Completed Actions: 咗 zo2 and 過 gwo3

To mark a completed action, Cantonese places 咗 zo2 directly after the verb, replacing Mandarin's verb-suffix 了 le. The structure is identical — verb + 咗 instead of verb + 了: 食咗 sik6 zo2 (ate) = Mandarin 吃了, 去咗 heoi3 zo2 (went) = Mandarin 去了, 買咗 maai5 zo2 (bought) = Mandarin 買了.

Important distinction: Mandarin 了 has two functions — (1) verb suffix marking completion, and (2) sentence-final particle indicating change of state. Cantonese splits these: 咗 zo2 handles completion (= verb 了), while sentence-final particles like 喇 laa3 handle change of state (= sentence 了). Example: 佢走咗喇 keoi5 zau2 zo2 laa3 = Mandarin 他走了 (he left — both completion and new state).

For past experience ('have ever done'), Cantonese uses 過 gwo3 after the verb, exactly like Mandarin 過 guò: 我去過日本 ngo5 heoi3 gwo3 jat6 bun2 (I've been to Japan) = Mandarin 我去過日本. The negative is 未...過 mei6...gwo3: 我未去過 ngo5 mei6 heoi3 gwo3 (I haven't been) = Mandarin 我沒去過.

The question form for completed actions uses 未 mei6: verb + 咗 + 未？ — for example: 你食咗未？ nei5 sik6 zo2 mei6? (Have you eaten yet?). This is more natural in Cantonese than the Mandarin equivalent 你吃了沒有？The answer is either 食咗喇 sik6 zo2 laa3 (yes, I've eaten) or 未食 mei6 sik6 (not yet).

Note that 咗 zo2 is a uniquely Cantonese character — you won't find it in Mandarin text. It's one of the most frequently used Cantonese-specific characters, appearing in nearly every sentence about past events.