Cantonese Dictionary Vol. 49: 12 Money & Business Words Every Hong Konger Uses

Hong Kong illuminated street at night with neon signs and traffic

If you want to know what a Hong Konger really cares about, listen to how they talk about money. Cantonese doesn't hide behind polite corporate English — it names the boss (老細), the payday (出糧), the mortgage that eats half your salary (供樓), and the wallet that never seems full enough. Today's dictionary volume covers 12 essential money and business words you'll hear in every cha chaan teng, MTR carriage, and family dinner in Hong Kong.

Neon signs and shop fronts along a busy Hong Kong street
Hong Kong's streets are where commerce and Cantonese collide — every sign is a business, every business is a story. — Photo via Pexels

The Cantonese Working World in 12 Words

Hong Kong is one of the most expensive cities on earth, and Cantonese vocabulary reflects that pressure. You'll notice how many words below revolve around losing, saving, and chasing money — a language built for a city where a 400-square-foot flat can cost more than a house in most of the world. Here they are, in order of frequency you'll hear them:

1. 老細

lou5 sai3  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: Boss, shop owner, or the guy in charge.

Explanation: The Cantonese word for boss you'll actually hear on the street. It's warmer than 老闆 (Mandarin-flavoured) and works for everyone from your CEO to the auntie behind the fishball stall. Even taxi drivers get called 老細 by passengers as a friendly nod.

In real life: 老細，埋單！ (lou5 sai3, maai4 daan1!) — "Boss, bill please!" You'll shout this in every cha chaan teng.

2. 打工

daa2 gung1  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To work as an employee (literally "to hit work").

Explanation: The word carries a slight weariness — being a 打工仔 (daa2 gung1 zai2), a working stiff, is a whole Hong Kong identity. It quietly implies you're grinding for someone else's dream, not your own.

In real life: 我打咗十年工喇。 (ngo5 daa2 zo2 sap6 nin4 gung1 laa3.) — "I've been an employee for ten years." Usually said with a sigh.

3. 出糧

ceot1 loeng4  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: Payday. Literally "release the grain" — a leftover from when workers were paid in rice.

Explanation: Hong Kongers say this with genuine joy. 出糧 day is when yum cha gets fancier, dinner gets ordered instead of cooked, and your friends stop dodging your "where should we eat?" texts.

In real life: 今日出糧，飲多杯！ (gam1 jat6 ceot1 loeng4, jam2 do1 bui1!) — "It's payday, one more drink!"

4. 加人工

gaa1 jan4 gung1  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To get a pay rise (人工 = wages, salary).

Explanation: Note that 人工 in Cantonese means "salary," not "artificial" as it does in Mandarin. 加人工 is what everyone whispers about in January and prays for in February. If your boss actually gives you one, you buy hot pot for the whole team.

In real life: 今年加咗幾多人工？ (gam1 nin4 gaa1 zo2 gei2 do1 jan4 gung1?) — "How much of a raise did you get this year?" A very Hong Kong question.

5. 供樓

gung1 lau4-2  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To pay off a mortgage on a flat.

Explanation: Ask a Hong Konger why they can't join dinner and the answer is often, sadly, 要供樓 — "I have to pay the mortgage." In a city where a shoebox flat can cost HK$10 million, 供樓 is a lifelong sentence more than a financial task.

In real life: 供樓供咗二十年，仲有十年。 (gung1 lau4-2 gung1 zo2 ji6 sap6 nin4, zung6 jau5 sap6 nin4.) — "I've been paying the mortgage for 20 years, and there's still 10 to go."

6. 買樓

maai5 lau4-2  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To buy a flat or apartment.

Explanation: 買樓 isn't just a transaction — it's a life event, a family strategy, and often the reason people delay marriage in Hong Kong. Parents obsess over it. Aunties ask about it at every reunion. The dream is to 買樓 before 35.

In real life: 幾時買樓呀？ (gei2 si4 maai5 lau4-2 aa3?) — "When are you buying a flat?" The most feared question at Chinese New Year.
Neon shop signs above a bus on a Hong Kong street
Every neon sign in Hong Kong is a 老細's dream — and someone else's 供樓 payment. — Photo via Pexels

Words for Saving, Spending & Losing

7. 慳錢

haan1 cin4-2  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To save money, especially by cutting back.

Explanation: 慳 is a distinctly Cantonese verb — Mandarin uses 省 (saang2) instead. 慳錢 is a badge of honour among Hong Kongers who take pride in scoring bargains, walking an extra block for cheaper noodles, or refilling their Octopus card only at the exact right moment.

In real life: 慳得一蚊得一蚊。 (haan1 dak1 jat1 man1 dak1 jat1 man1.) — "Every dollar saved is a dollar saved." Practically a Hong Kong national motto.

8. 蝕本

sit6 bun2  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To lose money in business; to take a loss on a deal.

Explanation: Literally "eaten capital" — as if your business ate through your seed money and spat out nothing. Hong Kong entrepreneurs use it constantly, sometimes as a real complaint, sometimes as a bargaining tactic ("I'm already 蝕本 selling it to you at this price!").

In real life: 我賣呢個真係蝕本㗎！ (ngo5 maai6 ni1 go3 zan1 hai6 sit6 bun2 gaa3!) — "I'm really losing money selling this!" — every market vendor, ever.

9. 賺

zaan6  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: To earn or make money; also "to score a good deal."

Explanation: 賺 is the counterpart to 蝕. Cantonese speakers use it beyond money — you can 賺 time, 賺 a compliment, or 賺 a nap. If someone tells you 你賺咗 (nei5 zaan6 zo2), they mean "you scored," not just "you earned money."

In real life: 呢單生意好賺。 (ni1 daan1 saang1 ji3 hou2 zaan6.) — "This deal is very profitable."

10. 荷包

ho4 baau1  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: Wallet or purse — but also "your finances" as a whole.

Explanation: 荷包 originally meant a small embroidered pouch. Today it stands in for anyone's spending power. When something "傷荷包" (soeng1 ho4 baau1), it "wounds the wallet" — the Cantonese equivalent of "my bank account is crying."

In real life: 呢間餐廳好傷荷包。 (ni1 gaan1 caan1 teng1 hou2 soeng1 ho4 baau1.) — "This restaurant really hurts the wallet."

11. 蚊

man1  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: Dollar — literally "mosquito," the Cantonese slang for a Hong Kong dollar.

Explanation: One of the most beloved oddities in Cantonese. 蚊 is what you use in everyday speech instead of the formal 元 (jyun4). No one at the wet market says "twenty yuan for the greens" — they say 二十蚊 (ji6 sap6 man1). Try using 元 and people will smile at how textbook-formal you sound.

In real life: 碗麵三十蚊。 (wun2 min6 saam1 sap6 man1.) — "The noodles are 30 bucks." You'll hear this a thousand times.

12. 平

peng4  —  Jyutping romanisation

Meaning: Cheap, inexpensive — a very good thing in Cantonese.

Explanation: Note this is 平 in the Cantonese sense (peng4), not the same character used elsewhere for "flat." 平 is the reason Hong Kongers bargain, cross-check three shops, and drive 30 minutes for slightly cheaper roast pork. Its opposite is 貴 (gwai3), expensive.

In real life: 呢件衫真係好平！ (ni1 gin6 saam1 zan1 hai6 hou2 peng4!) — "This shirt is really cheap!" — the ultimate compliment for anything found at Sham Shui Po.

Why These Words Matter

Language mirrors what a culture cares about — and Cantonese money vocabulary tells you Hong Kong cares deeply about hustle, thrift, and the everyday drama of making ends meet. These aren't textbook terms; they're the words your Hong Kong aunt will use when she asks about your job, your salary, and — inevitably — your flat. Knowing them lets you eavesdrop on the real conversations of the city.

Want to keep learning? Check out our other cha chaan teng ordering words, the bargaining phrases every market uses, or the interjections that reveal your Cantonese attitude.

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