佢
keoi⁵feminine, masculine
The Cantonese word for 'she' is 佢 (keoi⁵). Wiktionary also lists 她 (ta¹) and 姖 (keoi⁵).
Meaning: person (pron)
Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 佢 | keoi⁵ | feminine, masculine |
| 她 | ta¹ | formal |
| 姖 | keoi⁵ | rare |
This pronoun is gender-neutral and is used to mean 'he', 'she' or 'it'.
Which one should you use?
The spoken form 佢 is gender-neutral and is used for 'he', 'she' and 'it'. In contrast, the written form 她 is specifically feminine and is used in formal writing to distinguish 'she' from 'he'.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
佢 is the colloquial form. 她 is a formal written form.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The pronoun 佢 functions as both the subject (she/he) and the object (her/him) in a sentence.
How do you pronounce it?
keoi⁵
Did you know?
- While 佢 is gender-neutral in speech, the written character 她 was actually created in the early 20th century to mimic English grammar. Before this, the gender-neutral character 他 was used for everyone in formal writing.
- The character 佢 is almost never used in standard Mandarin Chinese as a pronoun. If a Mandarin speaker sees 佢, they will recognize it as a distinct marker of Cantonese or other Southern dialects.
- In very casual Cantonese, speakers often replace 佢 with the name of the person or a kinship term like 'older sister' even if the person is present. Using the pronoun 佢 can sometimes feel slightly distant or impersonal.
Examples in context
- 佢晏咗起身。She got up late.This sentence uses 佢.Tatoeba #593133 by nickyeow, translation #313150 by CK
- 佢需要過去。She must go there.Tatoeba #4544291 by kaenif, translation #311077 by CK
- 佢開始唱歌。She began to sing.Tatoeba #4544329 by kaenif, translation #312881 by CK
- 佢係我嘅好朋友。She is my good friend.
- 271 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Tsz Kin and Ya Ting are talking about a mutual friend.
- 子健 Tsz Kin佢今日會嚟嗎？keoi5 gam1 jat6 wui5 lai4 maa1?Will she come today?
- 雅婷 Nga Ting佢話唔記得咗。keoi5 waa6 m4 gik3 man6 zo2.She said she forgot.
- 子健 Tsz Kin佢真係好搞笑。keoi5 zan1 hai6 hou2 gaau3 wan2.She is really funny.
- 雅婷 Nga Ting係，佢係咁樣嘅。hai6, keoi5 hai6 gam2 joeng2 ge3.Yes, that's how she is.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “she” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
