Learn some more useful Cantonese phrases and tips for shopping in China
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get a breakdown of the dialogue and translations instantly with the Premium line-by-line Audio. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.
| 大家好(daai6 gaa1 hou2)! Hello and welcome to Cantonese Survival phrases brought to you by cantoneseclass101.com, my name is Nicole and I will be your language teacher and culture guide throughout this course. This course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to Hong Kong or anywhere else in the Cantonese world. You will be surprised at how far a little Cantonese will go. Now before we jump in, remember to stop by cantoneseclass101.com and there you will find the accompanying PDF and additional info in this post. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. |
| Cantonese survival phrases lesson 19. Lower the price. In Hong Kong, except in the department stores, haggling at a market is very common. These little markets are temporary street markets where you can find everything from clothes to electronics to antiquities. In these places, you will be able to use survival phrases you will learn in this lesson. Don’t be afraid to use Cantonese when speaking to the merchants because they generally appreciate the effort and they can be very friendly and kind to potential customers. Are you ready to have fun at a street market? Or 街市(gaai1 si5) Now upon entering 街市(gaai1 si5) you will be struck by the variety of Carnival stores and you will be immediately attracted by something that interests you. Normally if you are interested in buying something, you say excuse me, how much is this 唔該(m4 goi1), 呢個幾錢？(ni1 go3 gei2 cin2) That’s something we learned in last lesson. That’s something we learned in the previous lesson. Let’s hear it again. 唔該(m4 goi1), 呢個幾錢？(ni1 go3 gei2 cin2) Excuse me, how much is this. As soon as they tell you the price, you can start bargaining to lower the price. |
| Please note that this is very common in Hong Kong markets. So don’t be shy. Try to say 平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Let’s hear it again. 平 啲 喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!),平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Now this is a three sound sentence. 平 啲 喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Let’s break it down 平(peng4) is cheap. 平(peng4) cheap or low price 平 啲(peng4 di1) equals to the English suffix er 啲(di1). So 平 啲(peng4 di1) means cheaper. 平 啲(peng4 di1) cheaper. 喇! (laa1!) is a Cantonese particle that means what it sounds and it softens your request 喇! (laa1!), 平 啲 喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Lower your price please. Can you bring down the price a little bit? 平 啲 喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Could you lower the price please? 平 啲 喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Now we also have another phrase to bargain. Remember, we learned can or cannot in previous lessons. It’s 可唔可以?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5). Let’s hear it again. 可唔可以?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5), 可 唔 可 以?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5) Now in a bargaining context, you can ask 可唔可平以平啲呀?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5 peng4 di1 aa1?) Can you lower the price? 可唔可以平啲呀?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5 peng4 di1 aa1?) Can you lower the price or literally can or cannot lower the price 呀?(aa1?) 可唔可以平啲呀?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5 peng4 di1 aa1?) Now it means the same with 平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Now another way to express the feeling that something is too expensive and you want to start haggling is with 太貴喇 (taai3 gwai3 laa3). Let’s hear it again 太貴喇 (taai3 gwai3 laa3). It literally means too expensive 喇 (laa3). |
| Now let’s break it down. 太(taai3) is too or excessively 太(taai3),太(taai3) followed by 貴(gwai3) expensive 貴(gwai3) expensive. 喇(laa3) as we’ve said before, it’s a Cantonese particle. It softens the tone 喇 (laa3), 太貴喇 !(taai3 gwai3 laa3) Too expensive 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) Now let’s imagine that you are at a 街市(gaai1 si5). You are in a market and you want to buy a bag 袋(doi2) bag 袋(doi2) and you want to suggest your price to the merchant straightforward. In other words, you want to establish your own price as to one you’ve been bargaining for. The merchant has just told you that the bag costs about 三百(saam1 baak3) Hong Kong dollars, that’s about HKD300 三百(saam1 baak3) and you desperately want that bag but it’s too expensive and you want to get it at about HKD150 一百五十(jat1 baak3 ng5 sap6) or 百五(baak3 ng5). Now you want to try to suggest 100 一百(jat1 baak3). Why? Because a common way of haggling in 街市(gaai1 si5) or small market is to suggest a much lower price that you are willing to pay. Why? Because the common way of haggling in a 街市(gaai1 si5) or small market is to suggest a much lower price that you are willing to pay. For example, the bag costs HKD300 according to the seller but you want it for 150. In this case, starting your bid at HKD50 五十(ng5 sap6) and working your way up is the most efficient way. Sometimes you even get it cheaper than you expected. |
| Now let’s go back to the scenario. You want to try to suggest HKD100 一百(jat1 baak3). That’s 100. Now first you say 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) too expensive 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) too expensive. 300 is too expensive 三百?(saam1 baak3), 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) 300? You are robbing me! 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) And then you say 平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) cheaper please. 平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) lower the price please. Then the storekeeper would probably ask 你要幾錢呀?(nei5 jiu3 gei2 cin2 aa3?) What’s your price, how much you want. 你要(nei5 jiu3) you want 幾錢呀?(gei2 cin2 aa3?) you want how much. You should say 一百(jat1 baak3) 100 一百(jat1 baak3) 100. When haggling, this is all you need to say to get your point across. After this, there might be some back and forth bargaining. The merchant will lower the price bit by bit and when it falls to your ideal price which is 百五(baak3 ng5) 150 百五(baak3 ng5). You want to say 好!(hou2) or okay. 我買(ngo5 maai3) I will buy it or I will take it. 我買(ngo5 maai3) I will buy it. If the merchant still refuses you, slowly walk away and in most cases, they will give in. |
| Now that we know how to say 我買(ngo5 maai3). We should be able to say 我唔買(ngo5 m4 maai3) or I won’t buy it. Let’s hear it again 我唔買(ngo5 m4 maai3). I won’t buy it or I don’t buy it. 唔買(m4 maai3) Don’t buy it or won’t buy it. Now the way we form this sentence is that we put a negation before the verb. The negation is 唔(m4), 唔(m4). That’s the word we learnt in lesson 1 唔(m4) lowest tone in Cantonese. Umm followed by the verb 買(maai3) to buy 買(maai3) to buy. 唔買(m4 maai3) I won’t buy it or I don’t buy it. Now we’ve learned a couple of sentences by far. Before we go on, let’s have a quick review. First you say, how much is this? 唔該(m4 goi1), 呢個幾錢？(ni1 go3 gei2 cin2) Then we have too expensive 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) Will you lower the price please 平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) or can you or can you not lower the price 可唔可平以平啲呀?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5 peng4 di1 aa1?) It’s actually, can you lower the price. And finally, you get the price you want 好!(hou2), 我買(ngo5 maai3). All right, I will get it. All right, I will take it. 好!(hou2), 我買(ngo5 maai3) or eventually you don’t want it. 唔買(m4 maai3) I won’t buy it. 唔買(m4 maai3) I won’t buy it. |
| Now here is the tip for shoppers in Hong Kong. When many people travel to Hong Kong, they want to go to 女人街(neui3 jan2 gaai1). 女人街(neui3 jan2 gaai1) a woman’s market is a large and popular Hong Kong street market. It literally says, the street for women but actually the market sells everything including the latest fashion for men or women, electronics and records to dairy product. 女人街(neui3 jan2 gaai1) is the most popular one but there are many more street markets all over Hong Kong. If you get a chance to visit one, survival phrases will be perfect for a day of Cantonese haggling. I hope you use all the phrases we learned today and have a great shopping experience in Hong Kong. Now before we go, I would like you to practice what you’ve just learned. As always, I will provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible for shouting it out loud. |
| You have a few seconds before I give you the answers 加 油(gaa1 jau2)! How much is this? 呢個幾錢？(ni1 go3 gei2 cin2) Too expensive 太貴喇! (taai3 gwai3 laa3) Please lower the price 平啲喇! (peng4 di1 laa1!) Can you lower the price? 可唔可以平啲呀?(ho2 m4 ho2 ji5 peng4 di1 aa1?) All right, I will buy it 好!(hou2), 我買(ngo5 maai3). I won’t buy it 唔買(m4 maai3). All right that about does it for today. Remember to stop by cantoneseclass101.com and pick up the PDF. If you stop by, remember to leave us a comment, bye bye. |
Comments
Hide