冬天
The English word "winter" is translated into Cantonese as 冬天. Wiktionary also lists 冬季.
Meaning: fourth season, marked by short days and the lowest temperatures (noun)
Ways to say it
| Cantonese |
|---|
| 冬天 |
| 冬季 |
The term refers to the fourth season, characterized by short days and the lowest temperatures. You can also use the related verb 過冬 to mean spending the winter, such as spending a holiday in a particular place.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 冬天 is composed of 冬 (winter) and 天 (day/sky/time), literally meaning "winter day" or "winter time".
Which one should you use?
While 冬天 is the common way to say winter, 冬季 is a more formal term often used in written contexts or weather reports to mean the "winter season". Additionally, the phrase 入冬 can be used specifically to describe the onset of the winter season.
Related words
Did you know?
- While 冬天 refers to the season, the word 冬至 (winter solstice) is often treated as a culinary festival where families gather specifically to eat tangyuan, or sweet rice balls.
- In Cantonese, the word 冬 (winter) can also be used as a surname, meaning a person's name could literally translate to 'Winter'.
- In Cantonese culture, the concept of 'winter' is closely tied to the practice of 冬補, which involves eating specific nutrient-dense foods to build strength and resilience against the cold.
Examples in context
- 瑞典冬天個天好黑。It's so dark in Sweden in the winter.This sentence shows how to describe the darkness of the winter in Sweden using 冬天.Tatoeba #5734935 by nickyeow, translation #5528579 by Giselle128F
- 呢度嘅冬天好難捱。Winter weather is extremely hard in this area.This sentence illustrates how to describe the difficulty of the winter in a specific area using 冬天.Tatoeba #12117099 by thesilhouette, translation #3872769 by Amastan
- 一到咗冬天就會落好多雪。We have lots of snow in the winter.This sentence uses 冬天 to describe the occurrence of heavy snow during the season.Tatoeba #672312 by nickyeow, translation #418621 by CK
- 一月喺香港平均氣溫十度，好舒服嘅暖冬。The average temperature in Hong Kong in January is ten degrees, a very comfortable warm winter.
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about the weather while drinking coffee.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung你鍾意夏天定係冬天？nei5 zung1 ji3 haa6 tin1 ding6 hai6 dung1 tin1?Do you like summer or winter?
- 家明 Ka Ming我比較鍾意夏天。ngo5 bei2 gaau3 zung1 ji3 haa6 tin1.I prefer summer.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung點解呀？dim2 gaai2 aa3?Why is that?
- 家明 Ka Ming因為冬天太凍喇。jan1 wai6 dung1 tin1 taai3 dung3 laa3.Because winter is too cold.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “winter” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
