人
jan⁴
The Cantonese word for person is 人 (jan⁴).
人 is the most common and straightforward term for a person or human being. It can also be used as a suffix in many compound words to denote a person with a certain quality, such as 好人 (good person).
Meaning: specifically a human being (noun)
Which one should you use?
While 人 refers to an individual person, 人類 is used when referring to the human race or humanity as a whole. For counting a single person, 個人 is used to mean a person or one person.
How does it change in a sentence?
When counting a single person, the classifier 個 (go3) is typically used between the number and the noun 人 (jan4).
How do you pronounce it?
jan⁴
Did you know?
- In Cantonese, the word 人 is used in the phrase 人情 (jan4 cing4), which refers to a social debt or a favor that must be repaid to maintain harmony.
- The expression 人情味 (jan4 cing4 mei6) translates to 'the taste of human feeling', describing a warm, compassionate, or hospitable atmosphere.
- When talking about people in a crowd, Cantonese speakers often use 人山人海 (jan4 saan1 jan4 hoi2), which literally means 'mountains of people and seas of people'.
Examples in context
- 我是一個人。I am a person.This sentence demonstrates the use of 人 to state one's identity.Tatoeba #12496906 by jeremyisggg, translation #11294961 by tjmdejesus
- 負責人係邊個？Who is the person in charge?This sentence shows how 人 can be used to refer to a person in charge.Tatoeba #795411 by nickyeow, translation #276697 by CK
- 唔好以貌取人。Don't judge a person by his appearance.This sentence illustrates the use of 人 in a common proverb about judging people.Tatoeba #1774613 by nickyeow, translation #21971 by Swift
- 38 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Ka Yan and Tsz Kin are looking at a crowded street.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan呢度有好多人。ni1 dou6 jau5 hou2 do1 jan4.There are so many people here.
- 子健 Tsz Kin係呀，係邊個喺度嗌？hai6 aa3, hai6 bin1 go3 hai2 dou6 aai3?Yes, who is shouting over there?
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan嗰個人好似好激動。go2 go3 jan4 hou2 ci2 hou2 gik1 dung6.That person seems very agitated.
- 子健 Tsz Kin我哋快啲走啦。ngo5 dei6 faai3 di1 zau2 laa1.Let's leave quickly.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “person” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
