起碼

At Minimum

Level 3Sounds Like hei2 maa5

起碼 (hei2 maa5) means 'at least' or 'at minimum'. It is the standard colloquial way to express a bottom-line requirement in daily Cantonese conversation.

How It Works

起碼 (hei2 maa5) is a versatile tool in spoken Cantonese. Its usage can be broken down into three main categories:

1. Placement with Quantities and Clauses: While it commonly precedes a number and classifier (e.g., 起碼三個 hei2 maa5 saam1 go3 - 'at least three'), it is also a flexible sentence-level adverb. You can place it at the start of a clause to qualify a whole statement, such as 起碼佢肯認錯 (hei2 maa5 keoi5 hang2 jing6 co3) - 'At least he's willing to admit he's wrong'.

2. With Verbs and the '都' (dou1) Pattern: When suggesting a minimum action, 起碼 is very frequently paired with the adverb 都 (dou1) later in the sentence to add emphasis and natural flow. For example: 你起碼都同我講聲呀 (nei5 hei2 maa5 dou1 tung4 ngo5 gong2 seng1 aa3) - 'You should at least tell me'.

3. As an Adjective: When followed by the particle 嘅 (ge3), it means 'basic' or 'elementary'. To sound more natural and emphatic, speakers often use the form 最 (zeoi3)起碼嘅 (zeoi3 hei2 maa5 ge3) to mean 'the very minimum' or 'the most basic', as in 最起碼嘅禮貌 (zeoi3 hei2 maa5 ge3 lai5 maau6) - 'the most basic politeness'.

Register Note: This is a highly colloquial term. In formal written contexts, speakers usually switch to 至少 (zi3 siu2).

Examples (4)

  1. 去機場起碼要一個鐘。

    It takes at least an hour to get to the airport.

    Word by Word: Go airport at-least need one [classifier] hour.

    Here, 起碼 (hei2 maa5) modifies the time duration 'one hour' to set a minimum expectation.

  2. 我幫咗你咁多，你起碼都請我食餐飯啦！

    I've helped you so much, you should at least treat me to a meal!

    Word by Word: I help [perfective] you so much, you at-least also invite me eat [classifier] meal [particle]!

    In this context, 起碼 (hei2 maa5) expresses a social expectation or a 'bottom line' for gratitude.

  3. 呢度起碼有五十人。

    There are at least fifty people here.

    Word by Word: This place at-least have five ten people.

    起碼 (hei2 maa5) is used here for a conservative estimation of quantity.

  4. 做人起碼要有啲禮貌㗎嘛。

    As a person, you should at least have some politeness, you know.

    Word by Word: Be person at-least need have some politeness [particles].

    This demonstrates 起碼 (hei2 maa5) used to define a basic moral or social requirement.

Common Mistakes

  • Placing 起碼 after the quantity or verb.

    Different Meaning要一個鐘起碼。
    起碼要一個鐘。

    起碼 normally comes before the value or action it sets a minimum for, as in 起碼要一個鐘. Saying 要一個鐘起碼 with it at the end can be heard as an afterthought in speech, but the front position is the usual one.

  • Using '起碼' in formal writing or news reports.

    Different Meaning起碼有三千人受災。
    至少有三千人受災。

    起碼 is natural in speech and understood in writing, but 至少 (zi3 siu2) is the more formal choice for news or serious reports.

How It Connects

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起碼Level 3At Minimum

Learn This First

To use '起碼' (at minimum), you need to be comfortable with basic Cantonese sentence structure and how to express quantities using numbers and classifiers. It is often paired with the modal verb '要' (need/must) to indicate a minimum requirement.

Words in This Pattern

起码