Latest / Learn Cantonese with Fexingo / Cantonese at the Park - Describing Birds
Transcript
- Lucas: Welcome back to Learn Cantonese with Fexingo, episode 116! I'm Lucas. Luna: And I'm Luna. Hey Lucas, last episode we were at the night market eating all that delicious food. I'm still full. Lucas: Oh, I know. That egg waffle was something else. But today, let's take it easy and go to the park. We've described trees, flowers, and views before, but we haven't talked about birds. Luna: Birds! I love watching birds. They're so cute and tiny. How do you say 'bird' in Cantonese? Lucas: Great question. The word for bird is 雀仔, which is pronounced 'zoek3 zai2'. But more commonly, we say 有隻雀仔, which means 'there is a bird'. Luna: 有隻雀仔. That's a mouthful. Let me try: 有隻雀仔. Lucas: Very close! The tone on 雀 is a bit higher. Listen: 有隻雀仔. Try again. Luna: 有隻雀仔. Lucas: There you go. Now, if you think the bird is cute, you say 好得意. That's 'hou2 dak1 ji3'. Meaning 'very cute'. Luna: 好得意. So if I see a cute bird, I can say '有隻雀仔, 好得意'. Lucas: Exactly. You could also describe its size. If it's small, you say 好細隻. 'hou2 sai3 zek3'. And if it's big, you say 好大隻. 'hou2 daai6 zek3'. Luna: 好細隻 for small, 好大隻 for big. Let me practice: 有隻雀仔, 好細隻. Lucas: Perfect! And if you want to say you see it, you add 我睇到, which is 'ngo5 tai2 dou2', 'I see'. Luna: 我睇到. So '我睇到有隻雀仔, 好得意'. Lucas: That's it! 'I see a bird, very cute.' What if you think the bird is beautiful? You can say 好靚嘅雀仔. 'hou2 leng3 ge3 zoek3 zai2'. Luna: 好靚嘅雀仔. I can imagine using that on a walk. '你睇, 有隻好靚嘅雀仔'. Lucas: Oh, nice! You added '你睇' which is 'you look' or 'look'. Perfect. Luna: So let's put it all together. If I see a small, cute bird, I'd say: '我睇到有隻雀仔, 好細隻, 好得意'. Lucas: That's a great sentence. And if you want to say 'there's a big, beautiful bird', you say: '有隻好大隻好靚嘅雀仔'. Luna: 有隻好大隻好靚嘅雀仔. That's a long one. Let me break it down: 有隻 好大隻 好靚 嘅雀仔. Lucas: You've got it. Now, let's imagine we're at the park. I point and say: '你睇, 有隻雀仔.' You look and say: '係呀, 好得意.' What do you see? Luna: 我睇到有隻雀仔, 好細隻, 好得意. Lucas: Excellent. Now, I want to say it's beautiful. '係呀, 好靚.' And you agree: '係呀, 好靚嘅雀仔'. Luna: 係呀, 好靚嘅雀仔. This is fun. By the way, I love how Fexingo makes these phrases stick with all the repetition. Lucas: Totally. And if you're finding this helpful, listeners, you can support the show at buymeacoffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a small way to keep us ad-free and making more episodes like this. Every bit helps. Luna: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, we love doing this, and knowing people appreciate it means a lot. So thanks to anyone who does that. Lucas: Alright, back to birds. Let's try a short conversation. I'll be me, you be you. I say: '今日好天, 去公園睇雀仔.' You respond: '好呀, 我想睇雀仔.' Luna: 好呀, 我想睇雀仔. Lucas: Then I say: '你睇, 有隻好大隻嘅雀仔.' You say: '嘩, 好大隻, 好靚呀.' Luna: 嘩, 好大隻, 好靚呀. Lucas: Perfect. And then you could add: '我鍾意睇雀仔.' Which is 'I like watching birds.' Luna: 我鍾意睇雀仔. I think I'll use that a lot. Alright, let's do a quick recap of today's phrases. Lucas: Good idea. We have: 有隻雀仔, 好得意, 好細隻, 好大隻, 好靚嘅雀仔, and 我睇到. Luna: 有隻雀仔, 好得意, 好細隻, 好大隻, 好靚嘅雀仔, 我睇到. I think I've got them. Lucas: You do. Keep practicing, and next time you're at a park, try pointing out birds in Cantonese. See you next episode! Luna: Bye! 下次見!