Learn how to ask the speaking party to "Say it slower"
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| 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 9. Can You Repeat That? There will be many times when the Cantonese around you are coming at you as fast and furious and you may not catch any or all of it. In instances such as this, asking the speaker to say it again can prove the difference between understanding a crucial piece of information and spanning the rest of the day trying to figure out what they have just said. Now the following phrase would not only give you a better sense of the language but it will also help you tune your ear as well. In Cantonese, can you repeat that please is 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3), 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3). Let’s break it down by syllable 唔 該 講 多 次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3), 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3). Now the first two words is something we’ve learned in lesson 1 唔該(m4 goi1) means thank you or please or excuse me. In this case, it means please followed by 講(gong2) which means to speak or to say 講(gong2) and that’s something we’ve learned in previous lesson as well 講(gong2). This is followed by 多次(do1 ci3), 多次(do1 ci3) which literally means more times or many times or one more time 多次(do1 ci3), 多次(do1 ci3). To recap, we have 講多次 (gong2 do1 ci3) which means repeat 講多次 (gong2 do1 ci3) or to say it again 講多次 (gong2 do1 ci3) and the whole sentence sounds like 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3), 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3). Please say it again or please repeat it for me 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3). Sometimes even repeating the words isn’t enough to understand the speaker. This is often due to how fast the person is speaking. For cases such as this, you can use the phrase, slowly please. In Cantonese, slowly please is 唔該慢啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1). Let’s hear it again 唔 該 慢 啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1). Now the first half of the sentence 唔該(m4 goi1) is please. 唔該(m4 goi1) please. And the rest of the sentence 慢啲(maan6 di1) means slower. 慢啲( maan6 di1), slower. 慢(maan6) is slow or slowly 慢(maan6), 慢(maan6). It’s a mid flat tone 慢(maan6) and 啲(di1) is the English suffix er 啲(di1), 慢啲(maan6 di1) slower 慢啲(maan6 di1) more slowly 慢啲(maan6 di1). So the whole sentence sounds like 唔該慢啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1). Please say it slowly 唔該慢啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1) and we can mix these phrases we have just learned together. Can you speak slowly please 唔該(m4 goi1) that’s please. 講慢啲(gong2 maan6 di1) Let’s hear it again 講慢啲(gong2 maan6 di1) to speak slowly, 講慢啲(gong2 maan6 di1) to speak slowly. Here we have 講(gong2) to speak. 慢(maan6) slow 啲(di1) er 慢啲(maan6 di1) slower 講慢啲(gong2 maan6 di1) to say it slowly or to slow it down and don’t forget a very useful 唔該(m4 goi1) we’d like to place 唔該(m4 goi1) at the beginning of a sentence but of course if you want to leave the 唔該(m4 goi1) at the end of a sentence, that makes sense too. 講慢啲(gong2 maan6 di1), 唔該(m4 goi1) Now say slowly please. That’s what it means. Now we can always – now we can mix the words – now we can mix the phrases in another way to make a whole new sentence. Can you repeat again slowly please which we translate to 唔該慢啲講多次( m4 goi1 maan6 di1 gong2 do1 ci3). Let’s hear it again 唔該慢啲講多次( m4 goi1 maan6 di1 gong2 do1 ci3). Please slowly say it again. That’s what it literally means. If you break it down, it will be 唔該(m4 goi1) please 慢啲(maan6 di1) slowly or slower. 講多次(gong2 do1 ci3) To speak one more time 講多次 (gong2 do1 ci3)To repeat. The whole sentence sounds like 唔該慢啲講多次( m4 goi1 maan6 di1 gong2 do1 ci3). Now let’s have a quick review of what we’ve just learned. First one, can you repeat that please 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3), 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3). The second phrase slower please 唔該慢啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1), 唔該慢啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1) and the third one, can you speak slowly please 唔該講慢啲(m4 goi1 gong2 maan6 di1), 唔該講慢啲(m4 goi1 gong2 maan6 di1) and lastly we have, can you repeat again slowly please 唔該慢啲講多次( m4 goi1 maan6 di1 gong2 do1 ci3), 唔該慢啲講多次( m4 goi1 maan6 di1 gong2 do1 ci3). If you happen to be lost, instead of stopping someone on the street for directions, it’s always best to stop in the store or café and ask the people that work there. This is because chances are they are much more familiar with the neighborhood than the average passerby on the street is. When giving directions, Hong Kong people – when giving directions, Cantonese people tend to speak very fast especially if they are busy. So if there is something that you didn’t understand or you missed part of the sentence, you can say 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3) which means can you repeat that please. Okay to close out today’s lesson, we’d like you to practice what you’ve just learned. I will provide you with the English equivalent of the phrases and you are responsible for shouting it out aloud. I will provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible for shouting it out aloud. You have a few seconds before I give you the answers. So 加 油(gaa1 jau2)! Can you repeat that please? 唔該講多次(m4 goi1 gong2 do1 ci3) slower please or slowly please 唔該慢啲(m4 goi1 maan6 di1) Next we have, can you speak slowly please 唔該講慢啲(m4 goi1 gong2 maan6 di1). Can you repeat again slowly please 唔該慢啲講多次( m4 goi1 maan6 di1 gong2 do1 ci3). All right, that’s all of our lesson today. Remember to stop by cantoneseclass101.com and pick up the PDF. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. Bye bye. |
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