好

1. The Function of 好 (hou2) as a Structural Marker
Unlike English, where adjectives require a copula ('The tea is hot'), Cantonese adjectives express their own states (functioning as stative verbs, see adjective concepts). Do not use the verb 係 (hai6) (to be) to link a subject to an adjective. 我係好忙 (ngo5 hai6 hou2 mong4) is incorrect unless you are strongly affirming or arguing a point (e.g., 'I AM busy!'). Positive standalone adjectives cannot easily exist on their own in standard statements. The language requires a degree modifier to ground the predicate adjective. The standard, default modifier used for this purpose is 好 (hou2).

2. Neutral vs. Emphatic Meaning

• Unstressed 好 (hou2): When spoken with neutral, unstressed pronunciation, 好 loses its literal meaning of 'very' and simply fulfills a grammatical requirement. 我好忙 (ngo5 hou2 mong4) translates directly to 'I am busy'.
• Stressed 好 (hou2): If spoken with prosodic emphasis, the literal degree meaning of 'very' or 'really' is restored. Speaker intensity can also be raised using adverbs like 非常 (fei1 soeng4) ('extremely'), 真係 (zan1 hai6) ('really'), or 太 (taai3) ('too'), or by doubling 好 to 好好 (hou2 hou2) (e.g., 好好食 hou2 hou2 sik6 = 'very, very delicious'). Conversely, a moderate or softened degree can be expressed using 幾 (gei2) ('quite' or 'pretty').
• Bare Adjective (Subject + Adj): Leaving out 好 altogether (e.g., 我忙 ngo5 mong4) sounds abrupt and implies a contrast (e.g., 'I am busy [as opposed to someone else]'). However, 好 is regularly omitted in comparative constructions with 過 (gwo3) (e.g., 貴過 gwai3 gwo3), in question structures like Adj唔Adj (e.g., 忙唔忙 mong4 m4 mong4), or when extent suffixes like 得滯 (dak1 zai6) are attached (e.g., 忙得滯 mong4 dak1 zai6).

3. Interaction with Negation
Because 好 serves as a structural placeholder in positive statements, it is removed in simple negative sentences. Use 唔 (m4) + Adjective (e.g., 我唔忙 ngo5 m4 mong4 = 'I am not busy'). If you want to say 'not very', use 唔係好 (m4 hai6 hou2) + Adjective. Do not use 唔好 (m4 hou2) to mean 'not very'; preverbally 唔好 functions as a prohibition meaning 'don't', while as a predicate it means 'not good' or 'bad' (e.g., 身體唔好 sam1 tai2 m4 hou2 = 'health is poor/not good').

4. Modifying Nouns (Attributive Adjectives)
好 is also heavily used as a structural marker when adjectives modify nouns. When placing an adjective before a noun, you typically need 好 and the particle 嘅 (ge3). For example, 'a very beautiful shirt' is 好靚嘅衫 (hou2 leng3 ge3 saam1). Short, common pairs such as 靚衫 (leng3 saam1) need neither 好 nor 嘅.