Negation

Cantonese Lesson 7 (Negation and Human Body)

Duration: 30 mins

Lesson number 7 teaches an important aspect in Cantonese which is negation. I'm also including a list of vocabulary about the human body, and finally a conversation about getting to know someone. I will try to give examples using both vocabulary and grammar. That way it will be easy for you to see the words when they are separate and when they are in a sentence. Going through the whole page should take about 30 min. Make sure to read the pronunciation and hear the audio as well. If you have any question about this course, please email me directly at Cantonese Classes.

Negation

Negation is the opposite of an affirmative statement. So basically any negative expression such as "no", "never" "nothing" etc. Knowing how to use the negation form could help you double the number of expressions you could use in a sentence.

Here are some negation expressions that you might come across or use very often. The table contains 3 columns (English, Cantonese, and Audio). Make sure you repeat each word after hearing it by either clicking on the audio button or by reading the pronunciation. That should help with memorization as well as improving your pronunciation.

Negation in Cantonese

Negation Cantonese Audio
No唔喺
m4 hai2 
Nothing無嘢
mou4 je5 
Not yet未得
mei6 dak1 
No one無人
mou4 jan4 
No longer唔再係
m4 zoi3 hai6 
Never永遠唔會
wing5 jyun5 m4 wui2 
Cannot唔得
m4 dak1 
Should not唔應該
m4 jing3 goi1 

Now we will try to implement some of the negative expressions above into full Cantonese sentences. That way you will be able to use the word not only by itself but embedded in a structure.

Cantonese Negation in a Sentence

English Cantonese Audio
Don't worry!唔駛擔心
m4 sai2 daam1 sam1 
I cannot remember the word我記唔起嗰個字
ngo5 gei3 m4 hei2 go2 go3 zi6 
I do not speak Japanese我唔識講日文
ngo5 m4 sik1 gong2 jat6 man4 
I don't know!我唔知
ngo5 m4 zi1 
I'm not fluent in Italian yet我意大利文未係好流利
ngo5 ji3 daai6 lei6 man4 mei6 hai6 hou2 lau4 lei6 
I'm not interested!我無興趣!
ngo5 mou4 hing1 ceoi3 !
No one here speaks Greek呢度無人識講希臘話
ne1 dou6 mou4 jan4 sik1 gong2 hei1 laap6 waa6 
No problem!冇問題
mou5 man6 tai4 
This is not correct呢個唔啱
ne1 go3 m4 ngaam1 
This is wrong呢個喺錯嘅
ne1 go3 hai2 co3 ge3 
We don't understand我哋唔明
ngo5 dei2 m4 ming4 
You should not forget this word你唔應該唔記得呢個字
nei5 m4 jing3 goi1 m4 gei3 dak1 ne1 go3 zi6 

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact me using the Cantonese contact form on the header above.

Vocabulary List about the Human Body

Below is a list of 20 words related to human body. If you can memorize them by heart, you might be able to communicate to your doctor if you have amy pain or discomfort.

Human Body List in Cantonese

Body Cantonese Audio
Arm手臂
sau2 bei3 
Back背脊
bui3 zek3 
Chest心口
sam1 hau2 
Ear耳仔
ji5 zai2 
Eye眼睛
ngaan5 zing1 
Face
lim5 
Feet
goek3 
Fingers手指
sau2 zi2 
Hair頭髮
tau4 faat3 
Hand
sau2 
Head
tau4 
Heart
sam1 
Leg
goek3 
Mouth
hau2 
Neck
geng2 
Nose
bei6 
Shoulder膊頭
bok3 tau4 
Stomach胃(the organ) 肚(to refer to the belly area)
wai6 (the  organ ) tou5 (to  refer  to  the  belly  area )
Teeth
ngaa4 
Tongue
lei6 

Daily Conversation in Cantonese

Finally, a list of commonly used expressions about getting to know someone for the first time. For a complete list of commonly used sentences, please visit our Cantonese Phrases page. Enjoy!

Common Expressions in Cantonese

English Cantonese Audio
He feels with his hand佢用手摸嘢
keoi5 jung6 sau2 mo2 je5 
I smell with my nose我用鼻聞嘢
ngo5 jung6 bei6 man4 je5 
She has beautiful eyes佢對眼好靚
keoi5 deoi3 ngaan5 hou2 leng3 
She tastes with her tongue佢用脷試味
keoi5 jung6 lei6 si3 mei6 
We see with our eyes我地用眼睇嘢
ngo5 dei6 jung6 ngaan5 tai2 je5 
You hear with your ears你用耳仔聽嘢
nei5 jung6 ji5 zai2 ting3 je5 
How old are you?你幾多歳?
nei5 gei2 do1 seoi3 ?
I'm (twenty, thirty...) Years old我 (二十/三十) 歲
ngo5  (ji6 sap6 /saam1 sap6 ) seoi3 
Are you married?你結咗婚未?
nei5 git3 zo2 fan1 mei6 ?
Do you have children?你有冇仔女?
nei5 jau5 mou5 zai2 neoi5 ?
I have to go我要走啦
ngo5 jiu3 zau2 laa1 
I will be right back!我即刻就返
ngo5 zik1 hak1 zau6 faan2 

Fun Facts

Language Quote: English is the official language of the sky! It doesn't matter which country they are from, all pilots speak in English on international flights.

Congratulations! You finished your 7th lesson in Cantonese about negation, and the human body. Are you ready for the next lesson? We recommend Cantonese Lesson 8. You can also simply click on one of the links below or go back to our Learn Cantonese homepage.