先生
sin¹ saang¹
The Cantonese word for "mister" is 先生 (sin¹ saang¹).
先生 is used as a title for an adult male. It can be used with a surname to mean "Mister," or used on its own to address a man politely as "gentleman" or "sir" in formal settings.
Meaning: title of adult male (noun)
Which one should you use?
In professional or formal contexts, 先生 is used to show respect to a male. In casual settings, people often use titles like Brother (哥哥) or direct names.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Guangdong, China, 伯伯 or 叔叔 are used to address an older man as Uncle/Mister.
How do you pronounce it?
sin¹ saang¹
Did you know?
- While 先生 means 'mister' today, it historically referred to a teacher or a mentor, literally meaning 'born before'.
- Because 先生 can mean 'husband', using it in a sentence without a surname can sometimes cause temporary confusion about whether you are talking about a 'gentleman' or a spouse.
- The characters for 先生 are shared with Japanese 'sensei', but in Cantonese, it is used for any adult male regardless of their profession.
Examples in context
- 呢位係李先生。ni1 wai2 hai6 lei5 sin1 saang1.This is Mr. Lee.
Example conversation
Ka Yan is introducing her colleague to Zi Jian.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan子健，呢位係張先生。zi2 gin6, ni1 wai2 hai6 zoeng1 sin1 saang1.Zi Jian, this is Mr. Cheung.
- 子健 Tsz Kin張先生，你好。zoeng1 sin1 saang1, nei5 hou2.Hello, Mr. Cheung.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan佢係我哋公司嘅經理。keoi5 hai6 ngo5 dei6 gung1 si1 ge3 ging1 lei4.He is our company manager.
- 子健 Tsz Kin好高興認識你。hou2 gou1 hing3 jing6 sik1 nei5.Nice to meet you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “mister” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
