大流行
daai6 lau4 hang4
The Cantonese word for pandemic is 大流行 (daai6 lau4 hang4).
大流行 refers to a disease that affects a wide geographical area and a large proportion of the population. It is used to describe an epidemic or a pandemic.
Meaning: disease that affects a wide geographical area and a large proportion of the population (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of 大 (big/great), 流 (flow/spread) and 行 (to go/act), which literally means a great spreading or outbreak.
How do you pronounce it?
daai6 lau4 hang4
Did you know?
- The word 流行 is more commonly used today to describe something that is 'trendy' or 'fashionable' rather than a disease. Without the qualifier 大 ('big'), a Cantonese speaker might think you are talking about a popular clothing style.
- The term 流行 shares a root with the word for 'currency' or 'circulation' of money. Both ideas describe the act of something moving rapidly from person to person throughout a society.
- When discussing the 'flow' of a pandemic, one might use the verb 蔓延 (maan6 jin4), which specifically describes something spreading like creeping vines.
Examples in context
- 呢個係自2020年3月全球大流行令國際旅遊停頓之後，美國、英國同歐盟嘅旅客首次被允許喺冇檢疫要求嘅情況下去呢個畀陽光錫住嘅國家同佢啲白色嘅島嶼。It is the first time U.S., British and EU travelers are allowed to visit this sun-kissed nation and its white-washed islands without quarantine requirements since March 2020, when the global pandemic brought international travel to a grinding halt.This sentence is useful for discussing how the global pandemic affected international travel.Tatoeba #12908455 by Matthewyau1367, translation #12134944 by Cangarejo
- 近年嚴重嘅疫情令全世界陷入恐慌。In recent years, the serious pandemic has plunged the world into panic.
- 今次嘅大流行對經濟造成巨大衝擊。This pandemic has caused a tremendous impact on the economy.
- 政府正喺度監測緊呢場大流行。Zing fu zing hai dou gaam cuk gan ni coeng daai lau hang.The government is monitoring this pandemic.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
