就 jiù (after a suppositional clause) in that case / then / (after a clause of action) as soon as / immediately after / (same as 就是[jiu4 shi4]) merely / nothing else but / simply / just / precisely / exactly / only / as little as / as much as / as many as / to approach / to move towards / to undertake / to engage in / (often followed by 著|着[zhe5]) taking advantage of / (of food) to go with / with regard to / concerning / (pattern: 就[jiu4] ... 也[ye3] ...) even if ... still ... / (pattern: 不[bu4] ... 就[jiu4] ...) if not ... then must be ... syn 呢 nī this (Cantonese) / see also 哩[li1] syn 一下 yī xià (after a verb) a bit / a little (indicating brief duration, or softening the tone, or suggesting giving sth a try) / all at once / suddenly syn 一点 一點 yī diǎn a bit / a little bit / (used in negative expressions) (not) the least bit / (after an adjective, used to form the comparative) a bit more, -er / a point (in a discussion etc) / (calligraphy) dot stroke (、) / one o'clock (abbr. for 一點鍾|一点钟[yi1 dian3zhong1]) syn 一些 yī xiē some / a few / a little / (following an adjective) slightly ...er syn 有点 有點 yǒu diǎn a little syn 基 jī (bound form) base / foundation / (bound form) radical (chemistry) / (bound form) gay (loanword from English into Cantonese, Jyutping: gei1, followed by orthographic borrowing from Cantonese) syn 稍微 shāo wēi a little bit syn 稍后 稍後 shāo hòu in a little while / shortly after 点心 點心 diǎn xin light refreshments / pastry / dim sum (in Cantonese cooking) / dessert syn 小鬼 xiǎo guǐ little demon (term of endearment for a child) / mischievous child / imp syn 悄悄 qiāo qiāo quiet / making little or no noise / surreptitious / stealthy / anxious / worried / Taiwan pr. [qiao3qiao3] syn 小弟 xiǎo dì little brother / I, your little brother (humble) syn 出头 出頭 chū tóu to get out of a predicament / to stick out / to take the initiative / remaining odd fraction after a division / a little more than syn 铃铛 鈴鐺 líng dang little bell / CL:隻|只[zhi1] syn 稍稍 shāo shāo somewhat / a little / slightly syn 少量 shǎo liàng a smidgen / a little bit / a few syn 些许 些許 xiē xǔ a few / a little / a bit syn 夏娃 xià wá Eve, the first woman (transcription used in Protestant versions of the Bible) (from Hebrew Ḥawwāh, probably via Cantonese 夏娃 {Haa6waa1}) 缓缓 緩緩 huǎn huǎn slowly / unhurriedly / little by little syn 小儿科 小兒科 xiǎo ér kē pediatrics / pediatric (department) / sth of little importance / trifle / a child's play / (slang) childish / petty / stingy syn 点滴 點滴 diǎn dī a drip / a little bit / intravenous drip (used to administer drugs) syn 母鸡 母雞 mǔ jī hen / don't know (humorous slang mimicking Cantonese 唔知, Jyutping: m4 zi1) syn 一二 yī èr one or two / a few / a little / just a bit syn 少许 少許 shǎo xǔ a little / a few syn 小样 小樣 xiǎo yàng galley proof (printing) / unimpressive / (coll.) little guy (mild insult also used as an affectionate term) 小妹 xiǎo mèi little sister / girl / (Tw) young female employee working in a low-level role dealing with the public (assistant, waitress, attendant etc) 微乎其微 wēi hū qí wēi a tiny bit / very little / next to nothing (idiom) syn 一点点 一點點 yī diǎn diǎn a little bit 按揭 àn jiē a mortgage (loanword via Cantonese) / to buy property on a mortgage 点点滴滴 點點滴滴 diǎn diǎn dī dī bit by bit / dribs and drabs / the little details / every aspect 略微 lüè wēi a little bit / slightly syn 小指 xiǎo zhǐ little finger syn 妮子 nī zi (coll.) lass / (dialect) little girl syn 稍许 稍許 shāo xǔ a little / a bit syn 一点一滴 一點一滴 yī diǎn yī dī bit by bit / every little bit syn 街市 jiē shì downtown area / commercial district / (chiefly Cantonese) wet market, i.e. a marketplace selling fresh meat, fish and vegetables etc 小拇指 xiǎo mǔ zhǐ little finger / pinkie syn 诀别 訣別 jué bié to bid farewell / to part (usually with little hope of meeting again) syn 黄毛丫头 黃毛丫頭 huáng máo yā tou silly little girl syn 粤语 粵語 yuè yǔ Cantonese language 饮茶 飲茶 yǐn chá to have tea and refreshments / to have dim sum lunch (Cantonese) syn 白鹭 白鷺 bái lù (bird species of China) little egret (Egretta garzetta) syn 殊不知 shū bù zhī little imagined / scarcely realized syn 细水长流 細水長流 xì shuǐ cháng liú lit. thin streams flow forever / fig. economy will get you a long way / to work steadily at something little by little syn 鸡肋 雞肋 jī lèi chicken ribs / sth of little value or interest / sth of dubious worth that one is reluctant to give up / to be physically weak 杂牌 雜牌 zá pái inferior brand / little-known brand syn 因小失大 yīn xiǎo shī dà to save a little only to lose a lot (idiom) syn 劳而无功 勞而無功 láo ér wú gōng to work hard while accomplishing little / to toil to no avail syn 粤菜 粵菜 yuè cài Cantonese cuisine 红宝书 紅寶書 hóng bǎo shū the "Little Red Book" of selected writings of Mao Zedong (refers to 毛主席語錄|毛主席语录[Mao2 Zhu3 xi2 Yu3 lu4]) 小灵通 小靈通 xiǎo líng tōng Personal Handy-phone System (PHS), mobile network system operating in China 1998-2013, branded "Little Smart" 两下 兩下 liǎng xià twice / for a little while 极少 極少 jí shǎo very little / very few 有点儿 有點兒 yǒu diǎn r slightly / a little / somewhat syn 小妹妹 xiǎo mèi mei little sister / little girl / (coll.) vulva 小弟弟 xiǎo dì di little brother / little boy / (coll.) penis 无几 無幾 wú jǐ very little / hardly any syn 节节 節節 jié jié step by step / little by little syn 小公主 xiǎo gōng zhǔ lit. little princess / fig. spoiled girl / female version of 小皇帝[xiao3 huang2 di4] 半分 bàn fēn a little bit 无厘头 無厘頭 wú lí tóu silly talk or "mo lei tau" (Cantonese), genre of humor emerging from Hong Kong late in the 20th century 妞妞 niū niu little girl 不值钱 不值錢 bù zhí qián of little value 埋单 埋單 mái dān to pay the bill (in a restaurant etc) (loanword from Cantonese) / (fig.) to bear responsibility 囡囡 nān nān little darling / baby syn 甚微 shèn wēi very small / very little / scant / minimal syn 广东人 廣東人 guǎng dōng rén Cantonese (people) 广东话 廣東話 guǎng dōng huà Cantonese language 贤弟 賢弟 xián dì worthy little brother syn 猴儿 猴兒 hóu ér little devil syn 粤剧 粵劇 yuè jù Cantonese opera syn 稍早 shāo zǎo a little early 人鱼小姐 人魚小姐 rén yú xiǎo jie mermaid / the Little Mermaid 烧腊 燒臘 shāo là barbecue (Cantonese style) 吉列 jí liè breaded and fried cutlet (loanword via Cantonese) 一时半刻 一時半刻 yī shí bàn kè a short time / a little while syn 逐次 zhú cì gradually / one after another / little by little 折枝 zhé zhī massage / snapped-off branch / sprig / to snap a twig (i.e. sth that requires very little effort) 牛腩 niú nǎn brisket (esp. Cantonese) / belly beef / spongy meat from cow's underside and neighboring ribs / erroneously translated as sirloin 贫下中农 貧下中農 pín xià zhōng nóng (category defined by the Communist Party) poor and lower-middle peasants: farmers who, before land reform, possessed little or no land (poor peasants) and those who were barely able to support themselves with their own land (lower-middle peasants) 小过 小過 xiǎo guò little mistake / minor offense / slightly too much 四小龙 四小龍 sì xiǎo lóng Four Asian Tigers / East Asian Tigers / Four Little Dragons (East Asian economic powers: Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong) 积少成多 積少成多 jī shǎo chéng duō (idiom) many little things add up to sth great / many little drops make an ocean syn 有一点 有一點 yǒu yī diǎn a little / somewhat 叫鸡 叫雞 jiào jī rooster / cock / (slang) (Cantonese) to visit a prostitute 大黄鱼 大黃魚 dà huáng yú Croceine croaker (Pseudosciaena crocea), a fish popular in Cantonese cooking syn 差 chā difference / discrepancy / (math.) difference (amount remaining after a subtraction) / (literary) a little / somewhat / slightly syn 唔 wú oh (expression of agreement or surprise) / (Cantonese) not syn 稍 shāo somewhat / a little syn 佬 lǎo male / man (Cantonese) syn 哩 lī this (Cantonese) / see also 呢[ni1] / see also 哩哩羅羅|哩哩罗罗[li1 li1 luo1 luo1] syn 曲奇 qǔ qí cookie (loanword via Cantonese 曲奇 kuk1 kei4) 噼 pī child's buttocks (esp. Cantonese) / (onom.) crack, slap, clap, clatter etc 略知一二 lüè zhī yī èr to know just a little / to have a rough idea syn 鲔 鮪 wěi little tuna / Euthynnus alletteratus syn 呔 tāi tie / necktie / tire (Cantonese) syn 尕 gǎ little (dialect) 粤 粵 yuè Cantonese / short name for Guangdong 廣東|广东[Guang3 dong1] 