Home  Learn More Lesson Two: Pronouns and Gratitude
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Lesson Two: Pronouns and Gratitude |
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Written by Taospark
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Sunday, 02 March 2008 |
Lesson Two: Pronouns and GratitudeAll important vocabulary words under each bullet point are in bold in red with a link to its translation and pronunciation in both forms of written Chinese, Toisanese, and Cantonese.
Click here to go directly to the Vocabulary section
This page contains Chinese characters. If you have issues seeing them, please click here.
Handout Links:
- Proper Titles (Coming Soon)
Table of Contents:
1- Review Quiz
2- Pronouns
3- Proper Titles
4- Question & Answer Session
5- Advanced Greetings - Gratitude
6- Practice Session
1- Review Quiz
Key concepts from the first lesson which will be crucial in learning today's lesson elements and new vocabulary are reviewed in a short quiz.
Questions
1- Toisanese is closely related to this dialect of Chinese:
a Mandarin b Hong Kong Mandarin c Cantonese d Fujianese
2- Particles are usually added to the ends of words can also be called
a prefixes b suffixes c articles d contractions
3- At least how many separately identifiable sub-dialects of Toisanese are there?
a Two b Infinite c One d Four
4- Approximately many Toisanese speakers live outside of Toisan proper overseas today?
a 10 percent b 25 percent c 50 percent d 100 percent
5- How many primary vowel sounds are there in Toisanese?
Hint: Cantonese and Mandarin have at least 10.
a 2 b 4 c 7 d 12
Extra Credit - Why do you think Toisanese became one of the most common dialects in overseas Chinese enclaves during the past 100 years?
2- Pronouns
The base pronouns in Toisanese including those which are gender-specific and possessive are given to the class for the first time with some practice and explanation.
As in English, the most used pronouns are I and You. We is not too common in part because its common usage in English, used by one member of a married couple or the representative of a company, have been somewhat alien to traditional Toisanese culture in the past. They is however used more commonly than the gender pronouns She and He and can even used to refer to a single person in informal conversation.
| English Word |
Toisanese Word |
Cantonese Word |
Traditional Chinese |
Simplified Chinese |
| I/me (Mine) |
GNOI (-GOI) |
gnaw (-gŭ) |
我 |
我 |
| You (Your/Yours) |
NĀ (-GOI) |
nā (-gŭ) |
您 |
您 |
| We/Us (Ours) |
GNAW.MAWN (-GOI) |
waw.moon (-gŭ) |
我們 |
我们 |
| She/He formal (Him/His/Her/Hers) |
HŎ-MŬN (-GOI) |
Tŏ-moon (-gŭ) |
她/他 |
她/他 |
| It/They/Them informal(Their/Theirs) |
QOOI (-GOI) |
qūī (-gŭ) |
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| It/They/Them formal (Their/Theirs) |
HŎ-MŬN (-GOI) |
Tŏ-moon (-gŭ) |
他/他們 |
他/他们 |
Possessive pronouns are somewhat more different but are actually very simple once you learn the basic rules. Unlike English which has multiple forms of the same pronoun, Chinese carries only one with an optional particle to add to the end. My/Mine is the same character, both spoken and written, as I. You can tell which meaning is implied by the context of any sentence in the example below. In some versions of Toisanese and Cantonese, a -GOI (or -gŭ) particle can be added to the end of a pronoun to more easily indicate that it is possessive in speech but this is an informal convention.
Note that there is a more possessive particle or suffix for any pronoun or noun, 我的, is simply the normal pronoun with the 的 or ŎT particle at the end. Unlike the more colloquial -GOI particle, this has a written form and appears in both Cantonese and Mandarin.
Her and His are part of the Toisanese vocabulary but are not used for the same reason that We is not. Instead, specific and more formal nouns are used as a sign of respect which will be covered in the following part of this lesson. Typically, They is used interchangeably for the sake of brevity.
You will typically not have to encounter the reflexive form of a pronoun (myself, ourselves, themselves, etc.) in any Chinese dialect for the following reasons:
- Sentence structure usually does not allow a pronoun or subject to be the last word in a sentence, which is usually where reflexive pronouns are used.
- The verb or predicate in a sentence serves a similar function which can be inferred by context.
As you can see, the pronoun system in Chinese is greatly simplified. Whereas English has five forms of any given pronoun, there is only one here with the option for a second one if the speaker prefers. If you're in a hurry and especially when you are just getting the hang of learning proper nouns in Toisanese, pronouns will be a considerable help in effective communication. Practice is highly recommended to master this basic but critical building block in dialect comprehension.
3- Proper Titles
The common and proper terms for addressing someone else in Chinese as well as referring to someone else are given as an initial overview into real conversational etiquette.
Pronouns such as He and She are eschewed for more polite terms and nouns which confer a level of respect. Here, the ancient Confucian ideals of filial piety and deference to elders is evident. Age, position, and relationship all play a role. This following list does not take into account the three dozen different names for relatives in one's family which will require the attention of nearly an entire lesson in the future.
Male
GWŎ Older Boy; Teenager "brother" informal
SŬK Young to Middle-age Male Adult informal
BŎK Older Male Adult informal
GŬNG Old Man/"grandfather" informal
LAU-BŬN Boss/Manager informal
LAU-XLCĒ Teacher formal
XLCĒN-SŎNG Sir formal
Female
GŪ Young Girl/Miss/Ms. (unmarried) informal
SĒM Young Woman/Mrs. (married) informal
MŌ Older Woman/Mrs. (married) informal
PŌ Old woman/"grandmother" informal
LAU-BŬN Boss/Manager informal
LAU-XLCĒ Teacher formal
XLCŪ-DEAH Ma'am/Young Lady formal
FŪ-GNĒN Well-off woman/Madam formal
While this list was by no means exhaustive, it is all you need to strike up a conversation, to call someone to your attention without having to say Please or Excuse Me every single time, to properly refer to somebody in a conversation, and to understand both a person's age and status simply from just one word. While confusing at first, you will begin to see the utility of these words instead of the more informal she/he system used in English. Keep in mind that these are used in the same way that the words she, he, sir, or ma'am would be used in English and typically are the first thing you say in a sentence in order to elicit the listener's attention.
4- Question & Answer Session
Students ask instructor about pronoun and proper title class material including any questions they have about proper usage in everyday Toisanese before continuing into Advanced Greetings.
5- Basic Greetings - Gratitude
After you've said how are you, knowing how to say thanks for a compliment or a gift is essential in a conversation. The different ways to show gratitude are given an overview here.
Showing gratitude properly is key to establishing yourself in a polite and respectful manner without having to know all the possible slang or Toisanese vernacular. To paraphrase a Chinese saying, you will have "lasting gain from a single word".
The basic AW DĒŎH is often enough to repay a small compliment or favor but DĒŎH-DĒŎH can be another. Note the contrast between AU, which literally means much or many to communicate the level of gratitude while the second repeats Thanks twice for added effect. Adding a XLCĪ, which means total or much, tells a listener the measure of how much thanks you're trying to communicate.
Finally, a GŬM-DEŎH. is a way of giving thanks at a formal event to a respected family member or a boss. GŬM is used to indicate a great quantity or GŬM AW (感多), so its use when saying thanks for a gift should be obvious. As in English, there is also a polite way of receiving gratitude. Beyond a simply reply of HAU, you can also say M'SOI which literally means "It's not necessary" or "It's not needed.". Modesty is key in both giving and receiving gratitude as you can evidently see
6- Practice Session
After going over the meanings and pronunciation of these sayings, the class will then review them both alone and to each other in groups. This will give some safe non-critical and comfortable but very real-world practice before students choose to exercise some of this dialogue with others.
Vocabulary
Cantonese pronunciation in italics are the formal LSHK (Linguistic Society of Hong Kong) romanization of the word.
| English Word |
Toisanese Word |
Cantonese Word |
Traditional Chinese |
Simplified Chinese |
| I/me (Mine) |
GNOI (-GOI) |
gnaw (-gŭ) |
我 |
我 |
| You (Your/Yours) |
NĀ (-GOI) |
nā (-gŭ) |
您 |
您 |
| We/Us (Ours) |
GNAW.MAWN (-GOI) |
waw.moon (-gŭ) |
我們 |
我们 |
| She/He formal (Him/His/Her/Hers) |
HŎ-MŬN (-GOI) |
Tŏ-moon (-gŭ) |
她/他 |
她/他 |
| It/They/Them informal(Their/Theirs) |
QOOI (-GOI) |
qūī (-gŭ) |
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| It/They/Them formal (Their/Theirs) |
HŎ-MŬN (-GOI) |
Tŏ-moon (-gŭ) |
他/他們 |
他/他们 |
| Please formal |
M'GOY |
M'goi
m4'goi1 |
唔該。 |
唔该。 |
| Excuse Me/Sorry formal* |
M'HAU' YĒ XLCĒ. |
m'ho yi si.
m4'hou2 ji3 si3. |
唔好意思。
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唔好意思。 |
| *Also can mean You're Welcome (Literally means "No offense") |
| Thank You |
AW DĒŎH. |
Dau jeah.
do1 ze6. |
多謝。
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多谢。 |
| Thank You |
DĒŎH DĒŎH. |
Jeah jeah.
ze6 ze6. |
謝謝。
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谢谢。 |
| Thank You (when receiving a gift) |
GŬM-DEŎH. |
gum jeah.
gam2 ze6. |
感謝。
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感谢。 |
| You're welcome |
M'SOI |
m'soi
m4'soi. |
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 20 December 2008 )
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