Cantonese character 揼

揼 is a colloquial character used to write several Cantonese words.

Cantonese is a spoken Chinese language, and its everyday writing includes characters for colloquial speech. 揼時間 means wasting time; 揼波鐘 means stalling by wasting someone else’s time; 揼骨 is a fist-based massage. Other readings refer to pounding or striking, getting soaked by rain, throwing or dumping, and the rock gesture in 包剪揼. In speech, tone distinguishes readings; in writing, the phrase often does the work.

Eitel’s 1877 Cantonese dictionary records 揼 for a throwing or dumping sense; a 1910 edition records it too. These entries show an older written trail, not when the character began. The proposed link to the English word “dump” remains unproven.

What does 揼 mean when someone sends it?

Read the phrase and, in speech, listen for its tone.

By itself, 揼 does not identify one Cantonese word. When spoken, the pitch pattern of the syllable—its tone—helps distinguish readings; in writing, compounds make the sense clearer.

A Cantonese reader may recognize a phrase such as 揼時間 or 揼骨, while someone who knows Mandarin but not Cantonese may recognize the Han character without knowing the colloquial word. If a message contains only 揼, ask what phrase the sender intended.