Cantonese grammar
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Cantonese is an analytic language in which the arrangement of words in a sentence is important to its meaning. A basic sentence is in the form of SVO, i.e. a subject is followed by a verb then by an object, though this order is often violated because Cantonese is a topic-prominent language. Unlike synthetic languages, seldom do words indicate time, gender and number by inflection. Instead, these concepts are expressed through adverbs, aspect markers, and particles, or are deduced from the context. Different particles are added to a sentence to further specify its status or intonation.
A verb itself indicates no tense. The time can be explicitly shown with time-indicating adverbs. Certain exceptions exist, however, according to the pragmatic interpretation of a verb's meaning. Additionally, an optional aspect particle can be appended to a verb to indicate the state of an event. Appending interrogative or exclamative particles to a sentence turns a sentence into a question or shows the attitudes of the speaker.
Verbal aspect[]
In contrast to many European languages, Cantonese verbs are marked for aspect rather than tense—that is, whether an event has begun, is ongoing, or has been completed. Tense—where an event occurs within time, i.e. past, present, future—is specified through the use of time adverbs. In addition, verbal complements may convey aspectual distinctions, indicating whether an event is just beginning, is continuing, or at completion, and also the effect of the verb on its object(s).
Aspect particles are treated as suffixes bound to the verb.
Aspect | Marker | Usage | Example |
---|---|---|---|
Perfective | 咗 zo2 |
To emphasise a completed activity the result of which still applies to the present situation | 我 ngo5 I 喺 hai2 at/in 香港 hoeng1 gong2 Hong Kong 住咗 zyu6 zo2 live-PFV 一 jat1 one 年 nin4 year I have been living in Hong Kong for a year (and still live here) |
Experiential | 過 gwo3 |
To emphasise an activity completed in the indeterminate past which no longer applies to the present situation | 我 ngo5 I 喺 hai2 at/in 香港 hoeng1 gong2 Hong Kong 住過 zyu6gwo3 live-EXP 一 jat1 one 年 nin4 year I lived in Hong Kong for a year (but am now elsewhere) |
Progressive | 緊 gan2 |
To emphasise a dynamic activity which may undergo a change of state | 我 ngo5 I 著緊 zoek3 gan2 wear-PROG 衫 saam1 clothes I am putting on clothes |
Durative | 住 zyu6 |
To emphasise a continuous activity without a change of state | 我 ngo5 I 著住 zoek3 zyu6 wear-DUR 衫 saam1 clothes I am wearing clothes |
Delimitative | 吓 haa5 |
To emphasise an activity of brief duration | 等 dang2 Let 我 ngo5 me 著吓 zoek3 haa5 wear-DEL Let me wear it for a while |
Habitual | 開 hoi1 |
To emphasise an activity protracted over a period of time to the point that it has become characteristic or habitual | 我 ngo5 I 做開 zou6 hoi1 do-HAB 鐘點 zung1 dim2 part-time 嘅 ge3 SFP I normally work part-time |
Inchoative | 起 hei2 上 soeng5 嚟 lai4 |
To emphasise the beginning of an activity | 個 go3 CL 阿咇 aa3 bit6 baby 突然之間 dat6 jin4 zi1 gaan1 suddenly 喊起上嚟 haam3 hei2 soeng5 lai4 cry-INCH the baby suddenly began crying |
Continuative | 落 去 lok6 heoi3 |
To emphasise the continuation of an activity | 你 nei5 you 唔 m4 NEG 使 si2/sai2 need 再 zoi3 again 講落去 gong2 lok6 heoi3 speak-CONT 喇 laa3 SFP You don't have to go on speaking |
Final particles[]
Cantonese has many final particles to change the moods or sometimes even the meaning of an utterance. There are also many combinations of these final particles.
Particle | Usage | Example |
---|---|---|
呀 aa3 |
Used in neutral questions. Also used to soften the tone of affirmative statements so they don't sound as abrupt. | 你去邊處呀? Where are you going? 我返屋企呀 I'm going home. |
嘅 ge3 |
Used in assertions where something is emphasized (usually 係 hai6 is in front of what is being emphasized). Pronouncing it as ge2 adds a sense of puzzlement about the situation. This is equivalent to the Mandarin/written Chinese 的 dik1. | 我係今日返屋企嘅 I'm going home today. (the "today" is emphasized) |
㗎 gaa3 |
Contraction of the combination 嘅呀 ge3 aa3. | 你係幾時返來㗎? When are you coming back? (the "when" is emphasized) |
啦 laa1 |
Used in requests and imperatives. This is one particle where leaving it out could make the sentence sound rude. This is equivalent to the Mandarin/written Chinese sentence final 吧 baa6. | 俾我啦 Give it to me [please]. |
囉 lo1 |
Indicates a suggestion or conclusion that should be obvious (usually occurs with 咪 mai6). | 我冇車咪返唔到屋企囉 Without a car, [then of course] I am unable to go home. |
啫 ze1 |
Can be used to mean "only" or "that's all," or used to play down the significance of the situation. | 佢返一日啫 He's only coming back for one day. |
There are more final particles than those shown above, such as 嘞 laak3, 咯 lo3, 吓 haa2, 呵 ho2, 吖 aa4, 㗎 gaa4, 喎 wo5, 啩 gwaa3, 噃 bo3, 喎 wo3, 喳 za4 and 咩 me1.
Final particles may sometimes combine to convey multiple moods. There are unwritten rules about which particles can be combined and in what order they occur which are probably too complicated to explain here. However, one good rule of thumb is that 嘅 ge3 always comes before the other particles. In addition, the particles used in questions (呀 aa3, 咩 me1, 呢 ne1, 嗎 maa3, etc.) always come last.
Pronouns[]
Cantonese uses the following pronouns, which like in many other Sinitic languages, function as both nominative (English: I, he, we) and accusative (me, him, us):
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
1st person | 我 ngo5 I / me |
我 ngo5 哋 dei6 we / us |
2nd person | 你 nei5 you (singular) |
你 nei5 哋 dei6 you (plural) |
3rd person | 佢 keoi5 he / she / it |
佢 keoi5 哋 dei6 they / them |
Copula ("to be")[]
States and qualities are generally expressed using stative verbs that do not require the verb "to be". For example, to say "I am hungry", one would say 我肚餓 ngo5 tou5 ngo6 (literally: I stomach hungry).
With noun complements, the verb 係 hai6 serves as the verb "to be".
尋
cam4
日
jat6
係
hai6
中
zung1
秋
cau1
節。
zit3
Yesterday was [the] Mid-Autumn festival
Another use of 係 is in cleft constructions for emphasis, much like the English construction "It's ... that ...". The sentence particle 嘅 ge3 is often found along with it.
佢
keoi5
係
hai6
完
jyun4
全
cyun4
唔
m4
識
sik1
講
gong2
廣
Gwong2
東
dung1
話
waa6*2
嘅。
ge
"(It is the case that) s/he doesn't know Cantonese at all."
To indicate location, the words 喺 hai2 (a "lazy" variation is 响 hoeng2) which are collectively known as the locatives or sometimes coverbs in Chinese linguistics, are used to express "to be at":
我
ngo5
而
ji4
家
gaa1
喺
hai2
圖
tou4
書
syu1
館。
gun2
I am at the library now
- (Here 而家 ji4 gaa1 means "now".)
Negations[]
Many negation words start with the sound m- in Cantonese; for example, 唔 m4 "not", 冇 mou5 "to not have (done sth)", 未 mei6 "not yet". Verbs are negated by adding the character 唔 m4 in front of it. For example:
我 ngo5 1SG 食 sik6 to eat 得 dak1 can 花生 faa1 sang1 peanut "I can eat peanuts" |
我 ngo5 1SG 唔 m4 NEG 食 sik6 to eat 得 dak1 can 花生 faa1 sang1 peanut "I can't eat peanuts" |
The exception is the word 有 jau5 'to have', which turns into 冇 mou5 'to not have' without the use of 唔 m4.
The negative imperative is formed by prefixing 唔好 m4 hou2 (also pronounced mou2) or 咪 mai5 in front of the verb:
唔
m4
好
hou2
睇
tai2
戲
hei3
"Don't watch movies"
咪
mai5
睇
tai2
戲
hei3
"Don't watch movies"
In contrast to the examples of sentential negation above where the entire sentence is negated, 唔 m4 can be used lexically to negate a single word. The negated word often differs slightly in meaning from the original word; that is, this lexical negation is a kind of derivation. Evidence for this is that they can be used with the perfective aspect particle 咗 zo2, which is not possible with sententially negated verbs.
見
gin3
"see"
唔見
m4 gin3
"lose"
記得
gei3 dak1
"remember"
唔記得
m4 gei3 dak1
"forget"
錯
co3
"wrong"
唔錯
m4 co3
"pretty good; not bad"
/
/
/
冇錯
mou5 co3
"right"
我
ngo5
唔
m4
見
gin3
咗
zo2
我
ngo5
本
bun2
書
syu1
"I lost my book"
is perfectly acceptable, but
*
我
ngo5
唔
m4
食
sik6
咗
zo2
嘢
je5
"I did not eat"
is ungrammatical. (The correct expression should be 我冇食嘢 ngo5 mou5 sik6 je5: 我(I)冇(did not)食(eat)嘢(something/anything), but actually with an emphasis on not doing an action, as it is the negation of 我有食嘢 ngo5 yau5 sik6 je5: 我(I)有(did)食(eat)嘢(something/anything).)
Questions[]
Questions are not formed by changing the word order as in English. Sentence final particles and certain interrogative constructions are used instead.
Yes-no questions[]
There are two ways to form a yes-no questions. One way is by the use of final particle and/or intonation alone. The question particle 呀 aa4 indicates surprise or disapproval. It tends to presuppose a positive answer.
吓?
Haa2?
你
Nei5
下
haa6
個
go3
禮
lai5
拜
baai3
放
fong3
假
gaa3
呀?
aa4?
You are going on leave next week!? (The questioner is surprised that you are going on leave, or doesn't agree that you should.)
The particle 咩 me1 is exclusively interrogative, indicating surprise and used to check the truth of an unexpected state of affairs.
乜
Mat1
你
nei5
唔
m4
知
zi1
嘅
ge3
咩?
me1?
(You mean) you don't know?
A question may be indicated by a high rising intonation alone at the end of a question. (This intonation can be considered a nonsyllablic final particle indicating a question.) This intonation pattern usually modifies or exaggerates the basic tone of the last syllable. This type of question is used especially for echo, where the questioner repeats a statement out of surprise.
「我
"ngo5
唔
m4
見
gin3
咗
zo2
條
tiu4
鎖
so2
匙」
si4"
「咩
"me1e5
話?
waa6?
你
nei5
唔
m4
見
gin3
咗
zo2
條
tiu4
鎖
so2
匙?」
si4"
"I lost the key." "What? You lost the key?" (The last syllable of 鎖匙 so2 si4 "key" is pronounced longer, first finishing the low falling tone, then rising at the end like the high rising tone.)
The other way to form yes-no questions uses a special construction in which the head of the predicate, say X, is replaced by X-not-X. Final particles may be used in addition.
- For example
你 nei5 you 識 sik1 know 講 gong2 speak 廣東話 Gwong2 dung1 waa2 Cantonese You know to speak Cantonese. |
你 nei5 you 識唔識 sik1 m4 sik1 know not know 講 gong2 speak 廣東話? Gwong2 dung1 waa2 Cantonese Do you speak Cantonese? |
- As the negative form of 有 is 冇, the corresponding yes-no question uses the form 有冇:
有 jau5 have 紅綠燈. hung4 luk6 dang1 red-green-light There is a traffic light. |
有冇 jau5 mou5 have not have 紅綠燈? hung4 luk6 dang1 red-green-light Is there a traffic light? |
- As for 係 hai6 ("to be"), the yes-no question often uses the contraction 係咪 hai6 mai6 (note that 咪 mai6 is not the prohibitive 咪 mai2) instead of 係唔係 hai6 m4 hai6.
佢 keoi5 (s)he 係 hai6 is 加拿大人. gaa1 naa4 daai6 jan4*2 Canada-man (S)he is a Canadian |
佢 keoi5 (s)he 係咪 hai6 mai6 is isn't 加拿大人? gaa1 naa4 daai6 jan4*2 Canada-person Is (s)he a Canadian? |
- With multisyllable verbs, only the first syllable is repeated:
你 nei5 you 鍾意 zung1 ji3 like 年糕. nin4 gou1 year-cake You like new-year cake |
你 nei5 you 鍾唔鍾意 zung1 m4 zung1 ji3 like not like 年糕? nin4 gou1 year-cake Do you like new-year cake? |
- A special case is when a question asking whether something has occurred is formed. In a negative sentence, the adverb 未 mei6 should precede the verb to indicate that the event has not yet occurred. In yes-no questions, however, 未 appears at the end of the question (but before the final particle, if exists):
你 nei5 you 去過 heoi3 gwo3 go-EXP 德國. Dak1 gwok3 Germany You have ever been to Germany |
你 nei5 you 去過 heoi3 gwo3 go-EXP 德國 Dak1 gwok3 Germany 未? mei6*2 not-yet (the word 去過 after 未 is omitted to avoid repetition.) (tone changes to indicate a question.)
Have you ever been to Germany? |
This form of yes-no questions looks less similar to the "X-not-X" type, but it is still considered in this type, because the "X" after "not" is omitted. For example, the example question above can be expanded as 你去過德國未去過? nei5 heoi3 gwo3 Dak1 gwok3 mei6 heoi3 gwo3.
A syntax of yes-no question in the form "X-not-X" is actually a contraction of a combination of syntax of an affirmative sentence and the syntax of a negative sentence.
Interrogative words[]
- The interrogative words are as follows:
Interrogative | Pronunciation | English equivalent |
---|---|---|
邊個 | bin1 go3 | who |
乜(嘢) / 咩 | mat1 (je5) / me1e5 | what |
邊度 / 邊處 | bin1 dou6 / bin1 syu3 | where |
幾時 | gei2 si4 | when |
點解 | dim2 gaai2 | why |
點 | dim2 | how about |
點(樣) | dim2 (joeng6*2) | how (in what manner) |
幾 | gei2 | how (adjective) |
幾多 | gei2 do1 | how many/much |
Questions use exactly the same word order as in statements. For example: 你係邊個? nei5 hai6 bin1 go3 "who are you?" (literally "you are who"), 你幾時去邊度見邊個呀? nei5 gei2 si4 heoi3 bin1 dou6 gin3 bin1 go aa3 "When will you go? Where will you go and who will you meet?" (literally "you when go where meet who"). Note that more than one interrogative words can be put in a single sentence at a same time.
Demonstratives[]
The proximal demonstrative ("this"), is 呢 ni1 / nei1, or more frequently in fast speech, 依 ji1 (+ measure word). For example:
- 呢本書 ni1/nei1 bun2 syu1 "this book"
- 依本書 ji1 bun2 syu1 "this book"
The distal demonstrative ("that") is 嗰 go2. For example:
- 嗰本書 go2 bun2 syu1 "that book"
Between the demonstrative and its noun, a certain word to link them must be used, whether a corresponding classifier for the noun for singular count nouns or 啲 di1 for plural count nouns and mass nouns:
- 呢架車 ni1/nei1 gaa3 ce1 "this car"
- 呢啲車 ni1/nei1 di1 ce1 "these cars"
- 嗰啲水 go2 di1 seoi2 "that water"
Possessives[]
- For singular nouns, the word 嘅 ge3 is roughly equivalent to English " 's":
爸
baa1*4
爸
baa1
嘅
ge3
屋
nguk1
企
kei2
"father's house"
- Plural nouns take 啲 di1:
你
nei5
啲
di1
動
dung6
物
mat6
"your animals"
N.B.: 啲 di1 is a very versatile word in Cantonese, besides pluralizing certain phrases, it can also mean "a little/few", e.g. 一啲 jat1 di1 "a little", or 早啲 zou2 di1 "earlier" (literally: early + (intensifier)).
- Possessive pronouns (i.e. "mine", "his", "hers") are formed by adding 嘅 ge3 after the pronoun.
係
hai6
佢
keoi2
嘅
ge3
呀!
aa3
"It's his!"
(呀 aa3 is a particle used to end affirmative statements)
However, in the case where there's an implied plural noun, one does not say:
*
係
hai6
佢
keoi5
啲
di1
呀!
aa3
"It's his!"
For example:
呢
ni1/nei1
啲
di1
書
syu1
係
hai6
邊
bin1
個
go3
嘅
ge3
呀?
aa3
"Whose books are these?"
係
hai6
佢
keoi5
嘅
ge3
呀!
aa3
"It's his! [referring to his books]"
嘅呀 ge3 aa3 is usually shortened in speech into one syllable, 㗎/嘎 gaa3.
- One could also say:
係
hai6
佢
keoi5
啲
di1
書
syu1
嚟
lei4
㗎!
gaa3
"It's his books!"
Both of these are generic possessives.
Differences from Mandarin grammar[]
The following Cantonese grammatical points are not found in Mandarin Chinese.
Word order[]
The direct object precedes the indirect object when using the verb 畀 bei2 "to give". In Mandarin verbs of giving, an indirect object precedes a direct object.
畀
bei2
give
嗰
go2
this
本
bun2
CL
書
syu1
book
我
ngo5
1SG
"Give the book to me."
Morphology[]
The suffix used for the plural of pronouns, 哋 dei6, cannot associate with human nouns, unlike its similar Mandarin counterpart 們 -men. Mandarin 學生們 xuéshengmen "the students" would be rendered in Cantonese as:
(啲)
(di1)
(CL)
學生
hok6 saang1
students
"(the) students"
There are words in Mandarin which often require the suffixes 子 -zi or 頭 -tou, but they are normally optional in Cantonese, e.g. Mandarin 鞋子 xiézi "shoe" and 石頭 shítou "rock" can be 鞋 haai4 and 石 sek6 in Cantonese.
Classifiers[]
Classifiers can be used instead of the possessive 嘅 ge3 to indicate possession of a single object. Classifiers cannot be used this way in Mandarin.
佢
keoi5
3SG
本
bun2
CL
書
syu1
book
"his book"
Classifiers in both Cantonese and Mandarin can serve to individualize a noun, giving it a singular meaning (or plural in the case 啲 di1). However, such a construction in Mandarin will be of indefinite reference, unless a demonstrative (e.g. 這 zhè "this") or the universal quantifier (每 měi "every") is present. Furthermore, there are great limitations on using this construction in subject position in Mandarin. In Cantonese, these restrictions do not exist.
架
gaa3
CL
車
che1
car
撻
taat3
start
唔
m4
not
著
zoek6
burn
"The car won't start," and it cannot be interpreted as "the cars".
Comparison[]
Adjective comparison in Cantonese is formed by adding the marker 過 gwo3 after an adjective. The adjective-marker construction serves as a transitive verb which takes the standard of comparison as an object.
佢
keoi5
3SG
高
gou1
tall
過
gwo3
COMP
我
ngo5
1SG
"He is taller than me."
In Standard Mandarin, comparison is marked by adding 比 bǐ, which serves in an adverbial phrase, leaving the adjective itself unchanged. The sentence above is translated into Mandarin as:
他
tā
3SG
比
bǐ
compare_to
我
wǒ
1SG
高
gāo
tall
"He is taller than me."
Alternatively the plural marker 啲 di1 alone (without the numeral 一 yat1) can be used use as the sole complement of the verbal adjective.
佢
keoi5
3SG
高
gou1
tall
啲
di1
COMP
"He is taller."
Aspect markers[]
Cantonese has a dedicated habitual aspect marker, 開 hoi1, with no similar counterpart in Mandarin.
我
ngo5
1SG
住
zyu6
live
開
hoi1
HAB
香港
Hoeng1 Gong2
Hong Kong
"I've been living in Hong Kong."
Passives[]
In Cantonese, there must always be an agent in a passive, while in Mandarin this isn't the case. If there's no known or specific agent, Cantonese must at least use 人 jan4 "someone" as a dummy agent.
筷 子
faai3 zi2
chopsticks
畀
bei2
by
人
jan4
person
用
jung6
use
咗
zo2
PRF
"the chopsticks have been used" (and not *筷子畀用咗 *faai3 zi2 bei2 jung6 zo2)
Sentence particles[]
It is possible to stack various of such particles one after the other, while Mandarin is restricted to sentence-final 了 and one particle.
你
nei5
2SG
食
sik6
eat
咗
zo2
PRF
啦
laa3
COS
吓?
haa5
Q
"You already ate, right?"
Pronouns[]
There is no gender distinction between the third person singulars of he, she and it in spoken or written Cantonese; however in Mandarin, male and female are distinguished with two different characters, 他 for male and 她 for female,[1] as well as 它 for inanimate objects (including plants), 牠 for (non-human) animals, and 祂 for god(s), which all have the same pronunciation.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Matthews, Stephen; Yip, Virginia (2011). Cantonese: A Comprehensive Grammar (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. p. 92. ISBN 9780415471312.
- Cantonese language
- Sino-Tibetan grammars