Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Becky: Hello and welcome back to CantoneseClass101.com. This is Lower Beginner, season 1, lesson 8, Was That Cantonese Meal Worth the Price Tag? I’m Becky.
Olivia: 哈囉 ! (haa1 lo3!) And I’m Olivia!
Becky: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to comment on a meal.
Olivia: This conversation takes place in a restaurant in Hong Kong.
Becky: The conversation is between two friends, Karen &Olivia.
Olivia: As usual, they're using casual Cantonese.
Becky: Let’s listen to the conversation.
DIALOGUE
Olivia: 唔該,埋單! (m4 goi1, maai4 daan1!)
Karen: 呢一餐咁貴嘅? (ni1 jat1 caan1 gam3 gwai3 ge2?)
Olivia: 算啦,都幾好味吖。 (syun3 laa1, dou1 gei2 hou2 mei6 aa1.)
Karen: 麻麻哋啫。 (maa4 maa2 dei2 zek1.)
Olivia: 咁下次去第二間。 (gam2 haa6 ci3 heoi3 dai6 ji6 gaan1.)
Becky: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly.
Olivia: 唔該,埋單! (m4 goi1, maai4 daan1!)
Karen: 呢一餐咁貴嘅? (ni1 jat1 caan1 gam3 gwai3 ge2?)
Olivia: 算啦,都幾好味吖。 (syun3 laa1, dou1 gei2 hou2 mei6 aa1.)
Karen: 麻麻哋啫。 (maa4 maa2 dei2 zek1.)
Olivia: 咁下次去第二間。 (gam2 haa6 ci3 heoi3 dai6 ji6 gaan1.)
Becky: Now let’s hear it with the English translation.
Olivia: 唔該,埋單! (m4 goi1, maai4 daan1!)
Becky: Excuse me, check please.
Karen: 呢一餐咁貴嘅? (ni1 jat1 caan1 gam3 gwai3 ge2?)
Becky: How come this meal is so expensive?
Olivia: 算啦,都幾好味吖。 (syun3 laa1, dou1 gei2 hou2 mei6 aa1.)
Becky: Nevermind, it's quite tasty.
Karen: 麻麻哋啫。 (maa4 maa2 dei2 zek1.)
Becky: I think it's so-so.
Olivia: 咁下次去第二間。 (gam2 haa6 ci3 heoi3 dai6 ji6 gaan1.)
Becky: Then next time we'll go to another one.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Becky: When a man and a woman go out for dinner in Hong Kong, do the men always have to pay for the bill?
Olivia: I guess it depends on their relationship; whether they're colleagues, dating, married, or close friends.
Becky: I think most colleagues will pay for their own meals if it's not a special occasion.
Olivia: Yes, I think so too. However, if they're dating, especially when they’ve just started to date, the man is usually expected to pay for their meals.
Becky: How about if the lady is making more money than the man?
Olivia: Well, I guess they won’t discuss that when they start dating, unless it’s suggested by the lady.
Becky: So the man may choose a restaurant that he can afford.
Olivia: That’s true...smart guy!
Becky: Would it be the same after they officially become a couple?
Olivia: Then it depends on the man’s luck, whether the lady minds paying for her own meal, or even paying for him, (laughs).
Becky: (laughs) Okay, now let’s move on to the vocab.
VOCAB LIST
The first word we shall see is:
埋單 (maai4 daan1) [natural native speed]
to pay the bill
埋單 (maai4 daan1) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
埋單 (maai4 daan1) [natural native speed]
Next:
貴 (gwai3) [natural native speed]
expensive
貴 (gwai3) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
貴 (gwai3) [natural native speed]
Next:
好食 (hou2 sik6) [natural native speed]
delicious, tasty
好食 (hou2 sik6) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
好食 (hou2 sik6) [natural native speed]
Next:
麻麻哋 (maa4 maa2 dei2) [natural native speed]
a little/sort of, so-so
麻麻哋 (maa4 maa2 dei2) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
麻麻哋 (maa4 maa2 dei2) [natural native speed]
Next:
算啦 (syun3 laa1) [natural native speed]
forget it, nevermind, leave it
算啦 (syun3 laa1) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
算啦 (syun3 laa1) [natural native speed]
Next:
好辣 (hou2 laat6) [natural native speed]
very spicy
好辣 (hou2 laat6) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
好辣 (hou2 laat6) [natural native speed]
Next:
好鹹 (hou2 haam4) [natural native speed]
very salty
好鹹 (hou2 haam4) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
好鹹 (hou2 haam4) [natural native speed]
And Last:
平 (peng4) [natural native speed]
cheap
平 (peng4) [slowly - broken down by syllable]
平 (peng4) [natural native speed]
KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES
Becky: Let’s take a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. What are we starting with?
Olivia: First up is 埋單 (maai4 daan1).
Becky: What does each word mean?
Olivia: 埋 (maai4) means “to cover” or “to bury”, and 單 (daan1) means “bill”.
Becky: So together they mean “to settle the bill” - that makes sense. Can you repeat it again for our listeners?
Olivia: Sure! 埋單(maai4 daan1).
Becky: Great! What’s next?
Olivia: Next is 好 (hou2).
Becky: What can you tell us about this?
Olivia: 好 (hou2) literally means “good”. When it’s used before an adjective, it becomes “very good” or “very much”.
Becky: I see. So how do you say “very tasty”?
Olivia: 好食(hou2 sik6)﹔So, 好好食! (hou2 hou2 sik6) is literally “very very good taste.”
Becky: Would you give us an example where it means "very much?"
Olivia: Sure, sometimes we say 好鹹 (hou2 haam4) for “very salty”; 好辣 (hou2 laat6) for “very spicy (hot)”; and 好貴 (hou2 gwai3) for “very expensive”.
Becky: Can you repeat these words for us? Listeners, repeat after Olivia.
Olivia: 好好食 (hou2 hou2 sik6) [pause] 好好食!(hou2 hou2 sik6!)
Becky: These mean “Good taste!” or “Delicious!”
Olivia: 好鹹.(hou2 haam4)
Becky: “Very salty”.
Olivia: 好辣. (hou2 laat6)
Becky: “Very spicy”.
Olivia: 好貴 (hou2 gwai3)
Becky: “Very expensive”. Okay, now onto the grammar.

Lesson focus

Becky: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to use an ordinal word to form a phrase meaning “the other”.
Olivia: Yes, 第二 (dai6 ji6) normally means “the second”, as in 第一 (dai6 jat1) “first”﹐第二 (dai6 ji6)“second”, 第三 (dai6 saam1) “third”. However, we can also use 第二 (dai6 ji6) in front of a classifier to mean "the other...".
Becky: Interesting! Let’s try it out!
Olivia: Let’s start with something we heard earlier - 第二間 (dai6 ji6 gaan1). It was referring to “another restaurant” in the dialogue. Note that 間 (gaan1) is the classifier for restaurants or stores.
Becky: How about "another person," how do you say that?
Olivia: 個 (go3) is the classifier for person, and “person” is 人 (jan4). So the whole phrase for “another person” is 第二個人(dai6 ji6 go3 jan4).
Becky: OK, can you give us more examples with the classifiers that we've learned from the previous lessons?
Olivia: Sure! We’ve learned 件 (gin6), which is the classifier for clothing. So we can say 第二件 (dai6 ji6 gin6) for “another piece”.
Becky: How do you say “another piece of clothing”?
Olivia: 第二件衫。 (dai6 ji6 gin6 saam1)
Becky: If I wanted to say “another pair of shoes”, how would I say “another pair”?
Olivia: “Pair” is “對” ("deoi3"), so “another pair” is 第二對。(dai6 ji6 deoi3)
Becky: So “another pair of shoes” is…
Olivia: 第二對鞋 (dai6 ji6 deoi3 haai4)
Becky: Okay, I see the pattern now.
Olivia: Yes, add the classifier after 第二(dai6 ji6), then you’ll get 第二間﹐第二個﹐第二件﹐第二對… (dai6 ji6 gaan1, dai6 ji6 go3, dai6 ji6 gin6, dai6 ji6 deoi3 …)
Becky: So now you should be able to pick up the key words when people mean “the other” or “another”.
Olivia: Yes, 第二 (dai6 ji6). [pause] 第二 (dai6 ji6)
Becky: Listeners, try to apply this to the words you’ve learned before.
Olivia: It’s good practice!

Outro

Becky: Well, that’s all for this lesson. Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you in another lesson. Bye!
Olivia: 拜拜!第二堂見! (baai1 baai3! dai6 ji6 tong4 gin3!)

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