咁滯 (gam3 zai6)
Almost / Nearly
Use 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) after a verb or adjective to say something is 'almost' or 'practically' finished or true. It is colloquial and follows the phrase it modifies, including a time or quantity phrase.
How It Works
1. Meaning and Usage
咁滯 (gam3 zai6) is a hallmark of natural, spoken Cantonese. It indicates that a situation has reached a point so close to completion that the remaining difference is negligible. It translates to 'almost', 'nearly', or 'practically'.
2. Word Order
This is a post-posed modifier. While in English we say 'I almost finished', in Cantonese you say 'I finish almost'.
- English: Almost + Verb
- Cantonese: Verb (+ Completion Marker) + 咁滯
3. Discontinuous Construction (Redundancy)
To build fluency in native-sounding Cantonese, you can use 咁滯 together with 差唔多 (caa1 m4 do1) in the same sentence. This 'double almost' construction provides extra emphasis.
- Example: 差唔多輸晒咁滯 (caa1 m4 do1 syu1 saai3 gam3 zai6) - 'Practically lost it all'.
4. Common Combinations
While it can follow various predicates, it is most naturally used with:
- Quantifiers: 晒 (saai3) (all/completely). Example: 賣晒咁滯 (maai6 saai3 gam3 zai6) - 'Nearly all sold out'.
- Resultatives: 完 (jyun4) (finished). Example: 做完咁滯 (zou6 jyun4 gam3 zai6) - 'Nearly finished doing'.
- Adjectives with Extent: Often follows 到 (dou3). Example: 攰到死咁滯 (gui6 dou3 sei2 gam3 zai6) - 'So tired I nearly died'.
- Time/Quantity: 十年咁滯 (sap6 nin4 gam3 zai6) - 'Nearly ten years'.
5. Register
This pattern belongs to colloquial Cantonese, including written dialogue and informal Cantonese writing. In formal Standard Written Chinese, 幾乎 or 差不多 may express a similar meaning before the predicate. The colloquial form 差唔多 is not itself a neutral Standard Written Chinese replacement.
Examples (5)
- 啲飛賣晒咁滯。
The tickets are nearly all sold out.
Word by Word: Those tickets sell all almost.
Here, 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) follows the completive marker 晒 (saai3) to show the selling process is nearly 100% done.
- 我做完份功課咁滯喇。
I've nearly finished the homework.
Word by Word: I do finish [classifier] homework almost [particle].
咁滯 (gam3 zai6) follows the resultative 完 (jyun4) to indicate the task is all but done.
- 佢哋嚟齊咁滯。
They are nearly all here.
Word by Word: They come all-present almost.
齊 (cai4) means 'all present'. Adding 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) suggests maybe only one or two people are still missing.
- 我等咗你一個鐘咁滯！
I've been waiting for you for nearly an hour!
Word by Word: I wait [aspect] you one [classifier] hour almost!
In this case, 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) modifies a duration of time (一個鐘 jat1 go3 zung1).
- 佢攰到死咁滯。
He is so tired he's nearly dead.
Word by Word: He tired until die almost.
This uses the 到 (dou3) construction to show an extreme state that is 'almost' reached.
Common Mistakes
Placing 咁滯 before the verb.
我咁滯做完喇。我做完咁滯喇。Learners often follow English or Mandarin word order. In Cantonese, 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) must follow the verb phrase.
Confusing 咁滯 with 得滯.
呢件衫貴咁滯。呢件衫貴得滯。得滯 (dak1 zai6) means 'too' or 'excessively'. 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) means 'almost'. If you say '貴咁滯', you are saying it is 'almost expensive' (but not quite), which is rarely what a learner intends.
How It Connects
Learn This First
咁滯 (gam3 zai6) is a post-posed adverbial particle used to mean 'almost' or 'nearly'. It typically follows a verb, an adjective, or a completed action (often marked by 晒). To use it correctly, learners need to be comfortable with basic sentence structures and how particles modify the meaning of a predicate from a trailing position.
- 晒（程度）Fully / Totally
咁滯 is frequently used in conjunction with the completive particle 晒 (meaning 'all' or 'completely') to express that something is 'nearly all' finished.
Level 3 - 就嚟About to Happen
Both patterns deal with the concept of 'almost' or 'about to', but 咁滯 is used after the verb while 就嚟 is used before it; understanding the pre-verbal version helps contrast the usage.
Level 2
Related Patterns
- 差唔多About the Same / Roughly
差唔多 (caa1 m4 do1) also means 'almost' but is placed BEFORE the verb. They are often used together for emphasis: 差唔多做完咁滯 (caa1 m4 do1 zou6 jyun4 gam3 zai6).
Level 2 - 完Terminative Aspect
完 (jyun4) indicates completion; 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) often follows it to mean 'nearly finished'.
Level 2 - 得滯Too … (After the Adjective)
Often confused due to the shared '滯' character, but 得滯 (dak1 zai6) means 'too/excessively' rather than 'almost'.
Level 3 - 到（程度）So Much That
咁滯 (gam3 zai6) often follows an extent complement marked by 到 (dou3) to describe a state that is nearly reached.
Level 3
Words in This Pattern
Sources
Practice 咁滯 (gam3 zai6) in Bubblegum
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