Cantonese Made Easy

About

Original Source in Archive.org
Author: Ball, James Dyer
Edition: 2nd Edition
Publication Year: 1888

Description

This is an adoption of “Cantonese Made Easy”, where Jyutcitzi is incorporated where appropriate. As suggested by the source, this teaches 19th Century Cantonese, which is significantly different from 21th Century Cantonese. Some modifications were made for text consistency.

Lesson I - Domestic

No.	Cantonese	Jyutcitzi	English Translation (Literal)
1	擰杯茶黎	¯¯＝＝	Bring cup tea come.
2	起餐¯	´¯¯	Get-up meal
3	叫管店黎	ˋ´´＝	Call house-coolie (or shop-coolie) come.
4	我要洗身ˋ	˝ˋ´¯ˋ	I want wash body
5	冇水ˋ	˝´ˋ	No water
6	食飯𠄡曾ˋ？𠄡該ˋ。食ˋ	ﾞﾞ𠄡＝＝ˋ？𠄡＝¯ˋ。ﾞˋ	Ate rice not yet eh? Beg-pardon, eaten.
7	有牛肉冇¯？	˝＝ﾞ˝¯？	Have beaf (lit. ox, or cow’s meat) not eh?
8	冇牛肉ˋ	˝＝ﾞˋ	No beef.
9	有羊肉ˋ	˝＝ﾞˋ	Have mutton (lit. sheep meat)
10	麵包酸ˋ	ﾞ¯¯ˋ	Bread sour
11	＝，係¯？	＝，ﾞ¯？	(Ah! ‘tis is-it.)
12	擰熱水黎	¯ﾞ´＝	Bring some hot water come
13	我𠄡愛酒ˋ	˝𠄡＝ˋ´ˋ	I not want wine.
14	做廚未曾返黎ˋ	ﾞ´ﾞ＝¯＝ˋ	Cook not yet back come.
15	有牛奶冇¯	˝＝˝˝¯	Have cow’s milk not eh?
16	有ˋ	˝¯ˋ	Have little
17	好𠄡好ˋ	´𠄡＝´ˋ	Good not good eh?
18	𠄡係十分好；𠄡係幾好；中中地¯	𠄡＝ﾞﾞ¯´；𠄡＝ﾞ´´；¯¯´¯	Not is ten parts (or very) good (or best); not is very good; middling only.
18a	𠄡係至好	𠄡＝ﾞˋ´	Not is ten parts (or very) good (or best)
19	擠亇處ˋ	¯´ˋˋ	Place that place
19a	放在亇處ˋ	ˋﾞ´ˋˋ	Place on that place
20	亇係雞蛋ˋ	´¯ﾞ¯´ˋ	Those are fowls’ eggs
21	𠄡好ˋ。係臭ˋ	𠄡＝´ˋ。ﾞˋˋ	Not good; are stinky
22	點解¯？ 好出奇ˋˋ	´´¯？´¯＝ˋˋ	How explain eh? Very extraordinary.
23	好食˝？好食¯。𠄡該ˋ	´ﾞ˝？´ﾞ¯。𠄡＝¯ˋ	Good eat isn’t-it? good eat. Not proper.
24	有雞冇¯？有𠜎雞，有雞乸ˋ	˝¯˝¯？˝ˋ¯，˝¯´ˋ	Have fowls not eh? Have capons, have hens.
25	¯係乜野¯？畀我¯	¯¯ﾞ¯˝¯？´¯˝¯	This is what thing eh? Give me some.
26	多謝你ˋ。重有冇¯	¯ﾞ˝ˋ。ﾞ˝˝¯	Many thanks to-you. More have no eh?
27	重有。火頭黎ˋ	ﾞ˝¯。´´＝ˋ	Besides have some. Cook come.
28	佢係¯人。佢食煙¯	˝ﾞ¯´。˝ﾞ¯¯	He is what man? He smokes eh?
29	𠄡知得實ˋ。怕係有	𠄡＝¯¯ﾞˋ。ˋﾞ˝。	Not know certainly. Fear (it) is (that he) does
30	侍仔出街買餸ˋ	[⿱厶止]ﾞ´¯¯˝ˋˋ	Boy gone-out street buy viands
31	佢係買豬肉，ﾞ菜¯	˝ﾞ˝¯ﾞ，ﾞˋ¯	He has bought pork, or vegetables eh?
32	佢係唐人；佛山黎ˋ	˝ﾞ＝＝；´ﾞ¯＝ˋ	He is Tong man; (i.e. Chinese) from Fat Shan

Lesson II - General

No.	Cantonese	Jyutcitzi	English Translation
1	黎¯處ˋ。做乜你𠄡黎¯	＝¯ˋˋ。ﾞ乜˝𠄡＝＝¯	Come here. Why don’t you come?
2	乜人黎¯，乜誰¯	¯´＝¯，¯´¯	Who has come? Who is it?
2a	邊個¯	¯ˋ¯	Who is it?
3	冇人黎¯	˝＝＝¯	No one has come
3a	冇人¯	˝＝¯	No one has come
3b	冇邊個¯	˝¯ˋ¯	No one has come
4	亇個係乜人¯	´ˋﾞ¯´¯	Who is that?
5	𠄡知ˋ，我點知ˋ?	𠄡＝¯ˋ，˝´¯ˋ?	I don’t know, how should I know?
6	佢係𠄡好人ˋ。佢係好惡人ˋ	˝ﾞ𠄡＝´＝ˋ。˝ﾞ´ˋ＝ˋ	He is not a good man. He is a very bad man
7	叫佢扯ˋ	ˋ˝´ˋ	Tell him to go away.
8	佢去´ˋ，去好耐ˋ	˝ˋ´ˋ，ˋ´ﾞˋ	He has gone. He went long ago.
9	掩埋門，袂閂¯	¯＝＝，˝¯¯	Close the door, don’t fasten it
10	開門ˋ，做乜你鎖¯	¯＝ˋ，ﾞ¯˝´¯	Open the door. Why did you lock it?
11	叫亞媽黎見我¯	ˋˋ˝＝ˋ˝¯	Tell the amah to come to me
12	快黎：越快越好ˋ	ˋ¯＝：ﾞˋﾞ´ˋ	Come quickly: the quicker the better
13	管店¯；黎未曾ˋ	´ˋ¯；＝ﾞ＝ˋ	Where’s the coolie; has he come?
14	聽日黎¯，後日黎都好¯	¯ﾞ＝¯，ﾞﾞ＝¯´¯	Come to-morrow, or it will do to come the day after tomorrow
14a	後日黎都做得¯	ﾞﾞ＝¯ﾞ¯¯	It will do to come the day after tomorrow
15	有少々¯	˝´々¯	There is only a very little.
16	好ˋﾞ？佢係´話	´ˋﾞ？˝ﾞ´ﾞ	It’s good is it ? He says no.
17	佢話乜野？講過我聽¯	˝ﾞ¯˝？´ˋ˝¯¯	What does he say? Tell me.
18	佢話𠄡想黎ˋ	˝ﾞ𠄡＝´＝ˋ	He says he doesn’t wish to come.
19	解明過佢聽是必要同我去	´＝ˋ˝¯ﾞ¯ˋ＝˝ˋ	Explain to him that he must certainly go.
20	𠄡論大細，有幾多人¯	𠄡＝ﾞﾞˋ˝´¯＝¯	How many persons are there old and young
21	有十幾個ˋ	˝ﾞ´ˋ	More than ten.
21a	有十零個ˋ	˝ﾞ＝ˋˋ	More than ten.
21b	十個有多	ﾞˋ˝¯	More than ten.
22	ﾞﾞﾞ有六十人ˋ	ﾞﾞﾞ˝ﾞﾞ＝ˋ	Altogether [spoken rapidly] there are sixty men.
22a	ﾞﾞﾞ	ﾞﾞﾞ	Altogether [full form]
23	有¯伩仔冇¯	˝¯¯´˝¯	Are there any children?
23a	細伩仔	¯¯´	children [less often]
24	有個仔ˋ	˝ˋ´ˋ	There is a boy
24a	有壹個仔ˋ	¯ˋ´ˋ	There is a boy
25	亇個係仔，嚊女¯	´ˋﾞ´，ﾞ˝¯	Is that a boy, or a girl?
26	佢我處打工´	˝˝ˋ´¯ˋ	He is in my employ.
27	邊個係你事頭¯	¯ˋﾞ˝[⿰厶止]ﾞ´¯	Who is your master?
28	佢係本地人，即係城人ˋ	˝ﾞ´ﾞ＝，¯ﾞ´＝ˋ	He is a native of the place, that is a Cantonese
29	佢𠄡係同你同鄉ˋ	˝𠄡＝ﾞ＝˝＝¯ˋ	He is not a fellow-villager of yours
30	佢邊處住¯	˝¯ˋﾞ¯	Where does he live?
31	離¯處有好遠ˋ	＝¯ˋ˝´˝ˋ	A long way from here.
32	打路去ﾞ搭船去¯	´ﾞˋ，ﾞˋ＝ˋ¯	Do you go by land, or by water?