Lesson 3 Activity 13 

 13.  Listen to several short exchanges asking about ages.  

 

A.     你今年幾歲? 我今年三十二歲。(common usage) 

Nei kum lin gei sui?  Ngo kum lin sam sup yi sui.

How old are you?  I am 32 years old.

 

B.     请问尊庚? 我四十七歲。(formal or for older people)

Ching mun jun gan? Ngo kum lin sei sup chut sui.

What is your age?  I am 47 years old.

 

C.     佢幾大? 佢廿四歲。(informal)

Kui gei dai? Kui ya sei sui.

How old is he?  He is 24.

 

D.     佢係唔係三十四歲? 唔係,佢三十五歲。

Kui hai ng hai sam sup sei sui?  Ng hai, kui sam sup ng sui.

Is she 34 years old?  No, she is 35.

 

E.      你廿一歲嗎? 係,我廿一歲。

Nei ya yut sui ma?  Hai, ngo ya yut sui.

Are you 21?  Yes, I am 21.

 

F.      你明年幾歲? 我明年五十八歲。

Nei ming lin gei sui?  Ngo ming lin ng sup bat sui.

How old will you be next year?  I will be 58 years old next year.

 

G.     佢幾時到十九歲? 二月。

Kui gei si do sup gau sui?  Yi yuet.

When will he turn 19?  In February.

 

H.     陳生大過我幾多歲? 佢大過你五歲。

Chun san dai guo ngo gei dor sui?  Kui dai guo nei ng sui.

Is Mr. Chan older than me? He is five years older than you.

 

I.        你屬邊個生肖? 我屬龍。(formal)

Nei suk bin gor sung chiu?  Ngo suk lung.

What is your Chinese zodiac sign? Mine is the Dragon.

 

J.       佢屬乜? 佢屬牛。(informal)

Kui suk mut?  Kui suk ngau.

What’s her sign? Her’s is the Ox.

 

Grammar Note: Time

·        In Cantonese, the hour is read first, and then the minute. For example, “five thirty six” is 五點三十六分ng dim sam sup luk fun. (Note: the word for “hour” 點 dim and “minute” 分fun is always read).

·        The written form of “hour” is 時 si but, in speaking, it is 點 dim, which literally means dot or point. 小時 siu si is used when counting the hours. For example, “in four hours” is 四小時內 sei siu si noi.

·        As for “minute”, 分鍾 fun jung is used for counting the minutes and just 分 fun is used when telling time.

·        正 jing or 鍾 jung is added at the end of the hour when speaking of the exact hour. For example, “two o’clock” can be兩點正 leung dim jing or 兩點鍾 leung dim jung. (Reminder: in Cantonese, the two 二 yi in 2 o'clock is replaced with 兩 leung, which means “a couple” and is the same word used in counting objects or people.)

·        "Morning" 朝頭早jiu tau jo /上晝seung jau, "afternoon" 下晝 ha jau or "evening" 夜晚 ye man are used to specify the time of the day. They are said before the time. For example, “6:23 in the morning” is 朝頭早六點廿三分 jiu tau jo luk dim ya sam fun.

·        For the 30th minute, Cantonese specify the time as half, 半bun. For example, “7:30” is 七點半  chut dim bun.

·         For single digit minutes (1-9), 零 ling (zero or o’) is added in front of the minute. For example, “twelve o’eight” is 十二點零八分sup ye dim ling bat fun.

·        One can also tell time by five-minute increments using 個字 goh ji. For example, for 3:10, instead of saying三點十分 sam dim sup fun, one can say “ten past three”,三點兩個字 sam dim leung gor ji . After the half hour, Cantonese adds a 差 char (almost) before the increment and a 到 doh (to) before the hour. For example, “5:50 or ten to six” is差兩個字到六點 char leung gor ji do luk dim.

·        For numbers 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10 of the minute hand, one can also say the hour follow by the number. For example, “eight forty five” is 八點九 bat dim gau.

·        Cantonese use the word for “how many” 幾 gei when asking for the time. 宜家幾點呀? yi ga gei dim ah? means “What is the hour now?” It is necessary to add “now” 宜家 yi ga, when asking for the time. “Gei” can also be used when one is not sure of the exact time. For example, “sometime after eight” is 八點幾 bat dim gei.

·        “Noon” is 正午 jing ng and “Midnight” is零辰 ling sun. For telling the time after midnight, just add 零辰 ling sun to the front of the hours. For example, “3:00 AM” is 零辰三點鍾 ling sun sam dim jung.