Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 堂大佬 | tong⁴ daai⁶ lou² |
| 堂細佬 / 堂细佬 | tong⁴ sai³ lou² |
| 堂家姐 | oFBD |
| 堂妹 | MBS |
| 表哥 | biu² go¹ |
| 表弟 | yMSiS or yFZS |
| 表姐 | biu² ze² |
| 表妹 | yMSiD or FZD |
In Cantonese, the word used for cousin depends on whether the cousin is related through your father's brothers or through your mother's side and your father's sisters. Terms beginning with 堂 refer to paternal cousins who share the same paternal surname (children of your father's brothers). Terms beginning with 表 refer to cousins related through your mother's side or your father's sisters.
Which one should you use?
The terms are distinguished by two factors: the lineage and the age/gender relative to the speaker. Use 堂 for children of your father's brothers and 表 for all other cousins (maternal or children of father's sisters). Within these groups, the specific term identifies the cousin's gender and whether they are older or younger than you. For example, 表哥 is an older male cousin, while 表妹 is a younger female cousin.
How does it change in a sentence?
The terms incorporate specific characters to denote age and gender relative to the speaker. The character 哥 denotes an elder brother, 弟 denotes a younger brother, 姐 denotes an elder sister and 妹 denotes a younger sister.
How do you pronounce it?
tong⁴ daai⁶ lou²
Did you know?
- The character 堂 used in paternal cousin terms, such as in 堂妹, literally refers to a 'hall' or 'ancestral hall'. This implies that these cousins belong to the same ancestral lineage and share the same family home or temple.
- While 表 cousins are technically relatives, the word 表 originally implied 'outside' the immediate family core because they did not share the father's surname.
- In traditional Cantonese culture, you would rarely call a cousin by their given name, instead using their specific title like 表姐 as a direct form of address.
Examples in context
Example conversation
Two friends are looking at a photo of a family gathering.
- 子健 Tsz Kin呢個係我個堂大佬。ni1 go3 hai6 ngo5 go3 tong4 daai6 lo2.This is my cousin.
- 美玲 Mei Ling佢係咪做醫生呀？keoi5 hai6 mai6 zou6 ji1 sang1 aa3?Is he a doctor?
- 子健 Tsz Kin係，我個堂大佬喺醫院做嘢。hai6, ngo5 go3 tong4 daai6 lo2 hai2 ji1 jyun2 zou6 je5.Yes, my cousin works in a hospital.
- 美玲 Mei Ling真係好叻呀！zan1 hai6 hou2 lek1 aa3!That's really impressive!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cousin” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
