等到聽日 - 'wait until tomorrow').
  • Extent Complement (Adj/Verb + 到 + Result): Shows that a condition reaches a specific degree ('so... that...'). Unlike Mandarin which uses 得 (de) for both extent and manner, Cantonese uses 到 (dou3) for extent (e.g., 搞笑到我笑到肚痛 - 'so funny that I laughed until my stomach hurt') while using 得 (dak1) when forming descriptive manner complements (e.g., 跑得快).

Tone Alert:
Do not confuse 到 (dou3) (Tone 3, endpoint/extent) with 到 (dou2) (Tone 2, achievement/success such as 搵到 'found' or 睇到 'managed to see').

Examples (4)

  1. 我哋行到地鐵站就停啦。

    We walked as far as the subway station and then stopped.

    Word by Word: We walk to subway station then stop [particle].

    Here 到 (dou3) marks the physical spatial destination reached by the action of walking.

  2. 佢尋晚做到凌晨三點先瞓。

    Last night he worked until 3:00 AM before going to sleep.

    Word by Word: He last night work to early morning three o'clock only then sleep.

    Here 到 (dou3) specifies the temporal endpoint up to which the action of working continued.

  3. 個故事搞笑到我笑到肚痛。

    The story was so funny that I laughed until my stomach ached.

    Word by Word: The story funny to I laugh to stomach pain.

    Demonstrates 到 (dou3) twice as an extent complement indicating degree ('so funny that...') and result ('laughed to the point of stomach ache').

  4. 呢班巴士坐到終點站要幾耐？

    How long does it take to ride this bus all the way to the terminal station?

    Word by Word: This class bus ride to terminal station need how long?

    Combines motion verb 坐 (co5) with 到 (dou3) to ask about reaching the final destination.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 喺 (hai2) instead of 到 (dou3) to mark a movement destination.

    我返喺屋企。
    我返到屋企。

    喺 (hai2) marks where an action takes place (preverbal location), but cannot express reaching a destination after movement. Use postverbal 到 (dou3) for motion destinations.

  • Placing the destination preverbally with 到 before the verb.

    我到屋企返。
    我返到屋企。

    When expressing the spatial endpoint of a main motion verb, 到 (dou3) must directly follow the verb stem.

How It Connects

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

V+到 (dou3)Level 2Reach / as Far as

Learn This First

To understand 'V+到 (dou3)' as an endpoint marker, you first need to be comfortable with basic Cantonese word order and how particles are attached to verbs. It is also helpful to understand the basic prepositional use of '到' (meaning 'to' or 'until'), as this pattern simply applies that same logic to a verb to indicate reaching a specific time or place.

Words in This Pattern