V+成

In Cantonese, resultative complements tell us the outcome of an action. V+成 highlights the attainment of a goal after some uncertainty or effort, or a transformation.

Pronunciation Rule:
The pronunciation of 成 depends primarily on the register (colloquial vs. formal). In everyday spoken Cantonese, especially in grammar patterns like potential forms (V+得/唔+成) or attaining a goal, it is usually pronounced colloquially as seng4. In established formal compound words or when meaning a transformation ('into'), it is pronounced as sing4. Note: Because 'sing4' is the default dictionary reading, you will frequently hear native speakers mix these up in casual speech (e.g., pronouncing 搞成咁 as gaau2 seng4 gam2). Don't worry if the pronunciations bleed into one another.

1. Attaining a Goal (seng4):
It is most frequently paired with verbs involving transactions or negotiations. Note: When expressing an affirmative completed action, this pattern is frequently paired with the perfective marker 咗 (zo2) or a sentence-final particle like 喇 (laa3), e.g., 傾成咗 (king1 seng4 zo2). However, it can also be used without 咗 as a modifier (e.g., 傾成嘅生意 - a successfully negotiated deal).

• 傾成 (king1 seng4): To successfully negotiate/reach a deal.
• 做成 (zou6 seng4): To successfully complete a task or 'pull off' a deal. Note: This is different from the formal compound verb 造成 (zou6 sing4), which means 'to cause' (e.g., cause an accident).
• 簽成 (cim1 seng4): To successfully sign (a contract/agreement).

2. Potential Form (seng4):
This pattern is very common in the potential construction to say whether something can or cannot be pulled off:

• V + 得 + 成 (dak1 seng4): Able to pull it off.
• V + 唔 + 成 (m4 seng4): Unable to pull it off (it fell through).
• 搞得成 / 搞唔成 (gaau2 dak1 seng4 / gaau2 m4 seng4): Able/unable to organize or pull something off. Note: As an affirmative resultative complement, 搞成 is rarely used to mean success; it usually means 'to result in a state', like 搞成咁 (gaau2 sing4 gam2 - result in such a mess. As mentioned above, you will hear both sing4 and seng4 here).

This is also very commonly used to express that a planned event or trip fell through:

• 去唔成 (heoi3 m4 seng4): Unable to go (the trip fell through).

Note: When a verb takes an object, the object normally comes after the complement. The formula is Verb + 得/唔 + 成 + Object (e.g., 去唔成旅行 - unable to go on the trip; 結唔成婚 - unable to get married).

3. Question Forms (seng4):
You can ask about the status of pulling something off in two main ways:

• A-not-A (Potential): Use V + 唔 + V + 得成 to ask if something can be pulled off (e.g., 去唔去得成？ - Can you make it to the trip?).
• Completion: Use V + 成 + 未 to ask if it has been successfully completed yet (e.g., 單生意傾成未呀？ - Has the deal been successfully negotiated yet?).

4. Asking 'How did it turn out?' (seng4):
You can use V + 成點 (seng4 dim2) to ask about the outcome of an ongoing or completed process. In these 'outcome' questions, 'seng4' is the standard colloquial pronunciation.

• 傾成點呀？ (king1 seng4 dim2 aa3?): How did the negotiation go?
• 考成點呀？ (haau2 seng4 dim2 aa3?): How did the exam turn out?

5. Transformation (sing4):
When followed by a noun, V + 成 means 'to turn into' or 'to transform into'.

• 變成 (bin3 sing4): To become / turn into.
• 翻譯成 (faan1 jik6 sing4): To translate into.

6. Nuance vs. V+到 (dou2):
While both indicate success, 成 (seng4) emphasizes the success or failure of plans, logistics, or negotiations. 到 (dou2) emphasizes physical ability or reaching a destination. For example, 去唔成 (heoi3 m4 seng4) means you couldn't go because plans were canceled or fell through, whereas 去唔到 (heoi3 m4 dou2) means you were physically unable to go or couldn't reach the destination.