手錶 / 手表
sau² biu¹
The Cantonese word for a watch is 手錶 / 手表 (sau² biu¹). If unsure, use 手錶 / 手表. Wiktionary also lists 錶 / 表 (biu¹).
Meaning: portable or wearable timepiece (noun)
Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 手錶 / 手表 | sau² biu¹ |
| 錶 / 表 | biu¹ |
The term refers to a portable or wearable timepiece. When you want to describe the action of watching something, you should use the related verb forms 看 or 睇.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 手錶 is composed of the character for 'hand' (手) and the character for 'watch/clock' (錶), literally meaning 'hand watch'.
Which one should you use?
While 錶 or 表 can refer to a timepiece in a general sense, adding the character 手 (hand) specifically specifies a wearable watch like a wristwatch. For any kind of timekeeping device, the more formal term 鐘錶 is used.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
sau² biu¹
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use the noun for a timepiece, 手錶, as a verb. To express the action of 'to watch' or 'to look', you must use the verb 睇.
Did you know?
- The character 表 can mean 'table' or 'list' in addition to 'watch'. In modern Cantonese, you will see it used for things like 'price lists' or 'schedules'.
- When describing a watch that is 'fast' or 'slow', Cantonese speakers use the same adjectives they use for people's walking speed, 快 and 慢.
- To say 'to check the time', Cantonese speakers often say 睇錶, which literally means 'look at watch'. They rarely use the word for 'time' in this specific phrase.
Example sentences for Cantonese are not verified yet.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “watch” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
