先 (sin1)

Sentence-final First

Level 2Sounds Like sin1

In Cantonese, to say you are doing an action 'first', you place 先 (sin1) after the verb phrase (e.g., 我食飯先 ngo5 sik6 faan6 sin1 - 'I'll eat first'). This postverbal word order differs from English and Mandarin.

How It Works

Understanding Postverbal 先 (sin1)

In Cantonese, 先 (sin1) functions as a postverbal adverbial particle indicating temporal precedence ('first', 'before doing anything else').

1. Placement After the Entire Verb Phrase
Unlike English ('First I'll eat') or Mandarin (我先吃), Cantonese places 先 (sin1) at the end of the entire verb phrase, following any direct objects, aspect markers, or directional complements:
• Subject + Verb + Object + 先 (sin1)
• 我食飯先。 (ngo5 sik6 faan6 sin1) = I'll eat first.

2. Stacking with Sentence-Final Particles
When sentence-final particles such as 啦 (laa1) or 喇 (laa3) are attached to the clause, 先 (sin1) sits immediately before them:
• 食飯先啦。 (sik6 faan6 sin1 laa1) = Go ahead and eat first.

3. Provisional Actions: 住先 (zyu6 sin1)
When paired with the durative aspect marker 住 (zyu6), the combination 住先 (zyu6 sin1) expresses doing an action temporarily or 'for the time being':
• 你坐住先啦。 (nei5 co5 zyu6 sin1 laa1) = Have a seat for now.

4. Pragmatic Uses in Conversation
• Polite departure announcement: 我走先。 (ngo5 zau2 sin1) = I'll be off now / I'll head out first.
• Establishing a necessary premise in questions: 你識唔識做先？ (nei5 sik1 m4 sik1 zou6 sin1?) = [First tell me:] Do you even know how to do it?

Note on Preverbal 先: While postverbal placement is standard for 'first', preverbal 先 exists as a shorthand for 先至 (sin1 zi3) ('only then'), in set proverbs (先到先得 sin1 dou3 sin1 dak1 - 'first come, first served'), or paired structures (先...然後... sin1... jin4 hau6...).

Examples (5)

  1. 你食飯先啦。

    Go ahead and eat first.

    Word by Word: You eat rice first [suggestion].

    Shows how 先 (sin1) comes after the object 飯 (faan6) and before the sentence-final particle 啦 (laa1).

  2. 我哋等佢返嚟先。

    Let's wait for him to come back first.

    Word by Word: We wait him return-come first.

    Demonstrates setting up a prerequisite action before taking further steps.

  3. 你同個 BB 玩住先啦。

    Play with the baby for the time being.

    Word by Word: You with classifier baby play [durative] first [suggestion].

    Uses the 住先 (zyu6 sin1) combination to express doing something temporarily for now.

  4. 我走先喇，拜拜！

    I'll be going now, bye-bye!

    Word by Word: I leave first [change of state], bye-bye!

    A standard Cantonese phrase used when taking leave or exiting a social situation.

  5. 你識唔識做先？

    First off, do you even know how to do it?

    Word by Word: You know-not-know do first?

    Illustrates the pragmatic function of asking the hearer to confirm a required prerequisite.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 先 before the verb when you mean 'first'.

    Different Meaning我先食飯。
    我食飯先。

    我先食飯 is a natural sentence and can mean 'I am eating first' (before others), or 'only then' with a time. To say 'let me eat first / for now' as a plan or request, the usual way is 先 after the verb phrase: 我食飯先.

  • Placing 先 (sin1) between the verb and its direct object.

    我食先飯。
    我食飯先。

    先 (sin1) must go after the entire verb-object unit (食飯), not split between verb and object.

How It Connects

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

先 (sin1)Level 2Sentence-final First

Learn This First

To understand '先' (sin1) as 'first', learners need to be comfortable with basic Cantonese sentence structure and the concept of verbal particles, as this pattern places the word 'first' after the verb, which is the opposite of English word order.

Words in This Pattern