Chinese (Cantonese)

Building the Basics

Click a topic below to see the grammar goals and conversational goals for each chapter.

• Greetings, Gratitude, and Goodbyes
  

  Building the Basics

  Greetings, Gratitude, and Goodbyes

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Express Gratitude
  • Greet People
  • Make Small Talk with Strangers
  • Say Goodbye

  • Form Questions Using the Particles 嗎 and 呢
  • Recognize the Various Cantonese Tones
  • Use the Statement Particle 啊
  • Use 唔 for Negation
• Do you speak English?
  

  Building the Basics

  Do you speak English?

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Ask / Tell If Someone Speaks a Language
  • Ask / Tell Where Someone Is From
  • Get Someone's Attention

  • Create Questions Using the "Verb + Not + Verb" Structure
  • Form Plural Personal Pronouns with 哋
  • Use the Question Particle 嘎
• Names and Introductions
  

  Building the Basics

  Names and Introductions

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Ask Someone's Name
  • Become Familiar with Chinese Names
  • Introduce Yourself
  • Respond to Introductions
  • Say That You Are Not Someone or Something

  • Express the Possessive Form of Nouns and Pronouns
  • Understand When to Use and Omit the Copula Verb "To Be"
  • Use the Correct Form 認識 or 識 to Say "To Know"
• Getting Around
  

  Building the Basics

  Getting Around

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Ask for Directions
  • Get Help Finding Places Using a Map
  • Identify Important Places and Facilities Around Town
  • Understand Directions as They Are Given to You

  • Correctly Use the "Verb + Not + Verb" to Ask Questions
  • Distinguish Between 唔該 and 多謝
  • Recognize Various Uses of the Preposition 喺
• Shopping and Payment
  

  Building the Basics

  Shopping and Payment

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Count up to 99
  • Deal with Currency
  • Negotiate Basic Transactions at Stores

  • Form Comparative Adjectives
  • Learn to Use the Measure Word 張
  • Practice Plural Personal Pronouns
• Drinks and Dining
  

  Building the Basics

  Drinks and Dining

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Gain Insight for the Chinese Food Culture
  • Order Drinks and Meals
  • Understand Common Phrases Used at Restaurants

  • Create Sentences with Topical Structure
  • Learn to Use the Auxiliary Verb 想
  • Learn to Use the Measure Words 杯 and 籠
• Numbers and Currency
  

  Building the Basics

  Numbers and Currency

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Ask / Tell Whether One Can Use Something
  • Deal with Large Numbers
  • Handle Currency with Ease
  • Ride a Taxi and Pay the Fare

  • Count from 100 to 9999
  • Get Practice on the Word Order
  • Practice Forming Question and Negative Sentences
• Getting help
  

  Building the Basics

  Getting help

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Accept / Decline Help
  • Ask / Tell What Trouble One Is In
  • Ask for / Offer Help
  • Gain Knowledge of Emergency Services

  • Connect Two Phrases with 就
  • Quantify Specific Things Using the Measure Word 種
• What is this?
  

  Building the Basics

  What is this?

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Ask and Tell How One's Performance Is
  • Ask and Tell What Something Is
  • Give and Respond to a Compliment
  • Request to Repeat, Slow Down, or Speak Up
  • Tell Someone That You Are Learning Something

  • Express a Current Action with 緊
  • Form Comparative Adjectives
  • Practice the Particle 嚟㗎 to Strengthen an Assertion or Question
  • Use The Particle 得 to Indicate the Degree of Complement
• What does that mean?
  

  Building the Basics

  What does that mean?

  Conversational Goals Grammar Goals

  • Ask and Answer What a Word or Phrase Means
  • Ask and Answer What a Written Word or Phrase Says
  • Communicate One's Ability to Understand Something
  • Express Gratitude for a Past Deed
  • Request and Agree to Speak in a Particular Language

  • Form Sentences with Serial Verb Phrases
  • Practice Using 喺 with Location Words
  • Use the post-verbal particle 住