瘦
sau³
The Cantonese word for skinny is 瘦 (sau³).
瘦 is used to describe someone or something as thin or skinny. It can be applied to people, animals or even meat that contains very little fat.
Meaning: thin (adj)
Which one should you use?
While 瘦 is the standard term for thin or skinny, other forms exist for specific nuances. For example, 瘦瘦 is a colloquial way to describe someone as skinny, whereas 纖瘦 and 苗條 are more specific terms for being slim or slender.
How does it change in a sentence?
To express that someone is 'very skinny', you can place the adverb 好 (hou2) before the adjective to form 好瘦 (hou2 sau3). Additionally, you can use the structure 瘦到…
How do you pronounce it?
sau³
Did you know?
- While 瘦 describes physical thinness, Cantonese uses different words for 'thin' when describing the thickness of a slice of bread or a piece of paper, rather than a body.
- Because 苗條 carries a positive connotation of being 'slim', calling a woman 瘦 might inadvertently sound like you are saying she looks 'scrawny' or 'unhealthy'.
- The word 瘦 can be used as a verb in certain contexts to mean 'to lose weight' or 'to become thin', rather than just being a static description.
Examples in context
- 佢個人好纖瘦，好似模特咁。He is very skinny, just like a model.
- 佢好瘦瘦嘅，屬於那種骨感類型。He is very skinny, belonging to the slim type.
- 佢個人好瘦。keoi5 go3 jan4 hou2 sau3.He is very thin.
- 你最近瘦咗好多。nei5 zeoi3 gan6 sau3 zo2 hou2 do1.You have lost a lot of weight lately.
- 呢隻貓瘦到好似骨咁。nei1 zek3 maau1 sau3 dou3 hou2 ci5 gwat1 gam2.This cat is so skinny it looks like bone.
Example conversation
Two friends are chatting at a cafe about a mutual acquaintance.
- 志強 Chi Keung你見唔見到阿明？佢好瘦呀。nei5 gin3 m4 gin3 dou3 aa3 ming4? keoi5 hou2 sau3 aa3.Have you seen Ah Ming? He is very thin.
- 美玲 Mei Ling係呀，佢最近好似冇食嘢咁。hai6 aa3, keoi5 zeoi3 gan6 hou2 ci5 mou5 sik6 je5 gam2.Yes, he looks like he hasn't been eating lately.
- 志強 Chi Keung佢個人瘦到睇落好似病咗咁。keoi5 go3 jan4 sau3 dou3 tai2 lok6 hou2 ci5 beng6 zo2 gam2.He is so skinny that he looks ill.
- 美玲 Mei Ling我都要去睇下佢。ngo5 dou1 jiu3 heoi3 tai2 haa5 keoi5.I should go see him too.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “skinny” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
