Question words

In English, when you want to ask a question, you use “wh- words” (what, where, when, why, how). There are similar correspondence in Cantonese:

01/ “what”

mat1-je5 or me1

乜嘢 / 咩

02/ “where”

bin1-dou6

邊度

03/ “when”

gei2-si4

幾時

04/ “why”

dim2-gaai2

點解

05/ “how”

dim2-jeong2

點樣

One thing to remember when formig a question is that, unlike English, Cantonese wh- words do not necessarily move to the sentence initial position. Normally, the wh- words is in the same position of how the answer is going to appear in a sentence:

eg/01a

Nei5 gam1-maan5 soeng2 sik6 mat1-je5 aa3?

你 今晚 想 食 乜嘢 呀？

You tonight want eat what SFP

eg/01b

Ngo5 gam1-maan5 soeng2 sik6 sau6-si1 aa3.

我 今晚 想 食 壽司 呀。

I tonight want eat sushi SFP

eg/02a

Nei5-dei6 ting1-jat6 wui5 heoi3 bin1-dou6 aa3?

你哋 聽日 會 去 邊度 呀？

You (PL) tomorrow will go where SFP

eg/02b

Ngo5-dei6 ting1-jat6 wui5 heoi3 wong6-gok3 aa3.

我哋 聽日 會 去 旺角 呀。

We tomorrow will go Mong Kok SFP

eg/03a

Keoi5 gei2-si4 wui5 heoi3 leoi5-han4 aa3?

佢 幾時 會 去 旅行 呀？

He/She when will go travel SFP

eg/03b

Keoi5 haa6-go3-jyut6 wui5 heoi3 leoi5-han4 aa3.

佢 下個月 會 去 旅行 呀。

He/She next month will go travel SFP

eg/04a

Mui4-mui2 dim2-gaai2 haam3?

妹妹 點解 喊？

Little sister why cry

eg/04b

Mui4-mui2 mou5 tong2 sik6 so2-ji5 haam3.

妹妹 冇 糖 食 所以 喊。

Little sister no candy eat therefore cry

so2-ji5 (所以) = so, therefore

eg/05a

Nei5 dim2-jeong2 heoi3 faan1-gong1？

你 點樣 去 返工？

you how go work

eg/05b

Ngo5 daap3 siu2-baa1 faan1-gong1.

我 搭 小巴 返工。

I take mini bus work

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