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Cantonese in a nutshell
Lesson 1: Self-introduction
Main
Cantonese
A: 你好, 我叫王家衛.
B: 我叫張曼玉. 好高興認識你.
A: 我都係.
English
A: Hi. My name's Wong Kar Wai.
B: My name's Maggie Cheung. Very nice to meet you.
A: I am, too.
Jyutping
A: Nei5 hou2, ngo5 giu3 wong4 gaa1 wai6.
B: Ngo5 giu3 zoeng1 maan6 juk2. Hou2 gou1 hing3 jing6 sik1 nei5.
A: Ngo5 dou1 hai6.
Vocabulary
我ngo5 I
我每天早上六時起床.
I wake up every morning at six o'clock a. M.
Ngo5 mui5 tin1 zou2 soeng6 luk6 si4 hei2 cong4.
我每晚九時上床.
I go to bed every night at 9 o'clock PM.
Ngo5 mui5 maan5 gau2 si4 soeng5 cong4.
我是個醫生.
I am a doctor.
Ngo5 si6 go3 ji1 sang1.
我主修美術.
I'm an art major.
Ngo5 zyu2 sau1 mei5 seot6.
我係佢哥哥.
I'm his older brother.
Ngo5 hai6 keoi5 go4 go1.
叫 giu3 to be called, call
我要叫外賣.
I am calling for take-out.
Ngo5 jiu3 giu3 ngoi6 maai6.
我叫Nicole.
I'm (called) Nicole.
Ngo5 giu3 Nicole.
你叫咩名?
What's your name?
Nei5 giu3 me1 meng2?
你 nei5 you (singular)
你喺邊?
Where are you?
Nei5 hai2 bin1?
你去唔去?
Will you go?
Nei5 heoi3 m4 heoi3?
你最近點呀?
How have you been lately?
Nei5 zeoi3 gan6 dim2 aa3?
係hai6 to be
我係學生.
I am a student.
Ngo5 hai6 hok6 saang1.
佢係女仔.
She is a girl.
Keoi5 hai6 neoi5 zai2.
好hou2 very, quite
今日好開心啊!
Today (I'm) very happy!
Gam1 jat6 hou2 hoi1 sam1 aa3!
高興gou1 hing3 happy
佢老公唔高興.
Her husband's not happy.
Keoi5 lou5 gung1 m4 gou1 hing3.
認識jing6 sik1 to know, to recognize
認識你好高興.
Nice meeting you.
Jing6 sik1 nei5 hou2 gou1 hing3.
都dou1 also
我都鍾意佢.
I also like him (/her/it).
Ngo5 dou1 zung1 ji3 keoi5.
Lesson focus
The Focus of This Lesson is Cantonese Essentials. For Example:
你好, 我叫王家衛. Nei5 hou2, ngo5 giu3 wong4 gaa1 wai6. Hello, I'm Wong Kar-Wai.
Self-Introductions
你好 (nei5 hou2)
Hello in Chinese is made up of two words: 你, meaning you, and 好, meaning good.
叫 (giu3)
The verb 叫 (giu3) means to call. So to introduce yourself, you are simply saying I'm called ______.
Responses
我叫張曼玉. 好高興認識你.
Ngo5 giu3 zoeng1 maan6 juk2. Hou2 gou1 hing3 jing6 sik1 nei5.
My name's Maggie Cheung. Very nice to meet you.
我都係. Ngo5 dou1 hai6. I am, too.
認識 (jing6 sik1)
The verb 認識 (jing6 sik1) means to know or to be familiar with, however, in the context of the phrase 好高興認識你. (hou2 gou1 hing3 jing6 sik1 nei5), the implication is that of to meet, since this meeting signifies a making of one's acquaintance, and thus, thereafter, they will know each other.
我都係. (ngo5 dou1 hai6)
This phrase literally means I also am. In this dialogue, it is said in response to the statement Nice to meet you, to express a corresponding feeling.
Names in Cantonese
Names in Cantonese are generally made up of either two or three characters. The surname is one character, given first, followed by the given name or names.
For Example:
王家衛 (wong4 kaa1 wai6) Wong Kar-Wai
張曼玉 (zoeng1 maan6 juk6) Maggie Cheung
Sometimes, in more formal settings, a person will simply ask for a person's surname. They will do this by asking:
你貴姓? (nei5 gwai3 sing3) Your surname is?
To which one would respond:
我姓____. (ngo5 sing3 ____) My surname is ____.
Language Expansion
There are other ways to say Nice to meet you in Cantonese. Both of these phrases are acceptable as well:
幸會 (hang6 wui6) I've long heard of you.
久仰 (gau2 joeng5) I've long heard of you.
