晒

1. Position and Usage
The particle 晒 (saai3) always follows the verb or adjective. If there is a resultative complement like 完 (jyun4) or 走 (zau2), 晒 usually follows it. You may also see the character variant 嗮 in some texts.

2. Object Position
When there is an object, 晒 usually comes BEFORE the object: Verb + 晒 + Object. This applies even if the object is a pronoun (e.g., 食晒佢 sik6 saai3 keoi5 'ate it all'). However, Cantonese frequently moves the object to the beginning of the sentence (topicalization), so you will often hear patterns like 啲飯食晒 (di1 faan6 sik6 saai3 'the rice is all eaten').

3. Quantifying Objects and Subjects
With transitive verbs, it indicates the action was done to all objects (e.g., 食晒 sik6 saai3 'ate all'). With intransitive verbs, it indicates the whole subject group performed the action (e.g., 走晒 zau2 saai3 'all left'). While the adverb 都 (dou1) can be added for emphasis, 晒 alone is perfectly sufficient to quantify the subject.

4. Combining with 咗 (zo2)
Because 晒 inherently implies completion, adding the perfective marker 咗 (zo2) is often redundant. Simply using Verb + 晒 is usually the safest and most natural choice. While some textbooks teach Verb + 晒 + 咗, stacking them is generally awkward or avoided in standard Cantonese, though you might hear various combinations in colloquial speech.

5. Pairing with 喇 (laa3)
Because 晒 indicates that an action has been completed or a state has changed, native speakers often pair it with the sentence-final particle 喇 (laa3). For example, 啲飯食晒喇 (di1 faan6 sik6 saai3 laa3) means 'the rice is all eaten now'.

6. Potential Construction: 'Can/Cannot Finish'
A very common pattern is the potential construction V + 得/唔 + 晒. V + 唔 + 晒 (saai3) means 'cannot finish all' or 'too much to complete' (e.g., 食唔晒 sik6 m4 saai3 'cannot eat it all'). Its positive counterpart is V + 得 + 晒 (e.g., 食得晒 sik6 dak1 saai3 'able to eat it all'). You will often hear these combined in questions like 食唔食得晒呀？ (sik6 m4 sik6 dak1 saai3 aa3? 'Can you eat it all?').

7. Degree and Adjectives
When attached to adjectives, it acts as an intensifier meaning 'completely' or 'totally' (e.g., 錯晒 co3 saai3 'completely wrong'). A very common slang expression is 大晒 (daai6 saai3), which literally means 'completely big' but is used to mean 'invincible' or 'having the final say'.

8. Mental and Cognitive Verbs
When used with verbs of mental state or perception, 晒 means 'completely' or 'entirely' rather than quantifying a physical object. Common examples include 明白晒 (ming4 baak6 saai3 'completely understand') and 唔記得晒 (m4 gei3 dak1 saai3 'completely forgot').

9. The 'Nothing But' Nuance
When paired with 埋 (maai4) in the form 埋晒 (maai4 saai3), it can carry a dismissive nuance, implying something is 'nothing but' or 'entirely' a certain way. For example, 做埋晒啲無聊嘢 (zou6 maai4 saai3 di1 mou4 liu4 je5) means 'doing nothing but useless things'.

10. Politeness
It is famously used in polite phrases to mean 'very much' (literally: 'completely'). Use 唔該晒 (m4 goi1 saai3) to thank someone for a service or favor, and 多謝晒 (do1 ze6 saai3) to thank someone for a gift or compliment.

11. Standalone Verb
Note that 晒 can also function as a standalone verb meaning 'to bask in the sun' (e.g., 晒太陽 saai3 taai3 joeng4) or 'to show off' (e.g., 晒命 saai3 meng6). Do not confuse this with the suffix usage!