咩話 (me1 waa2)

Say That Again?

Level 5Sounds Like me1 waa6

咩話 (me1 waa2) is the standard Cantonese way to say "Pardon?" or "What did you say?" in casual conversation. It is also used to express disbelief or shock.

How It Works

In Cantonese, 咩話 (me1 waa2) serves two primary pragmatic functions:

1. Requesting Repetition: When you didn't hear someone clearly or didn't understand, you use this as a standalone question. It is equivalent to "What?" or "Pardon?" in English.
2. Expressing Shock/Disbelief: When you hear something surprising or outrageous, 咩話 acts as an exclamation of disbelief (e.g., "What?! No way!").

Etymology: The word 咩 (me1) is a common colloquial contraction of 乜嘢 (mat1 je5), meaning "what".

Phonological Note: The tone change is mandatory. While 話 usually means "speech" or "to say" (waa6), in this specific expression, it must be pronounced with a high-rising tone (waa2). Pronouncing it as me1 waa6 sounds like an incomplete sentence rather than a question.

Register: This is a colloquial expression. While extremely common among friends and family, it can sound blunt or slightly rude if used with superiors or in very formal settings. In those cases, use 唔好意思？ (m4 hou2 ji3 si1?) instead.

Examples (3)

  1. 咩話？我聽唔到，呢度好嘈。

    What? I can't hear you; it's very noisy here.

    Word by Word: What word? I hear not-attain, here very noisy.

    Here, 咩話 is used in its primary sense to ask for repetition because the speaker cannot hear.

  2. 咩話！聽日要交報告？你唔係講笑呀嘛？

    What?! The report is due tomorrow? You're not joking, are you?

    Word by Word: What word! Tomorrow need hand-in report? You not is speak joke [particle]?

    In this context, 咩話 expresses shock and disbelief rather than a literal failure to hear the words.

  3. 你頭先講咩話？可唔可以講多次？

    What did you just say? Can you say it one more time?

    Word by Word: You just-now say what word? Can not can say one-more time?

    咩話 can also be placed at the end of a short sentence to specifically ask 'What [words] did you say?'

Common Mistakes

  • Using the wrong tone for 'waa'.

    咩話 (me1 waa6)?
    咩話 (me1 waa2)?

    The character 話 (waa6) must undergo a tone change to Tone 2 (waa2) in this idiomatic expression. Using Tone 6 sounds unnatural and non-idiomatic.

  • Using it as a general pronoun for 'what'.

    我想要咩話。
    我想要乜嘢。

    咩話 specifically refers to 'what was said.' To ask for a physical object or general 'what,' use 乜嘢 (mat1 je5).

  • Saying 咩話？ to a boss or someone you must show respect.

    Different Meaning咩話？
    唔好意思，請你再講多次？

    咩話 is very casual. Using it with a superior can come across as 'Huh?' or 'What?' which may be perceived as disrespectful.

How It Connects

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

咩話 (me1 waa2)Level 5Say That Again?

Learn This First

To understand '咩話', learners need to recognize that '咩' is a colloquial contraction of '乜嘢' (what) and that '話' refers to 'speech' or 'what was said'. Understanding tone changes is also helpful for correctly pronouncing the second syllable.

Words in This Pattern

咩话