係咪/係唔係

Is It the Case That …?

Level 1Sounds Like hai6 mi1 / hai6 m4 hai6

係咪 (hai6 mai6) and its uncontracted form 係唔係 (hai6 m4 hai6) mean 'Is it the case that...?', 'Are you...?', or tag '..., right?' at the end of a sentence. 係咪 is a natural spoken fusion of 唔 (m4) + 係 (hai6).

How It Works

1. Structure and Sound Fusion
In Cantonese, 係 (hai6, 'to be') combined with 唔 (m4, 'not') forms the A-not-A question pattern 係唔係 (hai6 m4 hai6). In daily speech, 唔係 rapidly fuses into 咪 (mai6, Low Flat Tone 6), giving 係咪 (hai6 mai6). Both forms are grammatically identical, but 係咪 is the standard in casual conversation while 係唔係 sounds more deliberate.

2. Three Primary Functions

  • Direct Copular Question: Placed before a noun phrase to check identity or classification.
    Example: 你係咪學生呀？ (Are you a student?)
  • Propositional Truth-Checker: Placed before a verb phrase or clause to check whether an entire premise is true.
    Example: 你哋聽日係咪去日本呀？ (Is it the case that you guys are going to Japan tomorrow?)
  • Sentence-Final Tag Question: Appended to a declarative sentence (often with 呀 aa3) to confirm a fact.
    Example: 你識講廣東話，係咪呀？ (You know how to speak Cantonese, right?)

3. Difference from Neutral Verb Questions
Asking 你去唔去？ (nei5 heoi3 m4 heoi3?) is completely neutral ('Are you going or not?'). Adding 係咪 before the verb phrase (你係咪去？) implies you already heard or suspect they are going and are seeking confirmation.

4. How to Answer
To confirm, answer 係 (hai6, 'yes / it is'). To deny, answer 唔係 (m4 hai6, 'no / it is not'). Note that 咪 cannot stand alone as an answer. For negative questions, Cantonese uses truth-value agreement: respond with 係 if the underlying statement is true, or 唔係 if it is false.

Examples (4)

  1. 你係咪學生呀？

    Are you a student?

    Word by Word: you be-not-be student SFP

    Direct copular question checking identity or classification.

  2. 佢係唔係香港人嚟㗎？

    Is s/he a Hong Konger?

    Word by Word: s/he be-not-be Hong Kong person coming SFP

    Uses the uncontracted form 係唔係 (hai6 m4 hai6) in deliberate or clear speech.

  3. 你哋聽日係咪去日本呀？

    Are you guys going to Japan tomorrow?

    Word by Word: you-plural tomorrow be-not-be go Japan SFP

    Places 係咪 before the verb phrase to verify an action or plan.

  4. 你聽日有空，係咪呀？

    You are free tomorrow, right?

    Word by Word: you tomorrow have free-time, be-not-be SFP

    係咪 placed sentence-finally as a confirmation tag question.

Common Mistakes

  • Confusing copular 係 (hai6) with locative 喺 (hai2)

    你喺咪喺屋企呀？
    你係咪喺屋企呀？

    The truth-checking question frame always uses 係咪 (hai6 mai6), not 喺 (hai2). The locative verb 喺 (hai2, 'at/in') comes after 係咪 when asking about location.

  • Pronouncing 咪 with Tone 5 instead of Tone 6

    你係咪(mai5)去呀？
    你係咪(mai6)去呀？

    The fused syllable 咪 in 係咪 is pronounced with Low Flat Tone 6 (mai6). Tone 5 (mai5) belongs to the prohibitive word 咪 meaning 'don't'.

  • Using 係咪 for a plain question about what someone does.

    Different Meaning你係咪食飯呀？
    你食唔食飯呀？

    你係咪食飯呀？ is a good sentence, but it means ‘Is it true that you are eating?’ and expects the answer yes. To simply ask whether someone eats or wants to eat, use the A-not-A form 食唔食飯.

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係咪/係唔係Level 1Is It the Case That …?

Learn This First

To understand '係咪' or '係唔係', a learner first needs to know the verb 'to be' (係) and its negation (唔係). Furthermore, they should be familiar with the general Cantonese 'Verb-not-Verb' question construction, as this pattern is the specific way to ask 'is it the case that...' using that grammatical logic.

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Words in This Pattern

系咪系唔系