Cantonese Expressions - 1 CD sound track records:

1.1 1 to 10 [T1] 10.1 Asking price [T21]

1.2 Tens [T2] 10.2 Ordering [T22]
Section 1 Vocab 3 2.1 11 to 19 [T3] 11.1 Take a look [T23]
Unit 1 1 to 10 3 2.2 Full form for 21-99 [T4] 11.2 Can it be tried? [T24]
Unit 2 10 to 100 5 2.3 Short form for 21-99 [T5] 12.1 Size [T25]
Unit 3 Money 12
Unit 4 Months and weeks 15 2.4 The short form for 20, 30 etc [T6] 12.2 Colour [T26]
2.5 Extra [T7] 13.1 Delivery [T27]
Section 2 Different parts of speech 18 3.1 Coins and Banknotes in HK [T8] 13.2 Credit card [T28]
Unit 5 Modal particles 18
Unit 6 Measure Words 20 3.2 Money telling [T-] 14.1 Bargaining expressions [T29]
Unit 7 Nouns 24 4.1 Months [T9] 14.2 Discount [T30]
Unit 8 Pronouns 27 4.2 Weeks [T10] 15.1 Food ordering [T31]
Section 3 Deal with people 32 5.1 Modal particles [T11] 16.1 Drinks ordering [T32]
Unit 9 Greetings and thanks 32 6.1 When to use measure words [T12] 17.1 Kinds of transports [T33]
6.2 More Nouns and their MWs [T13] 17.2 Stations or stops [T34]
Section 4 Shopping 39
Unit 10 Price and ordering 39 6.3 Measure word d [T14] 18.1 Stop [T35]
Unit 11 Take a look and try 43 7.1 Common nouns [T15] 18.2 Minibus [T36]
Unit 12 Size and colour 47
7.2 Articles - a, an, the [T16] 18.3 Taxi [T37]
Unit 13 Payment and Delivery 52
Unit 14 Bargaining 54 8.1 Personal Pronouns [T17] 19.1 Where is the ? [T38]
8.2 Demonstrative Pronouns [T18]
Section 5 Food 58
8.3 Interrogative Pronouns [T19]
Unit 15 Food ordering 58
Unit 16 Drinks ordering 62 9.1 Greetings [T20]
9.2 Goodbye [T20]
Section 6 Getting around 66
Unit 17 Kinds of transports 66 9.3 Thanks [T20]
Unit 18 Taking transports 68 9.4 Requests [T20]
Unit 19 Asking for direction 71 9.5 Apologies [T20]
The end of the book 72

Key: CD sound track records for the fast version:

[h] hint Theres a hint for that question. Unit 1 T 39 Unit 11 T 49
[T#] Track number Sound track no. for the CD Unit 2 T 40 Unit 12 T 50
MW measure word it works like piece of Unit 3 T 41 Unit 13 T 51
PM modal particle it suggests tones of sentences Unit 4 T 42 Unit 14 T 52
Unit 5 T 43 Unit 15 T 53
Unit 6 T 44 Unit 16 T 54
Vocab format: Unit 7 T 45 Unit 17 T 55
English Cantonese Chinese character Literal meanings Measure word Unit 8 T 46 Unit 18 T 56
Unit 9 T 47 Unit 19 T 57
Unit 10 T 48

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 1 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 2

 1.2 Tens [T2]
Section 1 Vocab
Expressions

1.2.1)
10 sahp
Unit 1 1 to 10 20 yih sahp
30 sam sahp
1.1 1 to 10 [T1] 40 sei sahp
Vocab 50 gh sahp

1.1.1)
1 yt
yt 60 luhk sahp
2 yih 70 cht sahp
3 sam 80 baat sahp
4 sei 90 gu sahp
5 gh
6 luhk 1.2.2) Exercises
7 cht 1) 20 _____________________
8 baat yih--sahp
yih
9 gu 60 _____________________

2)
10 sahp luhk-
luhk-sahp
0 lhng 3) 90 _____________________
gu-sahp
1.1.2) Note
luhng yih.
luhng is used instead of yih
2 - When people say two of something, luhng yih
si,
si which sounds like 4: sei.
4 - Die or dead sounds: si sei Therefore Chinese dont
like the number of 4
gh
gh according to dictionaries. However most people
5 - It should be pronounced as gh
h
h instead and it is generally accepted.
say h

1.1.3) Exercises
a) Practice
1) What is your telephone number? ______________________
2) How many family members do you have? _______________
3) How many days are there in a week ? _____________
4) How many people are here ? _____________

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 3 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 4

Unit 2 10 to 100 2.2 Full form for 21-99 [T4]
2.1 11 to 19 [T3] 2.2.1) Vocab
English Original Form Short Form Chinese
Vocab

2.1.1)
11 sahp yt 20 yih sahp
12 sahp yih 21 yih sahp yt yah yt
13 sahp sam 22 yih sahp yih yah yih
14 sahp sei 23 yih sahp sam yah sam
24 yih sahp sei yah sei

15 sahp gh
16 sahp luhk 25 yih sahp gh yah gh

17 sahp cht 26 yih sahp luhk yah luhk

18 sahp baat 27 yih sahp cht yah cht

19 sahp gu 28
29
yih sahp baat
yih sahp gu
yah baat
yah gu
2.1.2) Exercises
sam-
sam-sahp

30
a) Translation
sam--sahp yt
sam s-
s-ah yt

31
1) 11 ____________________
sahp yt 32 sam-
sam-sahp yih
sam--sahp sam
sam
s-
s-ah yih
s--ah sam
s

33
2) 13 ____________________ sam-
sam-sahp sei s-
s-ah sei
sahp s
san 34
sam-
sam-sahp gh s-
s-ah gh

35
17 ____________________ sam--sahp luhk
sam s--ah luhk
s

3) 36
sahp cht sam-
sam-sahp cht s-
s-ah cht

37
sam--sahp baat
sam s--ah baat
s

b) Practice 38
4) How many months are there in a year? _____________ 39 sam-
sam-sahp gu s-
s-ah gu

5) How many units are there in this book? _____________

sei-
sei-sahp

40
sei--sahp yt
sei sei-
sei-ah yt

41
sei-
sei-sahp yih sei-
sei-ah yih

42
sei-
sei-sahp sam sei-
sei-ah sam

43
sei-
sei-sahp sei sei-
sei-ah sei

44
sei-
sei-sahp gh sei-
sei-ah gh

45
46 sei--sahp luhk
sei sei--ah luhk
sei

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 5 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 6

 sei-
sei-sahp cht sei-
sei-ah cht cht-
cht-sahp gu cht-
cht-ah gu

47 79
sei-
sei-sahp baat sei-
sei-ah baat

48
49 sei--sahp gu
sei sei--ah gu
sei baat-
baat-sahp

80
baat-
baat-sahp yt baat-
baat-ah yt

81
gh-
gh-sahp baat--sahp yih
baat baat--ah yih
baat

50 82
gh-
gh-sahp yt gh-
gh-ah yt baat-
baat-sahp sam baat-
baat-ah sam

51 83
gh--sahp yih
gh gh--ah yih
gh baat--sahp sei
baat baat--ah sei
baat

52 84
gh-
gh-sahp sam gh-
gh-ah sam baat-
baat-sahp gh baat-
baat-ah gh

53 85
gh-
gh-sahp sei gh-
gh-ah sei baat-
baat-sahp luhk baat-
baat-ah luhk

54 86
gh--sahp gh
gh gh--ah gh
gh baat--sahp cht
baat baat--ah cht
baat

55 87
gh-
gh-sahp luhk gh-
gh-ah luhk baat-
baat-sahp baat baat-
baat-ah baat

56 88
gh--sahp cht
gh gh--ah cht
gh baat--sahp gu
baat baat--ah gu
baat

57 89
gh-
gh-sahp baat gh-
gh-ah baat

58
59 gh--sahp gu
gh gh--ah gu
gh gu-
gu-sahp

90
gu-
gu-sahp yt gu-
gu-ah yt

91
luhk-
luhk-sahp gu--sahp yih
gu gu--ah yih
gu

60 92
luhk-
luhk-sahp yt luhk-
luhk-ah yt gu-
gu-sahp sam gu-
gu-ah sam

61 93
luhk--sahp yih
luhk luhk--ah yih
luhk gu--sahp sei
gu gu--ah sei
gu

62 94
luhk-
luhk-sahp sam luhk-
luhk-ah sam gu-
gu-sahp gh gu-
gu-ah gh

63 95
luhk-
luhk-sahp sei luhk-
luhk-ah sei gu-
gu-sahp luhk gu-
gu-ah luhk

64 96
luhk--sahp gh
luhk luhk--ah gh
luhk gu--sahp cht
gu gu--ah cht
gu

65 97
luhk-
luhk-sahp luhk luhk-
luhk-ah luhk gu-
gu-sahp baat gu-
gu-ah baat

66 98
luhk--sahp cht
luhk uhk--ah cht
luhk gu--sahp gu
gu gu--ah gu
gu

67 99
luhk-
luhk-sahp baat luhk-
luhk-ah baat

68
69 luhk-
luhk-sahp gu luhk-
luhk-ah gu 2.2.2) Exercises
a) Translation
cht-
cht-sahp 25 ____________________

70 1)
cht-
cht-sahp yt cht-
cht-ah yt yih-
yih-sahp gh

71
cht-
cht-sahp yih cht-
cht-ah yih

72 2) 36 ____________________
cht--sahp sam
cht cht--ah sam
cht sam-
sam-sahp-
sahp-luhk

73
cht-
cht-sahp sei cht-
cht-ah sei

74 b) Practice
cht--sahp gh
cht cht--ah gh
cht

75
3) How many days are there in a January ? _____________
cht-
cht-sahp luhk cht-
cht-ah luhk

76
4) How many days are there in a April ? _____________
cht--sahp cht
cht cht--ah cht
cht

77
78 cht-
cht-sahp baat cht-
cht-ah baat
http://www.clc.com.hk Page 7 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 8
2.3 Short form for 21-99 [T5] 2.4 The short form for 20, 30 etc [T6]
2.3.1) Note 2.4.1) Note
Most of the time, native speakers use the short form instead of the original full form, If talking about twenty, thirty etc, its too short to use the short form, so people still say
even though it is not much shorter, it makes the sounds smoother. the original form.
For the short forms: However if people talk about twenty of something (20 units), thirty of something etc,
21-29: yih-
yih-sahp is changed into yah people use the short form.
sam--sahp is changed into s
31-39: sam s--ah
Expressions

41-99: sahp is changed into ah 2.4.2)
dollar mn
2.3.2) Vocab $20 yah mn
Refer to the above table
$30 s-
s-ah mn
2.3.3) Exercises $40 sei-
sei-ah mn
66 ____________________ $50 gh-
gh-ah mn

1)
luhk-
luhk-ah-
ah-luhk $60 luhk-
luhk-ah mn
2) 74 ____________________ $70 cht-
cht-ah mn
ch
cht-ah-
ah-sei $80 baat-
baat-ah mn
3) 86 ____________________ $90 gu-
gu-ah mn
baat-
baat-ah-
ah-luhk
4) 98 ____________________ 2.4.3) Exercises
gu-
gu-ah-
ah-baat 1) $20 ____________________
yah mn
2) $40 ____________________
sei-
sei-ah mn
3) $50 ____________________
gh-
gh-ah mn

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 9 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 10

2.5 Extra [T7] Unit 3 Money
Vocab
Coins and Banknotes in HK [T8]
2.5.1) 3.1
10 sahp
100 yt baak Vocab

3.1.1)
1000 chn
yt ch dime (value is 10 cents) huh-
huh-j
10000 yt maahn
3.1.2) Expression
2.5.2) Note Coins in HK Dimes
The one: y
yt in 100: yt baak,
baak 1000: yt ch
chn and 10000: yt maahn
maahn cant be
one dime (10 cents) yt huh-
huh-j
skipped.
two dimes (20 cents) luhng huh-
huh-j
2.5.3) Exercises five dimes (50 cents) gh huh-
huh-j
1) I have $200. [h] _____________________________________
Coins in HK Dollars
[I: ngh] / [have: yuh]
$1 yt mn
ng
ngh y
yuh yih baak m
mn
$2 luhng mn
2) I have $1000. _________________________________________
$5 gh mn
ng
ngh y
yuh y
yt ch
chn m
mn
$10 sahp mn
Banknotes in HK
$10 sahp mn
$20 yih--sahp m
yih mn
n / yah-
yah-mn
$50 gh-
gh-sahp mn / gh-
gh-ah m
mn
$100 yt-baak mn
$500 gh--baak mn
gh
$1000 yt-ch
chn mn
3.1.3) Note
Dime is the smallest value of coins used in Hong Kong. Its value is equal to 10 cents.
luhng yih.
luhng is used instead of yih
When people say two of something, luhng yih Thats why
two-dime coins are called luhng h
huh-
uh-j

3.1.4) Exercises
a) Coins in HK - Dimes

1) two dimes (20) _______________________

luhng huh-
huh-j
http://www.clc.com.hk Page 11 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 12
2) five dimes (50) _______________________ sam-
sam-sahp cht mn
gh huh-
huh-j 5) $49 ____________________
b) Coins in HK - Dollars sei-
sei-sahp-
sahp-gu mn
6) $60 _______________________

3) $2 _______________________
luhng m
mn luhk-
luhk-sahp mn
7) $99 ____________________

4) $10 _______________________
sahp m
mn gu-
gu-sahp gu mn

c) Banknotes in HK c) Use short form

8) $28 ____________________

5) $20 _______________________
yih-
yih-sahp mn / yah-
yah-mn yah-
yah-baat mn
mn
9) $36 ____________________

6) $100 __________________
yt-
yt-baak mn s-
s-ah luhk mn
10) $42 ____________________

7) $500 _______________________
gh baak mn sei-
sei-ah-
ah-yih mn
11) $56 ____________________

8) $1000 _______________________
yt chn mn gh-
gh-ah-
ah-luhk mn
12) $63 ____________________
luhk--ah-
luhk ah-sam mn
3.2 Money telling [T-] 13) $78 ____________________

3.2.1) Note
cht--ah-
cht ah-baat mn
Just add dollar : mn
mn after the numbers. d) Practice
14) How much for an apple? ____________________________________
3.2.2) Exercises
15) How much for a Chinese newspaper? _____________________________
a) Full form only
16) How much for an English newspaper? ____________________________
1) $8 _______________________
baat mn 17)

18)
How much for a hamburger ? _______________________________
How much for a pen ? ____________________________________
2) $12 _______________________
sahp-
sahp-yih mn 19) How much for a chair ? ____________________________________
20) How much for a table ? ____________________________________
3) $18 ____________________
sahp-
sahp-baat mn
b) Use full form
4) $37 _______________________

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 13 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 14

Unit 4 Months and weeks
4.2 Weeks [T10]
4.1 Months [T9]
4.2.1) Note
Vocab

4.1.1) Both lih-
lih-baai
baai and sng-
sng-kih
kih means week and both are commonly used. sng-
ng-kih
kih
month yuht is a bit more formal than lih-
lih-baai
baai
January yt-
yt-yuht 1st month

February yih--yuht
yih 2nd month 4.2.2) Vocab
March sam-
sam-yuht 3rd month
lih-
lih-baai
April sei--yuht
sei 4th month week lih-
lih-baai week

May gh-
gh-yuht th
5 month Monday lih-
lih-baai-
baai-yt 1st day of the week

June luhk-
luhk-yuht 6th month Tuesday ih--baai
lih baai--yih 2nd day of the week

July cht--yuht
cht 7th month Wednesday lih-
lih-baai-
baai-sam 3rd day of the week

August baat-
baat-yuht 8th month Thursday lih-
lih-baai-
baai-sei 4th day of the week

September gu--yuht
gu th
9 month Friday lih-
ih-baai-
baai-gh 5th day of the week

October sahp-
sahp-yuht th
10 month Saturday lih-
lih-baai-
baai-luhk 6th day of the week

November sahp--yt
sahp yt--yuht 11th month Sunday lih--baai
lih baai--yaht day of the week

December sahp-
sahp-yih-
yih-yuht th
12 month
sng-
sng-kih
week sng-
ng-kih week
4.1.2) Exercises
Monday ng--kih
sng ih--yt 1st day of the week
a) Translation Tuesday sng-
ng-kih-
ih-yih 2nd day of the week
1) October ______________________________________

Wednesday ng--kih
sng ih--sam 3rd day of the week
sahp-
sahp-yuht Thursday sng-
ng-kih-
ih-sei 4th day of the week

2) March ______________________________________ Friday ng--kih

sng ih--gh 5th day of the week
sam-
sam-yuht Saturday sng-
ng-kih-
ih-luhk 6th day of the week

3) July ______________________________________ Sunday sng-

ng-kih-
ih-yaht day of the week

cht-
cht-yuht
b) Practice
4) What month is this? __________________________________________
5) Christmas is in which month? ___________________________________
6) Easter is in which month? ______________________________________
7) In Hong Kong, which months are very hot? _________________________
8) In Hong Kong, which months are very cold? ________________________

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 15 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 16

4.2.3) Exercises Section 2 Different parts of speech
a) Translation
1) Monday ______________________________________
sng-
sng-kih-
kih-yt / lih-
lih-baai-
baai-yt /
Unit 5 Modal particles
2) Sunday ______________________________________ 5.1 Modal particles [T11]
sng-
sng-kih-
kih-yaht / lih-
lih-baai-
baai-yaht /
Vocab

5.1.1)
3) Saturday ______________________________________
PM (question) a
sng-
sng-kih-
kih-luhk / lih-
lih-baai-
baai-luhk /
PM (question) ga
b) Practice
PM (polite request)
4) What is this day of the week? _______________________________
PM (answer with pleased ending)
5) What day is it tomorrow? ___________________________________
PM (answer with finality tone) aak
6) What day was it yesterday? _________________________________ PM (for defining) ge
7) Which day(s) are you off work each week? _____________________
5.1.2) Note
a) General
PM, Particle Modal stands for Modal Particle. It doesnt carry literal meanings but
just shows different modals or tones.
b) Skip it
As modal particle dont carry literal meanings, if you are not sure what modal particles
you should use, you can just leave it. It wont change the meanings of your sentences. It
just sounds more plain and not so colourful as native Cantonese speakers do.

c) aa and ga
ga
ga
When aa and ga
ga
ga are used for questions, very often, they are interchangeable.
aa sounds more for single event questions while ga
ga
ga sounds more for general case
questions

5.1.3) Expressions
When do you deliver?
?
1)
gi-
gi-sh sung-
sung-fo a?
when deliver goods PM

Do you deliver?
?
2)
sung h sung-
sung-fo ga ?
delivery not delivery goods PM?

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 17 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 18

 May I try it? (Can it be tried?)
/?
3)
yuh muh dk si a / ga? Unit 6 Measure Words
have not have possibility to try PM?
People may say either aa or ga
ga
ga here 6.1 When to use measure words [T12]
One please

4)
6.1.1) Note
yt go A measure word (MW) is used before nouns for measuring purposes. It is like the
one piece PM function of piece in a piece of paper.
Its fine!

5)
Different categories of objects may take different MWs. Usually it depends on the
hu ! go
go is the most general MW, if you do not
category or shapes they belong to. While go
fine PM
go
go instead of just leaving it out.
know which MW has to be used, it is best to use go
is in high level, which sounds more energetic.
Although it maybe wrong, its easier for Hong Kong people to understand you.
Its fine!

6)
There are only a few nouns that dont need measure words. Those nouns are somehow
hu aak measurable by themselves, eg. years, days, nights, minutes, seconds, pages and lessons.
fine PM
aak
aak sounds yep in English
aak Some books call measure words noun classifiers
a hot one

7)
Vocab

6.1.2)
yiht ge this n

hot PM
that g

5.1.4) Exercises
apple phng-
hng-gw
gw go
go
Add modal particles to the following sentences.
person yhn
1) Its fine = hu ________ student hohk--sang
hohk learn person
go
2) One please = yt go ______________ clothes/clothing sam gihn
T-shirt T-sut T gihn
3) When do you deliver? = gi-sh sung-
sung-fo ________?
trousers fu tuh
4) Do you deliver? = sung h sung fo ____________? dress kwhn tuh
pen bt j
coke h-
h-lohk j
watch su--bu
su hand watch
jek

have yuh
dont have muh
do you have? yuh m
muh

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 19 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 20

 MW - people related things go n-go yhn
MW - clothes gihn

3) that person ______________________________________
MW - long, thin objects tuh g-go yhn
MW - cylindrical objects j
MW - round objects jek 6.2 More Nouns and their MWs [T13]
6.2.1) Expressions
6.1.3) Expressions
people related nouns

Measure words are used after a number and for specific reference. For general referring,
do not use measure words. MW go


a) Use MW: After a number a person yt go yhn
one person yt go yhn one + piece of + person


a student yt go hohk-
hohk-sang
two people two + piece of + person
luhng go yhn
three people sam go yhn three + piece of + person clothes
MW gihn
an item of clothing yt gihn sam
T
one apple one + piece of + apple
yt go phng-
hng-gw
gw
two apple luhng go phng-
hng-gw
gw two + piece of + apple
a T-shirt yt gihn T-
T-sut

three apple sam go phng-

hng-gw
gw three + piece of + apple long, thin objects
MW tuh
a pair of trousers yt tuh fu
b) Use MW: Specific reference
this apple n go p
phng-
hng-gw
gw this + piece of + apple a dress yt tuh kwhn
that apple g go p
phng-
hng-gw
gw that + piece of + apple
cylindrical objects
the apple phng
go p hng--gw
gw
the piece of + apple MW j
a pen yt j bt
this pen n j
j bt this + piece of + pen a coke h--lohk
yt j h
that pen g j bt that + piece of + pen (a bottle of sth.)
the pen the piece of + pen round objects

bt
j b
MW jek
c) Dont use MW: general reference
a watch yt jek su-
su-bu
1) Do you have a pen? / Do you have any pens?
yuh m
muh b
bt a? ? a CD yt jek CD CD
have not have pen PM?
6.2.2) Exercises
6.1.4) Exercises 1) Two students ______________________________________
1) 4 people ______________________________________ luhng-
luhng-go hohk-
hohk-sang
sei-
sei-go yhn 2) That T-shirt ______________________________________
2) this person ______________________________________ g--gihn T-
g T-sut
T

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 21 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 22

3) the watch ______________________________________
jek su-
su-bu Unit 7 Nouns
4) One coke (in bottle shape) _____________________________
yt--j h-
yt h-lohk 7.1 Common nouns [T15]
5) The pair of trousers costs $100 ________________________________
tuh fu y
yt-baak m
mn 7.1.1)

a)
Vocab
Nouns of things
6) I have two watches ______________________________________
People
ng
ngh y
yuh l
luhng jek s
su-bu
person yhn go
7) Do you have any coke? ______________________________________
foreigner ngoih-
ngoih-gwok-
gwok-yhn go
yuh m
muh h
h-lohk a? ?
boy nahm-
ahm-ji male kid
go
girl uih--ji
nuih female kid
go
6.3 d [T14]
Measure word d
kid sai-
sai-mn-ji go
Things
book sy
sy bn

6.3.1) Note
d
d is an universal measure word for plural (without stating specific number) and
d pen bt j
uncountable things (eg. water) TV dihn-
dihn-sih go
telephone dihn-
dihn-w go
6.3.2) Expressions
sofa s-f jung

these pens this + pieces of + pens
n d
d bt
those pens g d bt that + pieces of + pens umbrella j

b

the pens bt
d b the pieces of + pens homework
money ch
ng--fo
gng
chn
fahn
-
this water n d
d sui water sui -

that water g d sui Clothes etc.

the water d s
sui clothes sam gihn
shoes haih deui
6.3.3) Exercises shirt sut-
ut-sam gihn
1) These people _________________________________________ ring gaai--j
gaai jek
n d
d y
yhn Food & Drinks
2) Those people _________________________________________

apple phng-
hng-gw
gw go
g d
d y
yhn hamburger hon-
hon-bu-bau go
3) The people _________________________________________ coke h-lohk
d y
yhn
http://www.clc.com.hk Page 23 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 24

b) Abstract nouns
Cantonese Gw
Gwng-
ng-dng-
ng-w
7.2 Articles - a, an, the [T16]
mistake cho

7.2.1) Note
music ym-ngohk There are no articles - a, an & the in Cantonese.
People say one: yt
yt for a or an.
For definite referring the, people use measure word.
go
go is the most common
Different category of things use different measure words, go

c) Proper nouns
Hong Kong measure word.
Hung-
ung-gng
Central Jng-
ng-wahn Vocab

7.2.2)
Hollywood Road a student one + piece of + student
Hh-lih-
ih-wuht douh yt go hohk-
hohk-sang
Nathan Road an apple yt go p
phng-
hng-gw
gw one + piece of + apple

Nih-
ih-dun douh
the student the piece of + student
hohk--sang
go hohk
the apple go p
phng-
hng-gw
gw the piece of + apple

the students d hohk-

hohk-sang the pieces of + student

7.1.2) Exercises
the apples the pieces of + apple
d p
phng-
hng-gw
gw
1) One umbrella _____________________________________
yt b
b j
j 7.2.3) Exercises
2) Two umbrellas _____________________________________
luhng b
b j
j 1) The apple costs $2. ________________________________
go p
phng-
hng-gw
gw l
luhng mn
3) This umbrella _____________________________________
n b
b j
j 2) The apples cost $10. ________________________________
d p
phng-
hng-gw
gw sahp m
mn
4) That umbrella _____________________________________
g b
b j
j
5) The umbrella _____________________________________
b j
j
6) These umbrella _____________________________________
n d
d j
j
7) Those umbrella _____________________________________
g d
d j
j
8) The umbrellas _____________________________________

d j
j

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 25 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 26

 2) We are Hong Kong people _______________________
Unit 8 Pronouns ngh-
ngh-deih haih Hung-
Hung-Gng Yhn
3) You (plural) are not Hong Kong people [h] ______________
8.1 Personal Pronouns [T17] [not be: h-haih]

8.1.1) Vocab
nih-
nih-deih h-
h-haih Hung-
Hung-Gng Yhn
4) They are foreigners ________________
a) Subjective and objective case
I / me ngh kuih--deih haih ngoih-
kuih ngoih-gwok yhn
yhn
you (singular) nih 5) A: Is he a student ?___________________________
he, she, it / him, her kuih B: No, he is not a student_____________________________
?
we / us ngh deih A: kuih haih h haih hohk sang a?
,
you (plural) nih deih hohk--sang
B: h-haih. kuih h-haih hohk

they / them kuih deih b) Possessive

6) their pen(s) __________________________________
b) Possessive adjective / Possessive pronoun
my / mine ngh ge kuih-
kuih-deih ge b
bt
your / yours nih ge 7) your (singular) pen(s) __________________________________

his, her, its / his, hers, its kuih ge nih ge b
bt

our / ours ngh-

ngh-deih ge 8) your (plural) pen(s) __________________________________

your / yours ih--deih ge
nih nih-
ih-deih ge b
bt
their / theirs kuih-
kuih-deih ge 9) our money __________________________________
ge is usually replaced by corresponding measure word (MW) in possessive case ngh--deih ge chn
ngh

c) Reflexive pronoun c) Reflexive
myself ngh jih-
jih-gi

10) You yourself made the mistake [h] ____________________
yourself nih jih-
jih-gi [make mistake: jouh-cho]

himself, herself, itself kuih jih-

jih-gi nih jih-
jih-gi jouh cho
ourselves ngh-
ngh-deih jih-
jih-gi 11) They themselves are careless [h] ____________________
yourselves nih-
nih-deih jih-
jih-gi [careless: h su-sm]

themselves kuih-
kuih-deih jih-
jih-gi kuih-
kuih-deih jih-
jih-gi h su-
su-sm

8.1.2) Exercises
a) Subjective and Objective case
1) I am Hong Kong people. [h] ________________
[be: haih]
ngh haih Hung-
Hung-gng yhn
http://www.clc.com.hk Page 27 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 28
8.2 Demonstrative Pronouns [T18] 8.3 Interrogative Pronouns [T19]
Vocab Vocab

8.2.1) 8.3.1)
this one this piece which
n go bn
that one g go that piece who bn go which person
these n d this pieces which bn go which piece
those g d this pieces where bn douh which place
here n douh this place

there g douh that place how (quantity) gi

how many gi d how many
8.2.2) Exercises how long gi noih how many + duration
1) This is an apple ______________________________ when gi sh how many + time
n-
n-go haih phng-
phng-gw what time gi dm how many + oclock
2) That is an apple ______________________________
g-go haih phng-
phng-gw why dm gai how to + explain
3) These are apples ______________________________
n--d haih phng-
n
phng-gw what mt yh what stuff
4) Those are apples______________________________ what m (a short form)
g-d haih phng-
phng-gw
8.3.2) Exercises
5) Here is Hong Kong_____________________________
n-
n-douh haih Hung-
Hung-Gng a) Translation
1) Who are you? [you are who?] ____________________
6) I went there __________________________
ngh heui g-
g-douh nih haih bn-
bn-go a?
?
2) Which is better ? [h]_______________________
[better: hu-d]
bn-
bn-go hu-
hu-d a? ?
3) Where do you live? [you live in where?] [h]______________
[live: jyuh, in: hi]
nih jyuh h
hi bn-
bn-douh a? ?
4) How many people ? ____________________________
gi--d yhn a?
gi
?
5) When will you go ? [you when go?] _____________________
nih gi-
gi-sh heui a?
?

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 29 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 30

6) Why did you go? [you why go?] ____________________________
nih d
dm-gai heui a? Section 3 Deal with people
7) What is it? [this is what?] ______________________
n--go haih mt-
n mt-yh a? Unit 9 Greetings and thanks
b) Dialogue
8) A: Who is better? ___________________________
9.1 Greetings [T20]
B: He is better_____________________________
A: bn-
bn-go hu- ?
hu-d a?
9.1.1) Expressions
early morning
hu-d
Good morning ju-shn
B: k
kuih hu- nice to meet you nih h
hu you good

9) A: How many people? ___________________________ I wish you well nih h

hu you good
B: 4 ___________________________
A: gi-
gi-d yhn a? ? 9.1.2) Note
sei--go
B: sei a) Good morning: ju-
ju-shn
10) A: Where are they going? ___________________________ Ordinarily, Cantonese do not say good afternoon and good evening to each others. Only
telephone operators and TV or radio presenters do.
B: They are going to Central___________________________
A: kuih-
kuih-deih heui bn- ?
bn-douh a?
Moreover, people can only say good night: ju tu
tu right just before going to bed.

Jng-Wahn
Therefore usually they can only say ju tu to their family members.
B: kuih-
kuih-deih heui Jng- ju tu l
If someone says ju l (where l
l
l is a modal particle for persuading request) to
11) A: Which pen is cheaper? ___________________________ another person during the daytime, he means the addressee bothers him and asks him to
ju tu
go away. This is because the literal meaning for ju tu is early rest but not good
B: This pen is cheaper _____________________________
A: bn-
bn-j bt phng- ?
phng-d a?
night.

B: n-
n-j bt phng-
phng-d b) I wish you well: nih hu
I wish you well: nih h
hu is rather formal. People use it when first meeting a new
12) A: Which piece of clothing is better? ___________________________ friend; the usage is then the same as nice to meet you.
B: That piece of clothing is better_____________________________ You can also use nih hu to greet your friends that you already know . But its not be
A: bn-
bn-gihn sam hu- ?
hu-d a? for old friends and teenage people, supposing that greeting them should be in a casual
hu-d
way; saying Hi, Hey or Hello are much more common. The usage is the same as that in
B: g-
g-gihn sam hu- English and quite often people will nod their heads a little bit the same that English
speakers do. These are also common casual greetings when people first meet a new
friend in casual situations.
You can also use nih hu to greet your friends that you already known . But it must not
be for old friends and teenage people supposing that greeting them should be in a casual
way; saying Hi, Hey or Hello are much more common.
If someone says nih hu to you, you should also say nih hu back to him,

c) People dont
dont say how are you?
you?
Native Hong Kong Cantonese do not say How are you: nih hu ma?
ma to each others as
English speakers and Mandarin speakers do in daily greetings

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 31 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 32

 b) Thanks for a gift: d-
d-jeh
9.1.3) Exercises
d-
d-jeh
d jeh is a common saying for a sales person to their customers. But if you are the
What do you say in the following situation?
jeh , instead you should say h
d jeh
customer, do not say d gi as in above.
h gi
1) You want to greet someone at 9:00 am. _________________ You can also say d-
d-jeh when someone gives you compliments
compliments or congratulations
ju shn
c) Youre welcome: h-
h-si
2) You meet your friend on the street at 3:00 pm and want to greet him in a most h-
h-si
The usage for h si is similar to youre welcome / dont mention it / its nothing.
common way that a Cantonese will do. ______________________
Cantonese do not say you are welcome, instead they say need not be so polite. Its a
Hi / Hey / Hello general applicable reply whenever people say thanks (for help or gifts) to you
3) You meet someone for the first time and want to greet in a more formal way.
nih hu 9.3.3) Exercises
4) Someone say nih hu to you, what do you answer then? ____________ What do you say in the following situations?
nih hu 1) Someone opens the door for you. ____________________________

9.2 Goodbye [T20] h-gi

2) Your friend gives you a birthday present. ______________________
Expressions d--jeh
d

9.2.1)
bye bai-
ai-baai

3) You are a customer and want to say thanks to the sales person. _____
see you joi gin again + see
h-gi
4) You are a sales person and want to say thanks to your customer for buying
9.2.2) Note things from your shop. ______________________________
joi-
joi-gin
joi bai-
gin is more formal and less common than b ai-baai.
baai
d-
d-jeh
9.3 Thanks [T20] 5) You are a sales person, you drop a pen, a customer helps you to pick it up.
What do you say to him/her? ____________________________
Expressions h-gi

9.3.1)
thanks for help /service not + should
h-gi

6) Someone thanks you for your help. What do you say to that person then?
thanks for a gift d-jeh many thanks
h si / h si haak-
haak-hei
/ h hu haak-
haak-hei
dont mention it h-si no need

dont mention it h-si haak-

haak-hei no need + so polite

dont mention it h-hu haak-

haak-hei dont + so polite

9.3.2) Note
a) Thanks for help: h-
h-gi
The literal meanings of hh-
h-gi
gi is I shouldnt trouble you.
For e.g., you can say it when someone opens the door for you or he helps you to hold
the lift. Also, you can say this to people of shops or restaurants as you get services from
them.

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 33 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 34

 quite often, Cantonese say please: h gi
gi instead.
9.4 Requests [T20]
b) h-
h-gi dng dng
When Cantonese repeat the verbs, it means the actions last for a short while.
Vocab

9.4.1)
please h-
h-gi c) h-
h-gi (je je)
wait a moment dng d
dng Here means borrow the way from others. However very often, it is skipped if it is
borrow je obvious, such as when people try to get off public transport

d) h-
h-gi je go dihn-
dihn-w
wash room si-su g
gan wash + hand +
Quite often, people just make it a request statement instead of making it a question of

partition
May I

telephone dihn-
dihn-w electric + talk 9.4.4) Note - Answer
chuih bn

a)
no problem no + problem The literal meanings is casual. It means you ask people feel free to use it. It is used to
muh
mahn-
mahn-tih answer a request where someone wants to use something of yours e.g. washroom,

feel free for it / help

yourself
chuih
ch uih--bn casual
b)
telephone or borrow something from you e.g. pen

okay
You can answer this as most Hong Kong peole know it and even people dont know
English do also know this word.

9.4.2) Expressions 9.4.5) Exercises

Request Excuse me (You try to get off the MTR) ___________________

1)
please h-
h-gi h-gi (je je) ( )
please wait a moment h-
h-gi d
dng d
dng A: Please wait _______________________

2)
please make way for me h-
h-gi je je B: No problem ______________________________
may I use the telephone? h-gi je go dihn-
dihn-w A: Thanks ______________________________
may I use the wash room? h-gi je go s B: You are welcome. ______________________________

si-su g
gan
A: h-gi dng dng
Answer mahn-tih
okay dk B: muh mahn-
A: h-gi
no problem muh mahn-
mahn-tih (haak-hei) ()
B: h-si (haak-
feel free to use it ch
chuih-
uih-bn 3) X: May I use the toilet? (Please borrow the toilet) _________________
Y: Sure (feel free to use it) _____________________
9.4.3) Note - Request h-
h-gi je go si-
si-su gan
a) h-
h-gi chuih-
chuih-bn
h gi
h gi has two meanings, one means thanks for service and the second one is used
in request, means please.
In English, people say Excuse me when they start to ask strangers questions. However

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 35 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 36

9.5 Apologies [T20] 9.5.3) Exercises
a) Questions
9.5.1) Expressions What do you say in the following situations?
Sorry
excuse me / sorry h hu yi-
yi-si not good meanings
1) You sneeze in the library and you want to say excuse me to others____

sorry deui h jyuh 2)
h-hu yi-
yi-si
You caused your friend lose $10,000. _____________________________
Answer deui h jyuh
never mind h g
gn-yiu not + important

no problem muh mahn

mahn-
ahn-tih
tih no + problem
3) When you chat with your friend and you have to pick up the phone______
h hu yi si
4) Someone asks you where a MTR station is but you dont know. ________
9.5.2) Note
h hu yi si
a) h-hu yi-
yi-si
The literal meanings of it is: has a meaning of embarrassing. People use it when they
find sorry for inconvenience caused.

b) deui h jyuh
Cantonese say it when they really make a fault or a mistake and sounds they make the
apologies more seriously.
h-hu yi-
In daily life, people say yi-si deui h jyuh.
si more than deui jyuh Anyway, quite often,
they are interchangeable.
c) Answer to apologies
Cantonese do not say dont worry when someone apologize to them.
h g
Besides, quite often, people say gn-yiu, m
muh mahn-
mahn-tih
tih together.

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 37 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 38

 b) This is
Section 4 Shopping This is $70

4)
n go cht-
cht-sahp mn
Unit 10 Price and ordering This dress is $230

5)
n tuh kwhn yih-
yih-baak s
sam-
am-sahp m
mn
10.1 Asking price [T21]
10.1.3) Note
10.1.1) Vocab
a) Clothes
General

Cantonese has the word sam which is used to refer to clothing which is worn on the
this one this piece
n go top.
that one g go that piece For example, shirts, T-shirts and overcoats are kinds of sam. sam
sam sam
sam is a common

how much gi ch
chn how (much) + money
b)
word in Cantonese
Measure words (MW)
Clothes n-go,
In n go the MW have to be changed when referring to different nouns. If the noun is
clothes sam gihn not known, the MW of go is used.

T-shirt t-sut T gihn c) How much?

trousers fu tuh For how much, the full form should be gi d chn,
chn literally means how much

dress kw
kwhn tuh money. But most of the time, people skip the d and so just say gi ch
chn.

d) Modal particle
Others

a in gi-ch
chn a?
a? is a question modal particle. Some people may skip the a.
a
pen bt j

However using a can make the tone milder and more polite. Most people do say a
table ti jung here.

10.1.2) Expressions 10.1.4) Exercises

1) How much is this one? _______________________________
a) How much?
How much is this one?
i-
i-go gi-
gi-chn a? ?

?
1)
n go gi-
gi-chn a ? 2) How much is this table?________________________________

How much is this piece of clothing ?

n-
n-jung-
jung-ti gi-
gi-chn a? ?

?
2)
3) How much is this T-shirt ? ________________________________
n gihn sam gi-
gi-chn a ?
n gihn t-
t-sut gi-
gi-chn a ?
T ?
How much for this pair of pants ?
?
3)
4) This pen cost $24. ________________________________
n tuh fu gi-
gi-chn a ?
n j bt yah-
yah-sei m
mn
5) This table is $300. ________________________________
n--jung-
n jung-ti sam-
am-baak m
mn

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 39 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 40

10.2 Ordering [T22]
10.2.3) Exercises
10.2.1) Expressions 1) A: How much for this one ? __________________________________
One please B: This one is $60__________________________________

1)
h gi yt go A: One please__________________________________
B: Thanks for $60__________________________________
2) One please (refer to clothes)
A: n-
n-go gi-
gi-chn a??
h gi yt gihn
B: n-
n-go luhk-
luhk-sahp mn
Two please (refer to clothes) yt-go

3) A: h-gi yt-
h-gi luhng gihn B: d- luhk-sahp mn
d-jeh luhk-
Two please (refer to pants or dresses)

4) 2) A: How much is this T-shirt? ______________________
h gi luhng tuh B: $70______________________
Three please (refer to pens) A: One please. ______________________
T ?
5)
h-gi sam j A: n gihn t-
t-sut gi-
gi-chn a?
cht-sahp mn
B: cht-
10.2.2) Note A: h- yt-gihn
h-gi yt-
a) Habits in ordering things 3) A: How much for this pair of pants? _________________________
People seldom say something like please give me one or May I have this one. They
B: $125 __________________________________________
say it much shorter and direct no matter if in shops or restaurants.
Quite often, as the object that one is going to buy is understood, people skip the object A: One please _______________________________________
but they still have to say the measure words. (MWs are always used after numbers)
A: n-
n-tuh-
tuh-fu gi- ?
gi-chn a?
When people make requests to someone, they usually put h-gi
gi at the beginning of a
yt--baak yih
B: yt yih--sahp
sahp--gh mn
.
sentence. It sounds more polite than putting it at the end.
However in shopping, its okay to put please: hh gi
gi at the beginning or at the end. A: h-
h-gi yt-
yt-tuh .

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 41 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 42

 A: h-gi yt-
yt-tuh
Unit 11 Take a look and try
11.1 Take a look [T23] 11.2 Can it be tried? [T24]
Vocab

11.1.1) Vocab

11.2.1)
want sung have yuh
look ti dont have muh
take a look ti-
ti-ti Is there any possibility to yuh m
muh d
dk
take a look ti-
ti-hh try si
(a while) hh 11.2.2) Expressions
May I / Can I ?

11.1.2) Expressions 1)

Take a look at this one yuh muh dk

/
1)
have not have possibility
ti ti n go
ti hh n go 2) May I try it? (Can it be tried?)
yuh muh dk si ga? ?
I want to take a look at this please. have not have possibility to try PM?
,
2)
h-go ngh sung ti ti n go Yes, you can

3)
yuh dk si
11.1.3) Note have possibility to try
sung:
In Cantonese, sung sung
sung want is not a verb, its only an auxiliary verb. Therefore sung
sung No, you cant

4)
is followed by a verb instead of a noun.
want: sung
sung is not used in ordering, it only shows the intention of doing something.
muh dk si
no possibility to try

Im sorry, you cant

,
11.1.4) Exercises 5)
h hu yi-
yi-si, muh dk si
1) A: How much for this pair of trousers ? _____________________________
B: $200 __________________________________ I want to try these trousers

6)
A: I want to take a look please ________________________________ ngh sung si si n tuh fu
I want try try this piece of trousers
B: No problem _________________________________
No problem

7)

A: One please __________________________________ muh mahn-

mahn-tih
A: n-
n-tuh fu gi- ?
gi-chn a ?
yih--baak mn
B: yih
A: ngh sung ti ti
B: muh mahn tih

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 43 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 44
 2) A: How much for this item of clothing? ______________________
11.2.3) Note B: $120 __________________________________
a) yuh m
muh d
dk + verb A: I want to take a look ________________________________
dk
dk is a structural particle which shows the potential or possibility of doing
dk B: No problem _________________________________
something.
A: Can it be tried on? ________________________________
The literal meanings for yyuh-
uh-muh-
uh-dk is have not have the possibility to ?
which means Is there any possibility to ? B: Im sorry, no _________________________________
You have to answer with what people ask. Since people ask yuh muh dk, dk the A: Its doesnt matter, one please _____________________________
answer should be have: yuh
yuh or not have: muh.
muh B: Thanks for $120 _________________________________
yuh-
yuh-muh-
yuh muh-dk
is always followed by a verb A: n-
n-gihn sam
sam gi chn a? ?
B: yt- yih-sahp mn
yt-baak yih-
A: ngh sung ti ti
11.2.4) Exercises
a) Dialogue B: muh mahn tih
1) A: Can it be tried on? _____________________________ A: yuh muh dk si ga? ?
B: Yes __________________________________ yi-si, muh dk si ,
B: h-hu yi-
A: I want to try this dress ________________________________ A: h gn- yt-gihn ,
gn-yiu, yt-
B: No problem _________________________________ B: d-
d-jeh yt- yih-sahp mn
yt-baak yih-

3) A: How much for this watch? ______________________
A: One please __________________________________
A: yuh
yuh muh dk si ga?? B: $850 __________________________________

B: yuh (dk-
(dk-si)
( )
A: I want to try it on _____________________________

A: ngh sung si si n tuh kwhn
B: No problem _________________________

B: muh mahn tih

A: Two please _____________________________
A: n-
n-jek su- ?
su-bu gi chn a?


yt-tuh
baat--baak gh
B: baat gh--sahp mn
A: ngh sung si si
A: h-gi yt-

B: muh mahn tih

A: h-gi luhng jek

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 45 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 46

Unit 12 Size and colour 12.1.2) Expressions
a) Ask
12.1 Size [T25] Do you have a large one ?
?
1)
yuh muh daaih mh ga ?
Vocab

12.1.1)
size chek-
chek-mh Do you have a larger one ?
?
2)
size mh yuh muh daaih d ga?
size sai--s
sai size Do you have a smaller one?
?
3)
yuh muh sai d ga ?
large daaih mh

Yes

4)
medium jng mh

yuh
small sai mh
No, we dont have

5)

extra small g sai mh muh

extra large g daaih mh b) Ordering

One large one please (referring to a clothing)

6)

one size yt go mh h gi yt gihn daaih mh

free size f sai-
sai-s free One small one, please

7)
h gi yt gihn sai mh
larger daaih-
daaih-d c) Doesnt fit
smaller sai-
sai-d This one is too small. (for clothes)

8)
n gihn taai sai
too taai
12.1.3) Exercises
a) Translation
1) Do you have a small size? ____________________________
yuh-
yuh-muh sai-
sai-mh ga? ?
2) Do you have a larger one? ____________________________
yuh-
yuh-muh daaih-
daaih-d ga? ?

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 47 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 48

b) Dialogue
12.2 Colour [T26]
3) A: Do you have a larger one? ___________________________
B: Yes, this (referring to a clothing) is larger ___________________ 12.2.1) Vocab
A: How much? ___________________________
Colour
B: $80 ___________________________
colour sk
A: One please ___________________________
A: yuh muh daaih-
daaih-d ga? ? colour ngahn--sk
ngahn
daaih-d ,
B: yuh, n gihn daaih-
A: gi chn a? ?
black hak sk
baat-sahp mn
white baahk sk
B: baat-
yt-gihn
red hhng sk
A: h-gi yt-
orange chang sk
4) A: Do you have a small one? ___________________________ yellow whng sk
B: Yes ___________________________ green luhk sk
A: How much? ___________________________ blue lahm sk
B: $100 ___________________________ brown f sk
A: One small one please (referring to a clothing) _______________
A: yuh muh sai-
sai-mh ga? ?
grey fi sk
B: yuh
A: gi chn a?? Others
yt-baak mn
B: yt- like jng-
ng-yi
A: h-gi yt-
yt-gihn sai-
sai-mh other kih-
ih-t
another daih-
daih-yih go

c) Pattern drills
looks good hu tti
smaller one?
larger one?
large cheaper one?
Im sorry, this is too small Do you have a large one? 12.2.2) Expressions
medium one?
a) Do you have?
expensive a small one Do you have a brown one?
?
1)
yuh muh f-
f-sk a?
Do you have other colours?
?
2)
yuh muh kih-
kih-t sk a?

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 49 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 50

 Do you have another colour? Payment and Delivery
?
3) Unit 13
yuh muh daih-
daih-yih-
yih-go sk a?
b) This colour 13.1 Delivery [T27]
This colour looks good.

4)
Vocab

13.1.1)
n go sk hu ti
ti delivery deliver + goods
sung fo
This colour doesnt look good.

5)
n go sk h
h hu ti
ti 13.1.2) Expressions
Do you deliver?
?
1)
12.2.3) Exercises sung h sung fo ga ?
a) Dialogue deliver not deliver goods PM ?
Question particle ga is used as this question is asking about the habit if the shop
1) A: Do you have a black one? ___________________________ delivers
B: Yes ___________________________
Yes

2)
A: How much? ___________________________
sung
B: $ 98 ___________________________ Because goods is understood here, it can be skipped.
A: One please (referring to a pair of jeans) ______________________
A: yuh muh hak-
hak-sk ga? ? 3) No

B: yuh h sung

A: gi chn a? ? Exercises

13.1.3)
gu--sahp baat mn
B: gu
yt-tuh
a) Dialogue
A: yt-
1) A: Do you deliver?__________________________________
2) A: Do you have other colours? ___________________________ B: Yes __________________________________
B: Yes, we have blue ___________________________ A: sung h sung fo ga?
ga? ?
A: How much? ___________________________ B: sung
B: $ 60 ___________________________
A: One please (referring to a dress) __________________________ 13.2 Credit card [T28]
A: yuh muh kih- ?
kih-t sk ga?
ga?
Vocab
B: yuh, yuh lahm sk ,

13.2.1)

A: gi chn a? ?
receive su
luhk-sahp mn
credit card kat
B: luhk-
yt-tuh
octopus card baat--daaht
baat daaht--tng
A: yt-
only jihng-
jihng-haih
cash yihn-
yihn-gm

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 51 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 52

13.2.2) Expressions Unit 14 Bargaining
Do you accept credit cards?
?
1)
su h su kat ga? 14.1 Bargaining expressions [T29]
receive not receive card PM?
Vocab

14.1.1)
Do you accept EPS?
EPS ?
2)
cheaper phng-
hng-d
su
receive
h su
not receive
EPS ga?
EPS PM? cheapest jeui-
jeui-phng
Do you accept octopus card?
?
3)
14.1.2) Expressions
su h su baat-
baat-daaht-
daaht-tng ga?
Can it be cheaper ?
?
receive not receive octopus card PM? 1)

4) Yes phng d dk h dk a?
cheaper okay not okay PM?
su
Can it be $100? (How about $100 ?)
?
2)
5) No
yt-
yt-baak mn dk h dk a ?
h su $100 okay not okay PM?
6) We accept cash only What is the cheapest price?
?
3)
ngh-
ngh-deih jihng-
jihng-haih su yihn-
yihn-gm jeui phng gi chn a?
we only receive cash most cheap how much PM

13.2.3) Exercises 14.1.3) Note - Bargaining habits

In bargaining, Hong Kong people do not say so expensive, very expensive, it
1) A: Do you take credit cards ?__________________________________ sounds a bit rude to say this. Also, people dont say I have no money in bargaining.
B: No __________________________________ Instead, people make it more direct in bargaining.
A: su h su kat ga? ?
B: h su 14.1.4) Exercises
2) A: Do you take octopus card? __________________________________ a) Dialogue
B: Yes __________________________________ 1) A: How much for this pen? ___________________________
A: su h su baat-
baat-daaht-
daaht-tng ga? ? B: $200 ___________________________
B: su A: Can it be cheaper? ___________________________
B: $180 ___________________________
A: One please ___________________________
A: n- ?
n-j bt gi chn a?
yih-baak mn
B: yih-
phng-d dk h dk a? ?
A: phng-
B: yt- baat-sahp mn
yt-baak baat-
A: yt-
yt-j

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 53 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 54

2) A: How much for this watch? ___________________________
half price bun ga half + price

B: $760 ___________________________
A: What is the cheapest price? ___________________________
14.2.3) Expressions
B: $700 ___________________________ a) Bargaining
A: How about $600? ___________________________ Is there any discount?
?
1)
B: No. The cheapest price is $650 ___________________________ yuh muh jit ga?
A: One please ___________________________ How much discount ?
? ?
2)
A: n-
n-jek su-
su-bu gi chn a? gi-
gi-d jit a?
B: cht baak luhk-
luhk-sahp mn
jeui-phng gi chn a? ?
Can it be 20% off?
?
3)
A: jeui-
cht-baak mn
baat-
baat-jit dk h dk a?
B: cht-
A: luhk baak mn dk mh dk a? ? b) Discount
B: h-dk. jeui-
jeui-phng luhk- gh-sahp man ,
luhk-baak gh- These clothes are 10% off

4)

yt-jek
A: yt- n-d s
sam g
gu-jit
All are 20% off

5)
chy
chyhn-
hn-bouh baat
baat-
aat-jit
14.2 Discount [T30] Up to 60% off

6)
sei-
sei-jit h
hi
14.2.1) Note
In Cantonese, people talk about how much they pay after the discount. Let say for 10% c) Question
off, people say paying 90%.
Is it 10% off?
?
jit 1 jit
jit itself is a measuring unit. 1
jit 9 jit.
jit = 10%. i.e. paying 90% = 9 jit 7)
Dont not say gu-sahp-gh jit for 5% off, it literally means 950%. haih h haih gu-
gu-jit a?
Are these shoes 20% off?
?
8)
Vocab

14.2.2)
discount jit n d h
haih haih h haih baat-
baat-jit a?
how many gi-d
all chy
chyhn-
hn-bouh
up to h hi

10% off gu jit

20% off baat jit
30% off cht jit
5% off gu-
gu-gh jit
15% off baat-
baat-gh jit
25% off cht--gh jit
cht
http://www.clc.com.hk Page 55 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 56
14.2.4) Exercises Section 5 Food
a) Translation
1) How much discount ? ____________________________
gi-
gi-d jit a? ?
Unit 15 Food ordering
2) 5% off _________________________ 15.1 Food ordering [T31]
gu-
gu-gh jit
3) Can it be 20% off? ___________________________________
15.1.1) Vocab
baat-
baat-jit dk h dk a? ? Food
fried rice chau-
hau-faahn

4) Shirts are 10% off _________________________
sut-
sut-sam gu-
gu-jit fried noodles chau-
hau-mihn
BBQ pork with rice ch
ch-su faahn

5) The shoes are 25% off _________________________
d haih cht-
cht-gh-
gh-jit sweet & sour pork G-lu
lu-yuhk
6) Is it 2% off? _________________________ Others
haih h haih gu-
gu-baat-
baat-jit a? ? sit ch
chh
7) All are in 30% off _________________________ want (for ordering) / need yiu
chyhn-
chyhn-bouh cht-
cht-jit eat sihk
b) Dialogue vegetarian food sou
8) A: How much for this item of clothing? ___________________________ sold out maaih saai sell entirely
B: $240 ___________________________ bill-the bill please maih dan close the bill
A: Is there any discount? ___________________________
B: 10% off ___________________________
wait a moment dng d
dng wait wait

A: How about 20% off?

15.1.2) Expressions
B: The cheapest price is 15% off
a) Take a sit
A: One please ___________________________
A: n-
n-gihn sam gi
gi-
i-chn a? ? 1) How many people?
?
sei-sahp mn
B: yih-
yih-baak sei-
gi-d w
wi a?
A: yuh muh jit ga? ?
wi is a measure word for people which is used in polite and formal situation.
w

gu-jit Two

B: gu- 2)

A: baat-
baat-jit d dk a? ?
dk h d luhng w
wi
B: h-dk, jeui p baat-gh jit ,
phng baat- Sit here please

3)
yt-gihn
A: yt- chh n-
n-douh
4) Sit there please

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 57 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 58

 chh g-
g-douh 15.1.3) Exercises
b) Waiter
1) A: Do you have fried rice? ___________________________
What do you want?
?
5)
B: Yes _____________________________
yiu d m a? A: One please _____________________________
What will you have ? .
?
6)
sihk d m a? A: The bill please _____________________________
Order B: $38 _____________________________
?
c)
A: yuh-
yuh-muh chau-
chau-faahn a?

One fried noodles please

7)
h-gi yt go chau-
chau-mihn B: yuh
A: h-gi yt go .
One barbecued pork with rice please

8)

maih-dan
h-gi yt go ch-
ch-su faahn
A: h-gi maih-
This one please sahp-baat mn

9) B: sam-
sam-sahp-
n go
(pointing at the menu)
2) A: Do you have sweet and sour pork? ______________________
B: sold out _____________________________
d) Ask
A: Do you have fried noodles?___________________________
Do you have fried rice?
?
10)
B: Yes _____________________________
yuh muh chau-
chau-faahn a? A: How much? _____________________________
Yes B: $42_____________________________

11)
yuh A: One please _____________________________
No A: yuh-
yuh-muh G-
G-lu-
lu-yuhk a??

12)
muh maaih--saai
B: maaih
A: yuh- chau-mihn a? ?
yuh-muh chau-
B: yuh
Sold out

13)

A: gi chn a? ?
maaih-
maaih-saai

sahp-yih mn
e) Payment B: sei-
sei-sahp-
The bill please A: h-gi yt go .

14)
maih-
maih-dan
f) Others
We are vegetarian.

15)
ngh-
ngh-deih haih sihk sou ge

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 59 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 60

3) A: Please sit here. What do you want?
B: Do you have Barbecue pork with rice? Unit 16 Drinks ordering
A: Yes ____________________________________________
B: How much ? _____________________________________________
16.1 Drinks ordering [T32]
A: $26 ____________________________________________
16.1.1) Vocab
B: One please _____________________________________________
A: chh n-
n-douh , yiu d m a? , ? Drinks

ch-su faahn a? ?
coffee ga f
B: yuh muh ch-
A: yuh
black coffee jai f
B: gi chn a?? tea with milk (milk tea) naih-
naih-chh
yah-luhk mn
A: yah- lemon tea lhng-
lhng-mng-
mng-chh
B: h yt-go
h-gi y orange juice chang-
chang-jp
beer b-
b-ju
water sui
tea chh
Ordering
one of yt-go
one glass/cup of yt-bi
cold dung
hot yiht
Others
drink (to drink) ym
give bi
leave ju
ice bng
dont, not h

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 61 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 62

16.1.2) Expressions 16.1.3) Exercises
What do you want to drink? A: One hot tea with milk please___________________________
?
1) 1)
ym d m a? B: $7.5_____________________________
A: h-gi yt-
yt-go yiht naih-
naih-chh
2) One coke please
h-gi yt-
yt-go h-
h-lohk B: cht-
cht-go-
go-bun
go
go can be replaced by bi
bi which means glass or cup 2) A: One large coke please ___________________________
B: $8.5 _____________________________

One iced coffee please

3)
h-gi yt-
yt-go dung
dung ga-
ga-f A: h-gi yt go daaih h-
h-lohk

One hot coffee please

B: baat-
baat-go bun

4)
h-gi yt-
yt-go yiht ga-
ga-f 3) A: One small coke please ___________________________
B: $6.5 _____________________________
5) Please give me a glass of water
A: h-gi yt go sai h-
h-lohk
h-gi bi bi sui
yt in y
Usually, the y yt-bi is skipped.
B: luhk-
luhk-go bun
4) A: Two hot coffee please ___________________________
Hot or cold ?
?
6)
B: $28 _____________________________
yiht dihng dung ga?
A: h-gi luhng-
luhng-go yiht ga-
ga-f
Hot please yih-sahp baat mn /
,
7) B: yah-
yah-baat mn / yih-
yiht ge, h-gi
5) A: One iced coffee please ___________________________
Cold please
,
8) B: Thanks for $8 _____________________________
dung ge, h-gi A: h-gi yt-
yt-go dung ga-
ga-f
No ice d--jeh baat
B: d baat--mn (h-
(h-goi baat-
baat-mn means $8 please)
/ h yiu bbng
9)
ju b
bng 6) A: Please give me a cup of water ___________________________
B: A moment please _____________________________
A: h-gi bi bi sui
sui
B: dng dng

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 63 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 64

7) A: What do you want ? ________________________________
B: One Barbecue pork with rice, one fried noodles. Section 6 Getting around
A: What do you want to drink?
B: 1 hot coffee, 1 coke. Unit 17 Kinds of transports
A: Please wait a minute. ______________________________________
17.1 Kinds of transports [T33]
B: The bill please. ___________________________________________
Vocab

A: $76 ____________________________________________ 17.1.1)

? bus b-
b-s transliteration
ga

A: yiu d m a?
chau-mihn ,
taxi transliteration
dk-
dk-s ga

B: yt-go ch-
ch-su faahn, yt-go chau-
ym-d m a? ?
minibus little bus
su-b ga

A: ym-
h-lohk ,
MTR ground iron
deih--tit
deih liht

B: yt go yiht ga-
ga-f, yt go h-
h-gi dng dng
train / KCR fire car
f-ch
ch liht

A: h-
tram electric car
dihn--ch
dihn ch ga


maih-dan
peak tram cable car
B: h-
h-gi maih- laahm-
laahm-ch ga
A: ch ah-luhk mn
cht-ah-
8) A: How many people? _____________________________________
17.1.2) Exercises
B: Two__________________________________________________
a) Translation
A: Sit here. What do you want to eat? _________________________
1) Many taxi __________________________
B: One fried noodles, one fried rice. Do you have beer?
_________________________ hu-d d
dk-s
B: Yes. ____________________________________________ 2) No taxi __________________________
A One beer, one coke please. [h] ________________________________ muh d
dk-s
[a can of: gun]
?
A: gi d wi a?
B: luhng wi
A: chh n douh ,
, sihk d m a? ,?
B: yt go chau-
chau-mihn, yt go chau-
chau-faahn,
faahn, yuh muh b ju a?
, , ?
A: yauh
h-lohk h-gi ,
B: yt gun b ju, yt go h-

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 65 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 66

17.2 Stations or stops [T34] Unit 18 Taking transports
Vocab
Stop [T35]
17.2.1) 18.1
bus stop b-
b-s jaahm go
taxi stand dk-
dk-s jaahm go Vocab

18.1.1)
minibus stop su-b jaahm go
MTR station deih-
deih-tit jaahm go a) Tell the places
here

n-douh
KCR / train station ch jaahm
f-ch go

a bit further ahead ch
chhn-
hn-bihn
tram stop
peak tram station
dihn-
dihn-ch
ch jaahm
laahm-
laahm-ch
ch jaahm
go
go
street junction gai hu street mouth (opening)

Expressions

17.2.2) b) Tell the places - Common shops
Parkn shop hundred + good
Baak-
Baak-gai gan
1) There is an MTR station
Wellcome Waih-
Waih-hng gan
yuh deih-
deih-tit jaahm
7-11 Ch
Cht sahp-
sahp-yt 7-11 7 + 11
gan
2) Theres no taxi stand
Watsons Wt-shn-
hn-s transliteration
gan
muh d
dk-s jaahm
Is there any bus station?
Mannings Maahn--nhng
Maahn ten thousand + peace
gan
?
3)
yuh m
muh b
b-s jaahm a? 18.1.2) Exercises
1) Theres a Parkn shop, no Wellcome. _____________________________
17.2.3) Exercises
yuh Baak-
Baak-gai, m
muh Waih-
Waih-hng
1) Is there any taxi stand? ___________________________
yuh m
muh d
dk-s jaahm a? ? 18.2 Minibus [T36]
2) Is there any MTR station? ___________________________
yuh m
muh deih-
deih-tit jaahm a? ? 18.2.1) Vocab
stop (for minibus) yuh lohk have +off

18.2.2) Note
a) yuh lohk
yuh lohk
It is used for a minibus. Because they dont hire the minibus, they just say yuh lohk
thng: yuh lohk
thng stop. y
instead of thng lohk means someone has to get off and then the driver
will stop the minibus for the passengers

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 67 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 68

 80 Nathan Road please
80
4)
18.2.3) Expressions
Nih-
Nih-dun douh baat-
baat-sahp houh h-gi
Stop at the MTR station

1) Nathan Road 80 number please
deih-
deih-tit-
tit-jaahm yuh-
yuh-lohk c) Ask for stop
Go around the corner and stop Stop for taxi

2)

5)
jyun wan yuh-
yuh-lohk thng
It is used for a hired vehicle only, such as a taxi. In a minibus, it sounds rude if you say
The bus stop please (stop at the bus stop please)

3)
thng.
thng Instead, people say yuh
yuh-
yuh-lohk
lohk on minibus
b-
b-s jaahm h
h-gi
Stop here

6)

18.2.4) Exercises n-
n-douh thng
Stop at the street intersection / junction ________________________ Stop further ahead

1) 7)
gai--hu yuh-
gai yuh-lohk chhn-
chhn-bihn thng
2) Stop at 7-11 _____________________________________________ Stop at Parkn shop

8)
Ch
Cht sahp-
sahp-yt yuh-
yuh-lohk 7-
7-11 Baaak-
Baaak-gai thng

18.3.3) Note
18.3 Taxi [T37] a) Modal Particle
PM in high level is used for requests and help to give a polite tone. Its optional and
Vocab

18.3.1)
people may skip it. If the request starts with please: h-
h-gi,
gi more likely the PM is
go heui

skipped.
where which place
bn-douh
stop thng 18.3.4) Exercises
a) Dialogue
18.3.2) Expressions 1) A: Where do you want to go?
a) Drivers expressions B: Central, Hollywood Road.
Where are you going? ..
?
1)
heui bn-
bn-douh a? A: Where do you want to stop
B: Please stop at Wellcome
Where do you want to stop?
?
2)
A: $32
bn-
bn-douh thng a?
A: heui bn-
bn-douh a? ?
b) Ask for destination B: Jng-
Jng-Wahn, Hh-
Hh-Lih-
Lih-Wuht Douh ,
The Central MTR station please ..

3)
Jung-
Jung-wahn deih-
deih-tit-
tit-jaahm h-gi bn--douh thng a?
A: bn ?
B: Waih-
Waih-Hng thng
sam--sahp
A: sam sahp--yih mn
http://www.clc.com.hk Page 69 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 70
Unit 19 Asking for direction Cantonese Expressions - 1

19.1 Where is the ? [T38] Edited by: Cantonese Learning Centre

19.1.1) Vocab Tel: (852) 2881 0116

e-mail: info@clc.com.hk
Where
on / at / in hi URL: http://www.clc.com.hk

where bn-douh Version:

First printed in:
V4.1
1998
Places Last revised in: November 2004
wash room si-su g
gan Printed in: June 2006
telephone dihn-
dihn-w
lift lp All rights reserved.

Nathan Road Nih-

ih-dun douh Printed in Hong Kong.

The end of the book

19.1.2) Expressions
Where is the washroom? __________________________________________________________________
?
1)
si su gan hi bn-
bn-douh a ?
__________________________________________________________________
Where is the phone?
?
2)
dihn-
dihn-w hi bn-
bn-douh a? __________________________________________________________________

Where is the lift? __________________________________________________________________

?
3)
lp hi bn-
bn-douh a?
__________________________________________________________________
19.1.3) Exercises __________________________________________________________________
1) Where is the MTR station. __________________________
deih-
deih-tit jaahm hi
hi bn-
bn-douh a ? ? __________________________________________________________________

2) Where is the Nathan Road? __________________________ __________________________________________________________________

Nih-
Nih-dun-
un-douh hi bn-
bn-douh a ? ?
__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

http://www.clc.com.hk Page 71 Cantonese Expressions - 1 Page 72