Ask any Hongkonger when they'll arrive and you'll hear a whole ecosystem of time words that don't translate cleanly into English. "Later" isn't just later — it could be 陣間, 遲啲, or 就嚟, and each one lands differently. This volume of the Cantonese Dictionary breaks down 12 essential time expressions Hong Kong uses every single day.
The 12 Cantonese Time Words
1. 而家
ji4 gaa1 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: Now / right now.
Explanation: The default Cantonese word for "now." Often written 依家 in casual chat, but the pronunciation is essentially the same. If someone asks 而家幾點? they're asking what time it is right now.
2. 頭先
tau4 sin1 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: Just now / a moment ago.
Explanation: Refers to something that happened in the very recent past — minutes ago, not hours. Perfect when you want to say "I just saw him" or "he just called."
3. 陣間
zan6 gaan1 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: In a bit / soon / later today.
Explanation: A near-future term, usually within the same day. Also heard as 一陣間 or just 一陣. Vague on purpose — nobody's promising an exact minute.
4. 遲啲
ci4 di1 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: A bit later / down the road.
Explanation: Softer and more open-ended than 陣間. Could mean later today, could mean next week. The classic reply when you're stalling: 遲啲再講 — "we'll talk about it later."
5. 就嚟
zau6 lei4 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: Almost / about to / any minute now.
Explanation: Signals imminence. The bus is 就嚟到, the movie is 就嚟開場, the friend running late is definitely 就嚟到 (whether or not they actually are).
6. 幾時
gei2 si4 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: When / what time.
Explanation: The go-to question word for timing. Also carries a rhetorical shrug — 幾時輪到你? means "when did it become your turn?" (i.e. mind your business).
7. 聽日
ting1 jat6 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: Tomorrow.
Explanation: Colloquial Cantonese uses 聽日 instead of the standard written 明天. This is one of those words that immediately marks you as speaking real Hong Kong Cantonese versus textbook Mandarin.
8. 尋日
cam4 jat6 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: Yesterday.
Explanation: The colloquial Cantonese word for yesterday. Also written 噚日 or 琴日 in text messages — all pronounced the same. Don't reach for 昨日 in speech; it sounds bookish.
9. 前日
cin4 jat6 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: The day before yesterday.
Explanation: Cantonese neatly extends the day-word system further back. 前日 is one step past 尋日. Handy for retelling the arc of your week without listing dates.
10. 後日
hau6 jat6 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: The day after tomorrow.
Explanation: The mirror of 前日. If today is 今日 and tomorrow is 聽日, the day past tomorrow is 後日. Cantonese speakers use it constantly when planning weekends.
11. 成日
seng4 jat6 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: All day / all the time / always.
Explanation: Literally "whole day," but expanded in everyday speech to mean "constantly" or "always." 佢成日遲到 doesn't mean "he's late all day" — it means "he's always late."
12. 早排
zou2 paai4 — Jyutping romanisation
Meaning: Lately / not long ago / recently.
Explanation: Refers to the past few weeks or months, but not too far back. Often extended to 早一排. When you haven't seen someone for a while and they ask what you've been up to, this is the setup: 早排...
Why These Time Words Matter
A vocabulary of time is a vocabulary of habits. Cantonese speakers can distinguish between 陣間 ("in a bit"), 遲啲 ("a bit later") and 就嚟 ("any second now") — three different flavours of "soon" that all mean something different in practice. Get these into your muscle memory and your Cantonese will suddenly sound like Hong Kong instead of a textbook.
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