山羊
saan¹ joeng⁴
The Cantonese word for goat is 山羊 (saan¹ joeng⁴).
The term 山羊 is used to refer to the animal. In various compounds or in casual speech, the character 羊 is often used as a shorthand to refer to the animal.
Meaning: animal (noun)
Which one should you use?
While 山羊 specifically refers to the goat, the character 羊 alone can mean sheep or goat depending on the context.
How do you pronounce it?
saan¹ joeng⁴
Did you know?
- The character 羊 is the root of the character 美, which means 'beautiful', suggesting that in ancient times a goat with large horns was considered a sign of beauty.
- In traditional Chinese culture, the character 羊 is a symbol of auspiciousness and prosperity, often appearing in decorations during the Lunar New Year.
- The character 羊 (joeng4) is a pictograph that historically represented the head of a sheep or goat, which is why it is used as a radical in many other Chinese characters related to animals or food.
Examples in context
- 佢啲口氣聞落好似山羊芝士咁。His breath smells like goat cheese.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use 山羊 when discussing the smell of goat cheese.Tatoeba #722491 by nickyeow, translation #482385 by adjusting
Example conversation
Zhiqiang and Xiaotong are visiting a farm.
- 志強 Chi Keung曉彤，你看嗰隻山羊！hiu2 tung4, nei5 hon3 go2 zek3 saan1 joeng4!Xiaotong, look at that goat!
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung佢喺度食緊草。keoi5 hai2 dou6 sik6 gan2 cou2.It is eating grass.
- 志強 Chi Keung我想餵下佢。ngo5 soeng2 wai3 haa5 keoi5.I want to feed it.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung你要問下農場主人先。nei5 jiu3 man6 haa5 nung4 cong4 zyu2 sin1.You should ask the farm owner first.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “goat” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
