Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
John: Hi everyone, and welcome back to CantoneseClass101.com. This is Business Cantonese for Beginners Season 1 Lesson 3 - Describing Your Job in Cantonese. John here.
Siuling: 大家好!(daai6 gaa1 hou2!) I'm Siuling.
John: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to describe one's occupation. The conversation takes place at an office.
Siuling: It's between Linda and Mark.
John: The speakers are co-workers, therefore, they will speak formal Cantonese. Okay, let's listen to the conversation.
DIALOGUE
張麗珊: 請問你係唔係阿Mark?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6 aa3 Mark?)
馬家輝: 係呀!你係Linda?
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: hai6 aa3! nei5 hai6 Linda?)
張麗珊: 係呀!聞名不如見面。
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: hai6 aa3! man4 ming4 bat1 jyu4 gin3 min6.)
馬家輝: 大家咁話。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: daai6 gaa1 gam2 waa6.)
張麗珊: 其實你負責咩工作㗎?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: kei4 sat6 nei5 fu6 zaak3 me1 gung1 zok3 gaa3?)
馬家輝: 我係一個會計師。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: ngo5 hai6 jat1 go3 wui6 gai3 si1.)
張麗珊: 會計師?咁你咪要處理好多糧單?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: wui6 gai3 si1? gam3 nei5 mai6 jiu3 cyu2 lei5 hou2 do1 loeng4 daan1?)
馬家輝: 類似嘅嘢啦,好似糧單,賬單,稅務之類。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: leoi6 ci5 ge3 je5 laa1, hou2 ci5 loeng4 daan1, zoeng3 daan1, seoi3 mou6 zi1 leoi6.)
John: Listen to the conversation one time slowly.
張麗珊: 請問你係唔係阿Mark?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6 aa3 Mark?)
馬家輝: 係呀!你係Linda?
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: hai6 aa3! nei5 hai6 Linda?)
張麗珊: 係呀!聞名不如見面。
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: hai6 aa3! man4 ming4 bat1 jyu4 gin3 min6.)
馬家輝: 大家咁話。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: daai6 gaa1 gam2 waa6.)
張麗珊: 其實你負責咩工作㗎?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: kei4 sat6 nei5 fu6 zaak3 me1 gung1 zok3 gaa3?)
馬家輝: 我係一個會計師。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: ngo5 hai6 jat1 go3 wui6 gai3 si1.)
張麗珊: 會計師?咁你咪要處理好多糧單?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: wui6 gai3 si1? gam3 nei5 mai6 jiu3 cyu2 lei5 hou2 do1 loeng4 daan1?)
馬家輝: 類似嘅嘢啦,好似糧單,賬單,稅務之類。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: leoi6 ci5 ge3 je5 laa1, hou2 ci5 loeng4 daan1, zoeng3 daan1, seoi3 mou6 zi1 leoi6.)
John: Listen to the conversation with the English translation.
張麗珊: 請問你係唔係阿Mark?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6 aa3 Mark?)
Linda: Mark, right?
馬家輝: 係呀!你係Linda?
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: hai6 aa3! nei5 hai6 Linda?)
Mark: Right! And you, I presume, are Linda?
張麗珊: 係呀!聞名不如見面。
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: hai6 aa3! man4 ming4 bat1 jyu4 gin3 min6.)
Linda: Yes. It's nice to meet you finally.
馬家輝: 大家咁話。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: daai6 gaa1 gam2 waa6.)
Mark: Me too.
張麗珊: 其實你負責咩工作㗎?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: kei4 sat6 nei5 fu6 zaak3 me1 gung1 zok3 gaa3?)
Linda: So what are you doing exactly?
馬家輝: 我係一個會計師。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: ngo5 hai6 jat1 go3 wui6 gai3 si1.)
Mark: I'm an accountant.
張麗珊: 會計師?咁你咪要處理好多糧單?
(zoeng1 lai6 saan1: wui6 gai3 si1? gam3 nei5 mai6 jiu3 cyu2 lei5 hou2 do1 loeng4 daan1?)
Linda: Accountant? So what, you deal with payslips?
馬家輝: 類似嘅嘢啦,好似糧單,賬單,稅務之類。
(maa5 gaa1 fai1: leoi6 ci5 ge3 je5 laa1, hou2 ci5 loeng4 daan1, zoeng3 daan1, seoi3 mou6 zi1 leoi6.)
Mark: Well kind of, payslips, billing, taxes...
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
John: Accountancy seems like a good profession to get into.
Siuling: I think so too. It takes a lot of studying and hard work to become something like an accountant.
John: Speaking of studying, what can you tell us about the education system in Hong Kong?
Siuling: In Hong Kong, children get six years of primary education, three years of junior secondary education, and also their senior secondary education for free.
John: Has it always been that way?
Siuling: No, the free senior secondary education began in the 2008-2009 school year.
John: How about higher education, such as universities? What can you tell us about those?
Siuling: There are twenty degree awarding institutions in Hong Kong.
John: I hear that many people come from abroad to study in Hong Kong. After completing your degree there, you can get a Immigration Arrangement for Non-local Graduates, which gives you 12 months to stay in Hong Kong to look for a job.
Siuling: That’s right. There is a high demand in Hong Kong for professions such as accounting, sales, and IT.
John: I’m sure that good communication skills and being multilingual are also highly sought after traits.
Siuling: Yes, as Hong Kong is seen as a gateway to China by many.
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: 請問(cing2 man6) [natural native speed]
John: "Excuse me; May I ask"
Siuling: 請問(cing2 man6)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 請問(cing2 man6) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 大家(daai6 gaa1) [natural native speed]
John: "everyone"
Siuling: 大家(daai6 gaa1)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 大家(daai6 gaa1) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 其實(kei4 sat6) [natural native speed]
John: "actually; really"
Siuling: 其實(kei4 sat6)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 其實(kei4 sat6) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 負責(fu6 zaak3) [natural native speed]
John: "to be responsible for"
Siuling: 負責(fu6 zaak3)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 負責(fu6 zaak3) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 好似(hou2 ci3) [natural native speed]
John: "such as; to be similar to; for example"
Siuling: 好似(hou2 ci3)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 好似(hou2 ci3) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 會計師(wui6 gai3 si1) [natural native speed]
John: "accountants"
Siuling: 會計師(wui6 gai3 si1)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 會計師(wui6 gai3 si1) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 處理(cyu2 lei5) [natural native speed]
John: "to deal with"
Siuling: 處理(cyu2 lei5)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 處理(cyu2 lei5) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 糧單(loeng4 daan1) [natural native speed]
John: "payslips"
Siuling: 糧單(loeng4 daan1)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 糧單(loeng4 daan1) [natural native speed]
John: Next we have...
Siuling: 賬單(zoeng3 daan1) [natural native speed]
John: "bill"
Siuling: 賬單(zoeng3 daan1)[slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 賬單(zoeng3 daan1) [natural native speed]
John: And last...
Siuling: 稅務(seoi3 mou6) [natural native speed]
John: "tax"
Siuling: 稅務(seoi3 mou6) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Siuling: 稅務(seoi3 mou6) [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: 大家咁話(daai6 gaa1 gam2 waa6)
John: meaning "same here, me too"
John: Let’s break down this phrase into its components.
Siuling: First is 大家(daai6 gaa1), which means "everybody." Next is 咁(gam2).
John: This means "also." The last word means "speak, tell."
Siuling: Yes, that is 話(waa6).
John: You can use this phrase to mean "the same applies here."
Siuling: If somebody says something good to you, you can reply with this.
John: Can you give us an example using this phrase?
Siuling: Sure. For example, you can say... A:身體健康。B:大家咁話!(A: san1 tai2 gin6 hong1. B: daai6 gaa1 gam2 waa6!)
John: ...which means "A: Wishing you good health. B: Same to you!"
John: Okay, what's the next word?
Siuling: 好似... 之類(hou2 ci5........zi1 leoi2)
John: meaning "such as..., etc."
John: Let’s break this down too.
Siuling: First is 好似(hou2 ci3), which means "look like, is similar to." Then is 之類(zi1 leoi2).
John: This means "and so on, et cetera."
Siuling: You use this phrase to give examples.
John: As well as giving examples, it insinuates that there are more examples than just what is being said.
Siuling: You can also use 等等(dang2 dang2) instead of 之類(zi1 leoi2).
John: Can you give us an example using this phrase?
Siuling: Sure. For example, you can say... 我想做一份創作嘅工,好似電影,廣告公司之類。(ngo5 soeng2 zou6 jat1 fan6 cong3 zok3 ge3 gung1, hou2 ci5 din6 jing2, gwong2 gou3 gung1 si1 zi1 leoi2.)
John: ... which means "I want to work in the creative industry, like movies and or a production house, etc."
John: Okay, now onto the lesson focus.

Lesson focus

John: In this lesson, you'll learn how to describe one's occupation.
John: Before we can do this though, it’s good to ensure that we know who we are speaking to. How can we do this, Siuling?
Siuling: With the phrase 請問你係唔係...? (cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6…?)
John: This means "May I ask, are you….?" or "Excuse me, are you…"
Siuling: Then you just add the name.
John: Let’s hear an example with a name.
Siuling: 請問你係唔係JOHN?(cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6 John?)
John: "Excuse me, are you John?"
Siuling: 請問(cing2 man6) means "excuse me" or "may I ask."
John: It has a polite and humbling tone. Can you use this phrase with things other than names? For example, can we ask "Excuse me, are you the manager?" with this phrase?
Siuling: Yes, you can. That is 請問你係唔係經理?(cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6 ging1 lei5?)
John: Let’s hear another example with a job title instead of a name.
Siuling: 請問你係唔係老闆?(cing2 man6 nei5 hai6 m4 hai6 lou5 baan2?)
John: "May I ask, are you the owner?" Now that we’ve asked about a couple of job titles, let’s look a little closer at job titles and occupations.
Siuling: The first occupation is 秘書 (bei3 syu1).
John: "secretary"
Siuling: 經理 (ging1 lei5)
John: "manager"
Siuling: 會計師 (wui6 gai3 si1)
John: "accountant"
Siuling: 醫生 (ji1 sang1)
John: "doctor"
Siuling: 作家 (zok3 gaa1)
John: "writer"
Siuling: 平面設計師 (ping4 min2 cit3 gai3 si1)
John: "graphic designer"
Siuling: 警察 (ging2 caat3)
John: "police." How do we say "I am a…"
Siuling: We can use the phrase 我係一個...(ngo5 hai6 jat1 go3…). For example, 我係一個會計師 (ngo5 hai6 jat1 go3 wui6 gai3 si1).
John: "I’m an accountant."
Siuling: We can also use 我係...(ngo5 hai6…) For example, 我係會計師 (ngo5 hai6 wui6 gai3 si1).
John: "I’m an accountant."

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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