癌症
In Cantonese, cancer is translated as 癌症. Wiktionary also lists 癌 (ngaam⁴).
Meaning: disease of uncontrolled cellular proliferation (noun)
Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 癌症 | |
| 癌 | ngaam⁴ |
The term refers to the disease of uncontrolled cellular proliferation. In informal conversation, speakers may use the phrase 癌症 咁樣嘢 or 癌 咁樣嘢 to mean "this kind of thing," which serves to soften the mention of the disease.
Which one should you use?
The single character 癌 is often used in colloquial speech or as a prefix for specific types of cancer. In contrast, 癌症 is the full, formal noun for the disease.
How does it change in a sentence?
To express that someone 'has cancer', you use the verb 有 (jau5) with 癌症, forming the phrase 有癌症.
Did you know?
- In some Cantonese dialects, the word for crab 蟹 and the word for cancer 癌 are phonetically similar, reinforcing the historical link between the two.
- In Cantonese, the character 癌 is part of a larger system of medical terminology where the radical 疒 (the 'disease' radical) acts as a visual marker. If you see this radical on the left side of a character, it almost always indicates a medical condition or illness.
- Because 癌 is considered a 'heavy' or unlucky word, Cantonese speakers may use a euphemism like 'the big illness' when speaking with elderly relatives.
Examples in context
- 佢唔係癌症死㗎。He did not die of cancer.This sentence illustrates the use of 癌 to describe a cause of death.Tatoeba #397161 by nickyeow, translation #289603 by CK
- 我哋唔知道癌症嘅成因係咩。We don't know what causes cancer.This sentence shows how to discuss the causes of 癌症.Tatoeba #5373632 by nickyeow, translation #680482 by Source_VOA
- 斯里拉馬納 · 馬哈希（1879年12月30日至1950年4月14日），佢死於癌症，當佢嘅弟子問佢有冇痛嘅時候，佢成日答：我身體有痛，佢寫咗本書《我係邊個? 》Sri Ramana Maharshi (30.12.1879-14.04.1950), who died of cancer, when his disciples asked him if he was feeling any pain, he used to reply: There is pain in my body. He wrote the book "Who Am I?"This sentence uses 癌症 to provide biographical details about a person's death.Tatoeba #12908382 by Matthewyau1367, translation #12170243 by carlosalberto
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a relative's health.
- 子健 Tsz Kin我想問下，你個婆婆係唔係患咗癌症？ngo5 soeng2 man6 haa6, nei5 go3 po4 po4 hai6 m4 hai6 waan6 zo2 aam4 zing3?I want to ask, does your grandmother have cancer?
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung係，佢啱啱確診咗癌症。hai6, keoi5 ngaam1 ngaam1 kok3 zin2 zo2 aam4 zing3.Yes, she was just diagnosed with cancer.
- 子健 Tsz Kin好擔心，希望癌症治療會成功。hou2 daam1 san1, hei1 mong4 aam4 zing3 zi1 liu6 wui5 sing4 gung1.I'm so worried, I hope the cancer treatment will be successful.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung多謝你，子健。do1 ze6 nei5, zi2 gin6.Thank you, Zi Jian.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cancer” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
