← Cantonese Dictionary

Mandarin to Cantonese: common words and phrases (with Jyutping)

Cantonese and Mandarin share most of their written vocabulary, but they differ in sound and in a small set of everyday words. Most words keep their characters and only change reading: 學生 is xuésheng in Mandarin and hok6 saang1 in Cantonese. The words that change completely are few but they are everywhere: is, not, have, this, that, he, what, where, eat, look. Learn the forty or so swaps below and a sentence like 他不在這裡 turns into 佢唔喺呢度 almost by itself.

Phrase guides

• 你好 nǐ hǎo in Cantonese: same characters, nei5 hou2, and what locals say instead.
• 謝謝 xièxie in Cantonese: 唔該 for a service, 多謝 for a gift.
• 我愛你 wǒ ài nǐ in Cantonese: ngo5 oi3 nei5, and how people really say it.
• 再見 zàijiàn in Cantonese: goodbye, and the bye-bye you'll actually hear.
• 對不起 duìbuqǐ in Cantonese: saying sorry and excuse me.
• 沒關係 méi guānxi in Cantonese: never mind, no problem.
• 多少錢 duōshao qián in Cantonese: asking prices at the market or shop.
• 什麼 shénme in Cantonese: 乜嘢, 咩, and 點解 for why.
• 哪裡 nǎlǐ in Cantonese: 邊度, here, there, and 邊個 for who.
• 早上好 zǎoshang hǎo in Cantonese: good morning is 早晨 (zou2 san4).
• 晚安 wǎn'ān in Cantonese: 早唞 at bedtime, 晚安 in writing.
• 生日快樂 shēngrì kuàilè in Cantonese: same characters, saang1 jat6 faai3 lok6.
• 新年快樂 xīnnián kuàilè in Cantonese: and 恭喜發財 at Lunar New Year.
• 你好嗎 nǐ hǎo ma in Cantonese: how are you, and what locals ask instead.
• 你叫什麼名字 in Cantonese: 你叫咩名, and 貴姓 for a surname.
• 吃飯了嗎 chī fàn le ma in Cantonese: 食咗飯未, the have-you-eaten greeting.
• 不客氣 bù kèqi in Cantonese: 唔使客氣, the reply to thanks.

Everyday words that change

Same characters, different sound

Most of the time you don't need a new word at all, only a new reading. 你好 is nei5 hou2, 我愛你 is ngo5 oi3 nei5, 學生 is hok6 saang1, and 錢 (money) is still 錢, read cin4 or, in casual speech, cin2. Look any of these up in the dictionary search by character, Jyutping or pinyin, and use the pinyin converter to get the Mandarin tone marks right while you compare. Tones don't map one to one between the two languages, so learn each Cantonese reading as it comes rather than guessing from the pinyin.

How to use this

• Start with the grammar words at the top of the table (係, 唔, 冇, 嘅, 咗, 喺, 呢, 嗰, 佢). They appear in almost every sentence.
• Practise whole swaps, not single words: 我不知道 → 我唔知, 他在哪裡 → 佢喺邊度, 你吃飯了沒有 → 你食咗飯未.
• Read Hong Kong signs, menus and chat messages; written colloquial Cantonese uses these swaps, while formal writing usually doesn't.
• Save the words you want to keep in My words, and check vocabulary lists against HSK levels with the HSK checker.

Classic Cantonese mix-ups, explained: 唔該 vs 多謝, 係 vs 喺, 唔 vs 冇, 咗 vs 緊, 識 vs 知, 呢個 vs 嗰個; more learner answers on the FAQ page.

My words · Word of the day · Pinyin converter · Korean romanizer · HSK checker · FAQ · About · Contact · Privacy