Can anyone tell me the Cantonese for the following basic terms?
Counting, 1 to 10?
Yes/No?
Please/Thank you
Hello/Goodbye
Thanks in advance if anyone can do this for me. (Also, just spell it phonetically. I know that Cantonese doesn’t really have a standard roman form).
Thanks.
C’mon, I’m sure someone here must know! It’s quite simple ain’t it?
I am not a Cantonese speaker, but I think:
Thank you = do xie [pronounced ‘door shieh’]
Hello = ni hao (ma) [pronounced nee how ma]
As for anything else I am not exactly sure. Sorry
I don’t know about do xie (mandarin for thank you is xiexie or xiexie ni), but ni hao is mandarin for hello. Maybe this is the same for both dialects???
I am pretty sure about ni hao being hello in Cantonese.
I am also pretty sure about do xie as well (its meaning is more like thank you very much), but I cannot be certain. The way the ‘xie’ is pronounced is slightly different to the Mandarin - it has more of a ‘ch’ sound in it than the Mandarin pronounciation. It may also be a more formal way of saying thank you - there may be a more colloquial term instead.
This really has nothing to do with serpents question but ill put in my crappy under researched Chinese into this as well.
Do Chea is Canto for ‘Thank you’
Shea Shea is Mandarin for Thank you
Ni Hao litteraly means ‘you good’
Its akin to saying ‘how you going’
Ni Hao Ma means you good today
Ni (you) Hao (good) Ma(today)
This is from my limited rememberence of the little ive picked up and been taught over the years
Gung Hei Fat Choy
Basicaly basicaly means ‘Come lucky money’ or words to that affect.
and we think we are all so special walking around saying it on Chinese new years.
They proberly all think were greedy now :rolleyes:
Im spelling things as they sound rather than following any accepted way.
Special note…
One guy walked into our class and tried to impress my teacher by saying.
Ohio Gazamous Sensai
If he was learning a Japanese art he would have been hella cool, my sifu needless to say just gave him a blank look and said hi…
Another tried to speak to him in poor chinese and my sifu ended up simply telling him he couldnt understand and speak slow english.
I find peoples attempts to speak to my sifu very amusing…
Another funny thing is watching how often all the students refer to him as sifu.
If we go out to lunch i hear the word ‘sifu’ or ‘shifu’ said so many times i start to want to go balistic and want to kill someone.
They start EVERY sentence with it.
Sifu would like more tea
Sifu what do you think of this
Sifu your sitting right next to me do i really need to keep addressing you formaly.
Sifu how many times can i say sifu before you go nuts and stop letting me call you sifu leaving me without a sifu and looking for a new sifu and and and… breath breath:rolleyes:
I just talk to him normaly and address him as sifu when i need to get his attension. If he is sitting next to me and i offer him some tea i just turn and say ‘tea?’ and he says yes or no.
Sorry for the stupid rant but this never fails to annoy me…
As a special side note to that, people on the street who are chinese call him sifu and so does nearly everyone he has contact with. He seems to quite like the fact i dont feel the need to follow there leads.
Gung hei faat choy is more like “Good fortune to you” and the Chinese are a little preoccupied with cash after all. Especially at new year.
Xie Xie is Mandarin. As is Ni Hao. I don’t know if the Canto’s use Ni Hao also.
Dor Chai (phonetically) is Mandarin, but I think also Cantonese.
Are you getting the reason that I asked now! 
Anyone actually speak Cantonese!? Help Me!
jon - maybe the poeple that keep using ‘sifu’ have watched too many kung fu movies Or maybe they genuinely respect him and that is their way of showing it.
serpent - Sorry I cannot help any further personally. I have 2 Cantonese speakers here with me but just to be cruel I am not going to ask for their help
1-10 = YUT, Yee, SUM, Sei, Ehm (sort of like mmm), loog, chut, Phut, Gao (Kah-o), SUP
Yes = Hai (low H, else becomes a swear word)
No = Ehm (mmm)-Hai (this mmm is slightly lower than number 5 above)
Please = no direct translate, but “MMM-Goi”
Thank you = Dhor - Jeh (cheh) Lei
Hello (You good) = Lei Ho
Good bye (See you again) = “Joi Gin” or in the chinese movies “Hau Wui Yao Kei”
D@mmit prana, you ruined my extortion attempt.
Ha! In your face, Joedoe!
Thanks Prana, your on my “decent blokes” list once again!
Actually, I have a question about your answer Prana!
1-10 = YUT, Yee, SUM, Sei, Ehm (sort of like mmm), loog, chut, Phut, Gao (Kah-o), SUP
loog - do you pronounce that long: loooog
or short: lug?
Also
Phut - futt or putt?
Hey in that case i desperately need help with my mandorin…
i know all the basics, but what i really need to know is how do you say:
Your place or mine?
wake up! wake up!
excuse me
do you miss me?
whats your name?
my name is Tae Li.
ok, who’s gonna help me out??? there has to be OMEONE hwo speaks mando!
Tae Li;)
I’ll Try to Help
counting
1)Yut, 2)Yee, 3)Sam, 4)Se, 5)Ng, 6)Luk, 7)Chut, 8)Baht, 9)Gao, 10)Sup.
Hai= Yes No= m hai
when you use m in front of an adjective, it becomes negative or the opposite of yes.
ex. if someone ask you how are you? You would respond not good. The word for good is Ho.
q) Nai Ho Ma? a) M Ho.
Please= Cheng
Thank You: Doh Je
Hello: Nai Ho Ma= How are You?
good morning= Jo San
good afternoon= ng ngon
good evening= Man Ngon
bye= baai baai
see you= joi wooi or joi gin
see you soon= chi di joi gin
see you tomorrow= ting yat joi gin
I hope I was some help to you.
Peace
Je Lei Sifu
Counting, 1 to 10?
yat
yi
sam
say
m
luck
chat
baat
gau
sup
Yes/No?
hai (is) ho(can)
mm ai (not be) mm o(can not)
MAEEEE YO!
Please/Thank you
ching/ doh jeh, mm goi
Hello/Goodbye
nay ho/jow la(done!) chinese not say goodbye, usually just leave 
egg roll
cheung geen
hahahahaha
Wait a few days…
Hi, i can help ya with manderin I just need to get my book again so i make sure i dont tell you wrong I am rather rusty…
Whats your name - Ni Gui Xing
but i think that translates as “what is your honerable surname”, ill have to check…(haha the one time i didnt bring my book with me and i cant remeber all the accent marks, if you say it with a different accent then you say something completley different. a couple days and ill be able to tell ya no problem
Serpent, i responded to yours in southern forum already…
peace,
Wally
This is great, thank you all for your help.
Say, let’s keep this thread going. Any other Cantonese words and phrases that people think are worth knowing?
What about all the common traveller stuff like How much? Where’s the hotel? Help I need a doctor! How much for your women?
You know, the usual stuff!
Originally posted by Tae Li
[B]Hey in that case i desperately need help with my mandorin…
i know all the basics, but what i really need to know is how do you say:
Ni De Di Fang Hai She Wo De ?
universal language SLAP in the face, or …
excuse me
do you miss me?
Ni Wang Tze Wo mah ?
Ni jiao sher moh Ming ?
Woh De Ming Sher Tae Li.
ok, who’s gonna help me out??? there has to be OMEONE hwo speaks mando!
Tae Li;) [/B]
hehehe my Mandarine is questionable.
How much= gei doh chin a
where is the hotel= hai bin do a jau dim
help= gau meng a
call a doctor=giu yi sang
girlfriend= nui pang yau
peace
Je Lei Sifu