33.5 The Adverb 有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 (‘a little bit’)

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The adverb 有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 means ‘a little bit’. We put 有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 before an adjective. In this lesson, we will use 有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 as the degree word for a predicative adjective.

Subject	有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 ‘a little bit’	Predicative Adjective
啲叉燒	有少少	鹹	。
di1 caa1 siu1	jau5 siu2 siu2	haam4	.
the char siu	a little bit	salty
The char siu is a little bit salty.
個炒飯	有少少	油	。
go3 caau2 faan6	jau5 siu2 siu2	jau4	.
the fried rice	a little bit	greasy
The fried rice is a little bit greasy.

有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 is similar to the adverb 有啲 jau5 di1 (‘a bit’), but 有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 usually indicates a slightly smaller degree than 有啲 jau5 di1. Compare:

啲叉燒有少少鹹。
di1 caa1 siu1 jau5 siu2 siu2 haam4.
The char siu is a little bit salty.
啲叉燒有啲鹹。
di1 caa1 siu1 jau5 di1 haam4.
The char siu is a bit salty.
The first sentence with 有少少 jau5 siu2 siu2 indicates a slightly smaller degree of saltiness than the second sentence with 有啲 jau5 di1.