Learn how to ask for a day off
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| INTRODUCTION |
| John: Hi everyone, and welcome back to CantoneseClass101.com. This is Business Cantonese for Beginners Season 1 Lesson 17 - Asking for a Day Off in Hong Kong. John here. |
| Siuling: 大家好！(daai6 gaa1 hou2!) I'm Siuling. |
| John: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask for a day off. The conversation takes place at an office. |
| Siuling: It's between Monica and a secretary. |
| John: The speakers are boss and employee, therefore, they will speak formal Cantonese. Okay, let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| 秘書: 黃小姐，我想拜託你一件事。 |
| (bei3 syu1: wong4 siu2 ze2, ngo5 soeng2 baai3 tok3 nei5 jat1 gin6 si6.) |
| 黃小芬: 係，乜嘢事？ |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: hai6, mat1 je5 si6?) |
| 秘書: 我下個星期要去銀行，我想請日假。 |
| (bei3 syu1: ngo5 haa6 go3 sing1 kei4 jiu3 heoi3 ngan4 hong4, ngo5 soeng2 ceng2 jat6 gaa3.) |
| 黃小芬: 你想請邊日？ |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: nei5 soeng2 ceng2 bin1 jat6?) |
| 秘書: 最好係星期四。 |
| (bei3 syu1: zeoi3 hou2 hai6 sing1 kei4 sei3.) |
| 黃小芬: 好，我明白。電郵畀人事部，講畀佢哋知我批准咗。 |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: hou2, ngo5 ming4 baak6. din6 jau4 bei2 jan4 si6 bou6, gong2 bei2 keoi5 dei6 zi1 ngo5 pai1 zeon2 zo2.) |
| 秘書: 唔該晒，我會照做。 |
| (bei3 syu1: m4 goi1 saai3, ngo5 wui2 ziu3 zou6.) |
| John: Listen to the conversation one time slowly. |
| 秘書: 黃小姐，我想拜託你一件事。 |
| (bei3 syu1: wong4 siu2 ze2, ngo5 soeng2 baai3 tok3 nei5 jat1 gin6 si6.) |
| 黃小芬: 係，乜嘢事？ |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: hai6, mat1 je5 si6?) |
| 秘書: 我下個星期要去銀行，我想請日假。 |
| (bei3 syu1: ngo5 haa6 go3 sing1 kei4 jiu3 heoi3 ngan4 hong4, ngo5 soeng2 ceng2 jat6 gaa3.) |
| 黃小芬: 你想請邊日？ |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: nei5 soeng2 ceng2 bin1 jat6?) |
| 秘書: 最好係星期四。 |
| (bei3 syu1: zeoi3 hou2 hai6 sing1 kei4 sei3.) |
| 黃小芬: 好，我明白。電郵畀人事部，講畀佢哋知我批准咗。 |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: hou2, ngo5 ming4 baak6. din6 jau4 bei2 jan4 si6 bou6, gong2 bei2 keoi5 dei6 zi1 ngo5 pai1 zeon2 zo2.) |
| 秘書: 唔該晒，我會照做。 |
| (bei3 syu1: m4 goi1 saai3, ngo5 wui2 ziu3 zou6.) |
| John: Listen to the conversation with the English translation. |
| 秘書: 黃小姐，我想拜託你一件事。 |
| (bei3 syu1: wong4 siu2 ze2, ngo5 soeng2 baai3 tok3 nei5 jat1 gin6 si6.) |
| Secretary: Ms. Wong, I have a favor to ask. |
| 黃小芬: 係，乜嘢事？ |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: hai6, mat1 je5 si6?) |
| Monica: Yes, what? |
| 秘書: 我下個星期要去銀行，我想請日假。 |
| (bei3 syu1: ngo5 haa6 go3 sing1 kei4 jiu3 heoi3 ngan4 hong4, ngo5 soeng2 ceng2 jat6 gaa3.) |
| Secretary: I have to go to the bank next week, and I need a day off. |
| 黃小芬: 你想請邊日？ |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: nei5 soeng2 ceng2 bin1 jat6?) |
| Monica: What day are we talking about? |
| 秘書: 最好係星期四。 |
| (bei3 syu1: zeoi3 hou2 hai6 sing1 kei4 sei3.) |
| Secretary: Thursday would be the best. |
| 黃小芬: 好，我明白。電郵畀人事部，講畀佢哋知我批准咗。 |
| (wong4 siu2 fan1: hou2, ngo5 ming4 baak6. din6 jau4 bei2 jan4 si6 bou6, gong2 bei2 keoi5 dei6 zi1 ngo5 pai1 zeon2 zo2.) |
| Monica: Sure, I understand. Please send an e-mail to the HR Department. And please tell them that I'm OK with it. |
| 秘書: 唔該晒，我會照做。 |
| (bei3 syu1: m4 goi1 saai3, ngo5 wui2 ziu3 zou6.) |
| Secretary: Thank you, I will do so. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| John: The secretary needs some time off work to go to the bank. It’s common for employees to need time off for personal issues such as this. |
| Siuling: That’s right. Especially if you work office hours, you can’t always do things on weekends. |
| John: Monica was happy to give the secretary the time off, thankfully. How much time off do employees have in Hong Kong? |
| Siuling: Employees get seven days of 年假(nin4 gaa3). |
| John: That means "annual leave." |
| Siuling: You can get more than seven days for long service. |
| John: What about sick leave? |
| Siuling: First, "sick leave" in Cantonese is 病假(beng6 gaa3). Some employers offer one to two sick days per month. |
| John: If you’re sick for longer than that, then most companies will want a medical certificate. |
| Siuling: Pregnant employees can have ten weeks of 產假(caan2 gaa3). |
| John: That’s "maternity leave." |
| Siuling: This maternity leave is dependant on having been under contract for over 40 weeks, and working more than 18 hours. |
| John: Okay, now onto the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| John: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is... |
| Siuling: 拜託(baai3 tok3) [natural native speed] |
| John: to request somebody to do something |
| Siuling: 拜託(baai3 tok3) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 拜託(baai3 tok3) [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have... |
| Siuling: 銀行(ngan4 hong4) [natural native speed] |
| John: bank |
| Siuling: 銀行(ngan4 hong4) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 銀行(ngan4 hong4) [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have... |
| Siuling: 邊日(bin1 jat6) [natural native speed] |
| John: which day; some day |
| Siuling: 邊日(bin1 jat6) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 邊日(bin1 jat6) [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have... |
| Siuling: 明白(ming4 baak6) [natural native speed] |
| John: to understand |
| Siuling: 明白(ming4 baak6) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 明白(ming4 baak6) [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have... |
| Siuling: 人事部(jan4 si6 bou6) [natural native speed] |
| John: Human Resources Department |
| Siuling: 人事部(jan4 si6 bou6) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 人事部(jan4 si6 bou6) [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have... |
| Siuling: 批准(pai1 zeon2) [natural native speed] |
| John: to approve |
| Siuling: 批准(pai1 zeon2) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 批准(pai1 zeon2) [natural native speed] |
| John: Next we have... |
| Siuling: 照(ziu3) [natural native speed] |
| John: to follow exactly |
| Siuling: 照(ziu3) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 照(ziu3) [natural native speed] |
| John: And last... |
| Siuling: 請假(ceng2 gaa3) [natural native speed] |
| John: to take a day off |
| Siuling: 請假(ceng2 gaa3) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Siuling: 請假(ceng2 gaa3) [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| John: Let's have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first word is... |
| Siuling: 請兩日假。(ceng2 loeng5 jat6 gaa3) |
| John: meaning "to take two days off." |
| John: Can you break this phrase down for us? |
| Siuling: Sure. First is 請(ceng2), which means "invite, request." Next is 兩日(loeng5 jat6) |
| John: That means "two days." The final part means "holiday." |
| Siuling: Yes, that’s 假(gaa3). You can say to your boss 請假(ceng2 gaa3). |
| John: This means "apply for a holiday." You can put the number of days you want in the middle of that. |
| Siuling: For example, 請半日假(ceng2 bun3 jat6 gaa3). This is for a half day off. |
| John: Can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| Siuling: Sure. For example, you can say... 我想請兩日假去旅行。(ngo5 soeng2 ceng2 loeng5 jat6 gaa3 heoi3 leoi5 hang4.) |
| John: ... which means "I want to get two days off for travelling." |
| John: Okay, what's the next word? |
| Siuling: 電郵畀人事部。(din6 jau4 bei2 jan4 si6 bou6) |
| John: meaning "send an email to the HR department." |
| John: Let’s break down this phrase. |
| Siuling: First is 電郵(din6 jau4), which means "e-mail." Next is 畀(bei2). |
| John: This is "to give." The next part means "HR department." |
| Siuling: That is 人事部(jan4 si6 bou6). 電郵(din6 jau4) can be used as a noun or a verb. |
| John: Can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| Siuling: Sure. For example, you can say... 可以電郵畀人事部查詢任何問題。(ho2 ji5 din6 jau4 bei2 jan4 si6 bou6 caa4 seon1 jam6 ho4 man6 tai4.) |
| John: ... which means "You can e-mail the HR department to ask any question." |
| John: Okay, now onto the lesson focus. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| John: In this lesson, you'll learn about asking for a day off. |
| John: Before we can ask for the day off, we have to approach our supervisor. |
| Siuling: Yes, we need to politely tell them that we need a favor. |
| John: It’s good to use their name. So, how can we do this? |
| Siuling: Say their name, followed by 我想拜託你一件事。(ngo5 soeng2 baai3 tok3 nei5 jat1 gin6 si6.) |
| John: So that’s name, followed by "I have a favor to ask." For example... |
| Siuling: Mark，我想拜託你一件事。(Mark, ngo5 soeng2 baai3 tok3 nei5 jat1 gin6 si6.) |
| John: "Mark, I have a favor to ask." |
| Siuling: You should also say 唔好意思，你而家得唔得閒？(m4 hou2 ji3 si1, nei5 ji4 gaa1 dak1 m4 dak1 haan4?). |
| John: "Excuse me, do you have time now?" It might be best to say that first. |
| Siuling: I think so, too. |
| John: Let’s hear an example of all of this put together. |
| Siuling: Amelia，唔好意思，唔知你而家得唔得閒，我有件事想拜託你。(Amelia, m4 hou2 ji3 si1, m4 zi1 nei5 ji4 gaa1 dak1 m4 dak1 haan4, ngo5 jau5 gin6 si6 soeng2 baai3 tok3 nei5.) |
| John: "Amelia, excuse me, do you have time now? I have a favor to ask." Now that we’ve said we have a favor to ask, we need to say why we need the time off. Siuling, can you give us some examples? |
| Siuling: Sure! 我約咗做身體檢查。(ngo5 joek3 zo2 zou6 san1 tai2 gim2 caa4.) |
| John: "I have a check-up appointment." |
| Siuling: 我要去覆診。(ngo5 jiu3 heoi3 fuk1 can2.) |
| John: "I need to go for a follow-up consultation." |
| Siuling: 我有啲唔舒服。(ngo5 jau5 di1 m4 syu1 fuk6.) |
| John: "I am feeling sick." |
| Siuling: 我個仔病咗。(ngo5 go3 zai2 beng6 zo2.) |
| John: "My son is sick." |
| Siuling: 我屋企有啲事要處理。(ngo5 nguk1 kei5 jau5 di1 si6 jiu3 cyu2 lei5.) |
| John: "I have to handle some family issues." |
Outro |
| John: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye! |
| Siuling: 拜拜！(baai1 baai3!) |
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