RTHK Lesson 9 – Shenzen: Visas and Shopping

Transcript of Cantonese words and phrases used in Lesson 9 of RTHK Naked Cantonese.  Accent marks to be updated when I have time.

néih hóu leng loi – how are you pretty girl?

daap deih tit – take the MTR

Tap dei tit heui Lo Wu – take the MTR to Lo Wu

Ngóh yiu tsin tsing – I need a visa

tsin tsing gei doh chin ah – how much is a visa?

tsim tsing hai bin do ah? – where is the visa?

seong cheong – shopping centre

mo cho – absolutely right (lit. no mistake)

go bin – over there

choi fung gei do lau ah? – which floor are the tailors?

gei do lau – which floor

sei lau – 4th floor

sau doi – hand bag

geuk o mo – foot massage

melicure, pelicure – manicure, pedicure

yat go jung – 1 hour

leong go jung – 2 hours

bun go jung – half an hour

tai gwai ah – too expensive

ho gwai ah – expensive

jau lau hai bin do ah? – where is the restaurant?

hóu - good

RTHK Lesson 8 – Hands off my cow!

Transcript of Cantonese words and phrases used in lesson 8 of RTHK Naked Cantonese.  Accent marks to be updated when I have time.

Lei ho –how are you?

Leng loy – pretty girl

Dim ah? – how’s it going?

soy – water

soy au – water buffalo

fong sao o jek soy au – hands off my cow

sao – hand

jek – animal classifier

Au sih – cow poo

Au si ho yao yong – cow poo is useful

yao yong – have use (i.e., useful)

Yeh au – wild buffalo

beef – au yuk (or ngau yuk)

au yuk beng - beef burger

‘lettuce’ chung man dim gong ah? – how do you say ‘lettuce’ in Chinese?

Sang choy – lettuce

Yao mo sang choy – do you have any lettuce?

Wei, leng tsay, yao mo sang choy? – Hey good looking guy, do you have any lettuce?

RTHK Lesson 7 – Lightbulbs and bottles

Transcript of Cantonese words and phrases used in lesson 7 of RTHK Naked Cantonese.  Accent marks to be updated when I have time.

Lei ho – how are you?

Gei ho -

tang dam - lightbulb

Yat go tang dam – one lightbulb

Tiu – classifier for long thin or bendable objects

gong goon – tube light (rod-like fluorescent light)

Ya tiu gong goon – one tube light

Yat chi tsing dao – One bottle of Tsing Tao (beer)

Leung chi be tsao mgoi – Two bottles of beer please

Me’a bet tsao ah? – What kind of beer?

Blue girl (beer) – Lam Mui (blue little sister)

Ngo m’yiu Lam Mui – I don’t want Blue Girl.

(Kum) lei yiu-myiu Ka See Ba? – (So then) You want some Carlsberg?

(Kum) lei yiu-myiu Tsing Do ah? – (So then) You want some Carlsberg?

Lei yiu gei do Tsing Do ah? – How many Tsing Do do you want?

Siu je, lei yao mo chin ah? – Miss, do you have money?

Gao meng! – Help!

Ngo m’siu fok – I don’t feel well

Ho siu fok – it feels good.

Hai gam sin – that’s it for now.

RTHK Lesson 6 – The weather today

Transcript of Cantonese words and phrases used in lesson 6 of Naked Cantonese.  Accent marks to be updated when I have time.

Lei gum yat ho leng ah – You look beautiful today

ho leng – beautiful (the ho does not really mean very)

ho leng – very beautiful (emphasis on the ‘ho’)

ho leng tsay – handsome boy

yit – hot

kum yat ho yit – it’s hot today

kum yat ho yit ah – it’s hot today

lok yue – raining  (fall rain)

kum yat lok ho tai – it’s raining heavily today

eksi - ‘X’ (used instead of saying expletive)

ho eksi yit – so f*ng hot

kum yat ho yit ah lok ho dai yue ah – it’s hot and rainy today.

lip – lift (elevator)

din tai – lift (electric ladder)

din tai hai bin do ah – where is the lift?

yao mo din tai – is there a lift?

gei do lau ah – which floor?

lau – floor

sam lau - 3rd floor

yee lau – 2nd floor  (never leung lau)

sap m lau – 15th floor

jo san – good morning

mhai woh – not really

aiya (ngo) m siu fok – i don’t feel so good.

aiya ho tsau ah! – it smells!

ngo tsao ah – I’m off

dei ha – ground floor

lido m’hai dei ha -

yan wai – because

m’chi woh – I don’t know

go bin – there

hai gam sin – that’s it for now

ho la, hai gam sin – alright, that’s it for now.

RTHK Lesson 5 – In the Brothel

Transcript of Cantonese words and phrases used in lesson 5 of Naked Cantonese.  Accent marks to be updated when I have time.

Léih ho – how are you?

Gei ho – go

‘Pink’ chung man dim gong ah? – How do you say ‘pink’ in Chinese?

Fan hong sek – pink (‘powder red’)

hong sek – red

hong tsao – red wine

léih gwai sing ah? – what’s your name? ('your valued surname?’)

sing – surname

léih la? – and you?

ngóh sing Gam – my surname is Gam

léih ho leng – you’re very pretty

to che – thank you (for compliments and gifts)

gei do chin ah? – how much

léih yiu bīngo ah – who do you want?

li go – this one

li do - here

seong lau tāi – upstairs

ho peng – cheap

tai gwai – too expensive

ho gwai – very expensive

léih jo mat ye ah? – what are you doing?

mo yeh - nothing

léih yam mat yeh ah – what are you drinking

soy – water

m’goi – thank you

m’sai – it’s nothing/don’t worry about it (response to m’goi)

yat bak – one hundred

hoi bindouh ah? – where are (we/you) going?

 

RTHK Lesson 4 Hai M’Hai

Transcription of Cantonese words and phrases used in Lesson 4 of RTHK Naked Cantonese (I will mark up the tones later when I have time)

<X> chung man dim gong ah? – How do you say <X> in Chinese?

gong dong wah – Cantonese

Ah Sa – sand

lei ho – how are you

gei ho – quite good (in response to “lei ho?”)

leng loy lei ho – how are you beautiful girl?

suhk loi –pretty (not sure)

hai – is

m’hai – isn’t

Ah Sah ho leng loi ah – Ah Sah is pretty

hai ah – is (ah seems like a softener)

dik si – taxi

tap dik si – take a taxi

chik hoi – go straight

lido chun jo – turn left here

lido chun yau – turn left here

fai di – go faster  (fai = fast, di adds ‘er’)

man di – go slower (man = slow, di adds ‘er’)

o m’seong say – I don’t want to die

m’ho keng din wah m’goi – don’t talk on the phone please (please stop talking on the phone)

gei doh chin ah? – how much is it?

din toi – radio

hai a tsam m’goy – next stop please

li do ah – here (to stop the bus here)

yau lok – I want to get off

chin siu siu yau lok – a little bit more please (and then I will get off)

Lesson 3 Hello and Goodbye

Transcript of Cantonese words and phrases used in lesson 3 of RTHK Naked Cantonese (I will add tonal accents later, as time permits):

leng loy lei ho – beautiful girl how are you

jo san – good morning

chung man dim gong ah – how do you say this in Chinese?

le ho – how are you?

wai,  dim ah? – hey, how’s it going?

wai – hey

wei – hey (another pronunciation of wai)

jo tao – good night (intimate, something like the Japanese oyasumi nasai)

ting yat geen – see you tomorrow

ting yat – tomorrow

geen – see

gei ho – [I’m] fine (a response to “lei ho?”)

<Chinese word> dim gai ah? - <Chinese word> how do you explain <Chinese word>

lei lah? – and you? (a response to “lei ho?”), literally “you, how about”

bai bai – good-bye

mo man tai – no problem

jau a lei – go away

RTHK Lesson 2 – Yao Mo

Transcript of Cantonese words from Lesson 2 of RTHK Naked Cantonese.  Will update the tonal accents later.

jing tong lik – gin and tonic

be tsao – beer

<X> chung man dim gong ah? – how do you say <X> in Chinese?

tsong – spring onion

din si – television (electric sight)

ah sah – sand

ah la – slender and beautiful maiden ( Don’t know if Cecilie was joking here?)

chin - money

lei – you

lei yao mo chin ah? – do you have (any) money?

yao – have

mo – not have

lei yao mo be tsau? – do you have any beer?

tsao la! – be off!

lei yao mo jing tong lik – do you have any gin tonic?

lei yao mo hei lik ah? – do you have any Heineken?

lei yao mo tsing do ah?  - do you have any Tsing Tao?  (a brand of beer)

tsing do gei chin ah – how much is Tsing Tao?

yat pui tsing do gei chin ah?

lei ho – how are you

say sap m man – 45 dollars

pang yao – friend

lei yao mo pang yao – do you have any friends?

lei yao mo din si gei – do you have a television set?

hei soy – lemonade

ho lok – Coca Cola

Two of something is leung, not yee.

leung pui tsing do m’goy – two glasses of Tsing Tao please.

leng tsay – handsome boy

leng loy – pretty girl

Cantonese in the bar

Decided to start blogging again after discovering RTHK Naked Cantonese.  Cecilie and Sarah Passmore make picking up Cantonese rather interesting.  I’ve previously heard of Cecilie through seeing her odd advertisement about learning Cantonese the “natural way – from a Norwegian”

I hope to pick up as much as I can from the Naked Cantonese lessons by writing down the phrases discussed in each of the lessons. I’ll just write them down phonetically at first and clean up the actual tones and spellings in subsequent posts.

Cantonese phrases discussed in Lesson 1:

Ngo msik gong ying man – I don’t know how to speak English

This is Cecilie’s technique for forcing Cantonese speakers to speak to you in Cantonese and not English.

be tsao – beer

yat pui be tsao ah mgoy – one pint of beer please

me ah be tsao? – what kind of beer?

sang lik – San Miguel

sang lik ah m’goy – San Miguel please

ga si ba – Carlsberg

chung man dim gong ah – how do you say that it Chinese?

hei lik – Heineken

gei do chin ah – how much? (lit. how many money)

gei chin ah – how much (more colloquial)

ee sap man – 20 dollars

ho peng ah – so cheap