Learn how to refuse politely
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| Introduction |
| Eric: Welcome to 3-Minute Cantonese Season 1, Lesson 6 - Refusing Politely. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to politely refuse an invitation in Cantonese. |
| Body |
| Eric: Here's the informal way to say 'No, thank you.' in Cantonese. |
| Olivia: [Normal] 唔使喇，唔該。(m4 sai2 laa3, m4 goi1) |
| Eric: First is a word meaning 'No' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 唔使 [Slow] 唔使 (m4 sai2) |
| Eric: Next is the final particle. |
| Olivia: [Normal] 喇 [Slow] 喇(laa3) |
| Eric: Last is the phrase meaning 'thank you' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 唔該 [Slow] 唔該(m4 goi1) |
| Eric: Listen again to the informal phrase meaning 'No, thank you.' |
| Olivia: [Slow] 唔使喇，唔該。 [Normal] 唔使喇，唔該。(m4 sai2 laa3, m4 goi1) |
| Eric: Ok, now let's take a look at the formal way to say 'No, thank you.' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 唔要喇，多謝。(m4 jiu3 laa3, do1 ze6.) |
| Eric: First is an adverb meaning 'not' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 唔 [Slow] 唔 (m4) |
| Eric: Next is the verb meaning 'need' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 要 [Slow] 要(jiu3) |
| Eric: Next is the final particle. |
| Olivia: [Normal] 喇 [Slow] 喇(laa3) |
| Eric: Next is the adjective meaning 'many' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 多 [Slow] 多(do1) |
| Eric: Last is the noun meaning 'thanks’ |
| Olivia: [Normal] 謝 [Slow] 謝(ze6) |
| Eric: Listen again to the formal phrase meaning 'No, thank you.' |
| Olivia: [Slow] 唔要喇，多謝。 [Normal] 唔要喇，多謝。(m4 jiu3 laa3, do1 ze6.) |
| Eric: Next up, we will look at the way to say 'Sorry, but I already have plans.' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 對唔住，但係我有嘢做。(deoi3 m4 zyu6, daan6 hai6 ngo5 jau5 je5 zou6) |
| Eric: First is a phrase meaning 'Sorry' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 對唔住 [Slow] 對唔住(deoi3 m4 zyu6) |
| Eric: Next is the conjunction meaning 'but' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 但係 [Slow] 但係(daan6 hai6) |
| Eric: Next is the pronoun meaning 'I' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 我 [Slow] 我(ngo5) |
| Eric: Next is the verb meaning 'have' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 有 [Slow] 有(jau5) |
| Eric: Last is the phrase meaning 'something to do' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 嘢做 [Slow] 嘢做(je5 zou6) |
| Eric: Listen again to the formal phrase meaning 'Sorry, but I already have plans.' |
| Olivia: [Slow] 對唔住，但係我有嘢做。 [Normal] 對唔住，但係我有嘢做。(deoi3 m4 zyu6, daan6 hai6 ngo5 jau5 je5 zou6) |
| Eric: Finally we have the way to say 'Sorry, I’m busy.' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 對唔住，我唔得閒。(deoi3 m4 zyu6, ngo5 m4 dak1 haan4.) |
| Eric: First is a phrase meaning 'Sorry ' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 對唔住 [Slow] 對唔住(deoi3 m4 zyu6) |
| Eric: Next is the pronoun meaning 'I' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 我 [Slow] 我(ngo5) |
| Eric: Next is an adverb meaning 'not' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 唔 [Slow] 唔(m4) |
| Eric: Last is the adjective meaning 'free’ or ‘leisure' |
| Olivia: [Normal] 得閒 [Slow] 得閒(dak1 haan4) |
| Eric: Listen again to the informal phrase meaning 'Sorry, I’m busy.' |
| Olivia: [Slow] 對唔住，我唔得閒。 [Normal] 對唔住，我唔得閒。(deoi3 m4 zyu6, ngo5 m4 dak1 haan4.) |
| Cultural Insight |
| Eric: Now it's time for a quick cultural insight. |
| Olivia: Sometimes in the streets in Hong Kong, people come up and ask you to take a poll, or listen to a campaign, or hand you a leaflet. In these cases, you can politely refuse them by saying 唔使喇, 唔該。(m4 sai2 laa3, m4 goi1), meaning ‘No, thank you.’ |
Outro |
|---|
| Eric: And that’s all for this lesson. Don’t forget to check out the lesson notes, and we’ll see you in the next lesson! |
| Olivia: 拜拜! (baai1 baai3) |
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