咖啡
gaa³ fe¹
The Cantonese word for coffee is 咖啡 (gaa³ fe¹).
咖啡 is the standard and most commonly used term for coffee in Cantonese. In Cantonese, the verb used for consuming coffee is 飲 (jam2), which literally means 'to drink'.
Meaning: beverage (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
gaa³ fe¹
Did you know?
- Cantonese speakers often use the term 走 (zau2), meaning 'to walk' or 'to leave', to request a drink without milk, such as 走奶 (zau2 naai5) for black coffee.
- You can order a 鴛鴦 (jyun1 joeng1), which literally means 'mandarin ducks'. This is a popular Cantonese beverage that mixes coffee and tea in one cup.
- The characters used in 咖啡 are not native to the Chinese language but were specifically chosen to represent foreign sounds.
Examples in context
- 我飲緊咖啡。I am drinking coffee.This sentence is useful for describing the action of drinking 咖啡.Tatoeba #1343166 by nickyeow, translation #1392478 by CC
- 我想飲杯咖啡。I would like to have a cup of coffee.This sentence is useful for requesting a cup of 咖啡.Tatoeba #1708824 by nickyeow, translation #454413 by saasmath
- 我唔鍾意飲咖啡。I don't like coffee.This sentence is useful for expressing a dislike for 咖啡.Tatoeba #410656 by nickyeow, translation #33536 by CK
- 63 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two colleagues are talking at the office.
- 俊傑 Chun Kit曉彤，你想唔想去買咖啡？hiu tung, nei soeng m soeng heoi maai gaa fe?曉彤, do you want to go buy coffee?
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung好呀，我想飲冰咖啡。hou aa, ngo soeng jam bing gaa fe.Sure, I want to drink iced coffee.
- 俊傑 Chun Kit我都一樣，走啦。ngo dou jat joeng, zau laa.Me too, let's go.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung好，我哋快啲行。hou, ngo dei faai di hang.Okay, let's walk quickly.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “coffee” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
