Lesson Transcript

Let's look at the dialogue.
When I read, I want you to pay attention to vocabulary.
Find what the language is and see how it’s used in the dialogue.
你好,你識唔識講英文?
(nei5 hou2, nei5 sik1 m4 sik1 gong2 ying1 man2?)
Hello, do you speak English?
你好,你識唔識講英文?
(nei5 hou2, nei5 sik1 m4 sik1 gong2 ying1 man2?)
識呀,我識講英文。
(sik1 aa1, ngóh sik1 gong2 ying1 man2.)
Yes, I speak English.
識呀,我識講英文。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 ying1 man2.)
Now let's look at some speaking examples.
識呀,我識講日文。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 yat6 man2.)
Yes, I speak Japanese.
識呀,我識講日文。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 yat6 man2.)
識呀,我識講俄文。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 ngo4 man2.)
Yes, I speak Russian.
識呀,我識講俄文。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 ngo4 man2.)
Now let's look at the sentence pattern.
This pattern will be the structure that all of our dialogues will follow…
識呀,我識講[LANGUAGE]。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 [LANGUAGE].)
Yes, I speak [LANGUAGE].
識呀,我識講[LANGUAGE]。
(sik1 aa1, ngó5 sik1 gong2 [LANGUAGE].)
識呀
(sik1 aa1)
Yes
我識講
(ngó5 sik1 gong2)
I speak
Many Hong Kongers switch between languages depending on the context.
Cantonese is the dominant language in everyday life
but English is often used in business, education
and legal contexts due to its status as an official language.
Mandarin has also become more prominent since the 1997 handover to China
especially in government and formal settings.
This language-switching ability, known as code-switching
is not only a practical skill but also a marker of cultural identity in Hong Kong
where people navigate between local traditions and global influences.

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