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唔該幫我哋落單吖。
m4 goi1 bong1 ngo5 dei6 lok6 daan1 aa1.
m4 goi1 bong1 ngo5 dei6 lok6 daan1 aa1.
Grammar and Vocabulary
In the Grammar and Vocabulary section, you will learn:
- Classifiers for Food and Drinks II (Drink Containers)
- The Verb 要 jiu3 (‘to want’)
- The Verb 幫 bong1 (‘to help’)
- The Sentence Particle 呀吓 aa3 haa2 (Reminder)
- The Adverb 先 sin1 (‘first; for now’) and the Aspect Particle 住 zyu6 (‘for now’)
- Topics I
- The Verbal Particle 晒 saai3 (‘all’)
- The Question Word 幾多 gei2 do1 (‘how many, how much’) II (Container Classifiers)
- Vocabulary List
- Vocabulary: Types of Drinks
- Vocabulary: Chinese Tea
- Vocabulary: Soft Drinks
- Vocabulary: Beer Brands
28.1 Classifiers for Food and Drinks II (Drink Containers)
Container Classifiers
We usually use container classifiers with nouns for drinks, especially for drinks that can be served in different containers. Container classifiers are a group of measure classifiers. They indicate the quantity of the drinks based on their containers (e.g., cup, bottle).
Other Classifiers
We sometimes use the classifier 個 go3 when referring to drinks that are prepared inside a restaurant or shop (e.g., drinks in cha chaan teng or bubble tea shops).
一個紅豆冰
jat1 go3 hung4 dau2 bing1
a red bean ice
一個珍珠奶茶
jat1 go3 zan1 zyu1 naai5 caa4
a bubble tea
For a large number of cans, we can use the classifier 打 daa1 (‘dozen’). 一打 jat1 daa1 (‘one dozen’) equals to 12 and 半打 bun3 daa1 (‘half a dozen’) equals to 6.
一打啤酒
jat1 daa1 be1 zau2
one dozen cans of beer
半打啤酒
bun3 daa1 be1 zau2
half a dozen cans of beer
28.2 The Verb 要 jiu3 (‘to want’)
In Grammar and Vocabulary 23.4, we learned the modal verb 要 (‘to need to’).
We can also use 要 jiu3 as a verb, instead of a modal verb. When used as a verb, 要 jiu3 can mean ‘to want’, and we put a noun phrase after it.
我哋要一個椒鹽豬扒。
ngo5 dei6 jiu3 jat1 go3 ziu1 jim4 zyu1 paa2.
We want one Salt and Pepper Pork Chops.
The noun phrase 一個椒鹽豬扒 jat1 go3 ziu1 jim4 zyu1 paa2 (‘one Salt and Pepper Pork Chops’) is put after the verb 要 jiu3.
We can put the modal verb 想 soeng2 (‘to want to’) before 要 jiu3 to say 想要 soeng2 jiu3, which means ‘to want to get’.
我哋想要一個椒鹽豬扒。
ngo5 dei6 soeng2 jiu3 jat1 go3 ziu1 jim4 zyu1 paa2.
We want to get one Salt and Pepper Pork Chops.
We put 唔 m4 (‘not’) before 要 jiu3 to negate 要 jiu3.
我哋唔要嘢飲。
ngo5 dei6 m4 jiu3 je5 jam2.
We don’t want drinks.
We use the X-not-X construction to form yes-no questions with 要 jiu3.
請問你哋要唔要嘢飲嘅？
cing2 man6 nei5 dei6 jiu3 m4 jiu3 je5 jam2 ge2?
May I ask if you want drinks?
To answer the question, we can give a long answer or a short answer. We give a short answer more often. To give a negative short answer, we can use the verb 唔使 m4 sai2 (‘to not need’) or 唔要 m4 jiu3, but 唔使 m4 sai2 usually sounds more friendly than 唔要 m4 jiu3. Notice we use the sentence particle 喇 laa3 in the negative answers because we are indicating a rejection (See Grammar and Vocabulary 16.5).
For positive answers, we usually also indicate the thing or the quantity we want.
| A: | 請問你哋要唔要嘢飲嘅？ cing2 man6 nei5 dei6 jiu3 m4 jiu3 je5 jam2 ge2? May I ask if you want drinks? |
| B: | 要呀，要一支啤酒吖唔該。 jiu3 aa3, jiu3 jat1 zi1 be1 zau2 aa1 m4 goi1. Yes, we want one bottle of beer, please. |
For negative answers, we can add the expression 唔該 m4 goi1 (‘thank you’) to sound more friendly.
| A: | 請問你哋要唔要嘢飲嘅？ cing2 man6 nei5 dei6 jiu3 m4 jiu3 je5 jam2 ge2? May I ask if you want drinks? |
| B: | 唔使喇，唔該。 m4 sai2 laa3, m4 goi1. We don’t need it. Thank you. |
想 soeng2 (‘to want to’) and 要 jiu3 (‘to want’) have similar meanings, but their use is different.
28.3 The Verb 幫 bong1 (‘to help’)
In Grammar and Vocabulary 24.1, we learned that when an action is done to help someone, we can use the preposition 幫 bong1 (‘for’) to indicate the person who receives the help.
We can also use the word 幫 bong1 as a verb. When used as a verb, 幫 bong1 means ‘to help’. We put the person who receives help after 幫 bong1.
請等一等，轉頭幫你。
cing2 dang2 jat1 dang2, zyun3 tau4 bong1 nei5.
Please wait for a while. I will help you shortly.
28.4 The Sentence Particle 呀吓 aa3 haa2 (Reminder)
We can use the sentence particle 呀吓 aa3 haa2 to form a reminder that asks the listener to pay attention to or to be careful of something. In the context of this lesson, the server at the restaurant will use 呀吓 aa3 haa2 to signal they will do something and remind us to pay attention or be careful. Notice this sentence particle has two syllables, unlike the other sentence particles we have covered previously.
我幫你哋收一收啲餐牌呀吓。
ngo5 bong1 nei5 dei6 sau1 jat1 sau1 di1 caan1 paai2 aa3 haa2.
I will collect the menus for you.
The speaker will collect the menus on the table so the speaker reminds the listener to be careful. 啲餐牌 di1 caan1 paai2 means ‘the menus’. We will learn to say ‘the …’ in later lessons.
我複一複呀吓。
ngo5 fuk1 jat1 fuk1 aa3 haa2.
I will repeat it.
The speaker will repeat what the listener has ordered so the speaker reminds the listener to pay attention and check if everything is correct.
呀吓 aa3 haa2 is sometimes contracted as 呀 aa2 or 吓 haa2.
我幫你哋收一收啲餐牌呀。
ngo5 bong1 nei5 dei6 sau1 jat1 sau1 di1 caan1 paai2 aa2.
我幫你哋收一收啲餐牌吓。
ngo5 bong1 nei5 dei6 sau1 jat1 sau1 di1 caan1 paai2 haa2.
I will collect the menus for you.
28.5 The Adverb 先 sin1 (‘first; for now’) and the Aspect Particle 住 zyu6 (‘for now’)
The adverb 先 sin1 means ‘first’. We use it to indicate we will do an activity first. Note that unlike other adverbs, we put 先 sin1 after the verb for the activity. If there is an aspect particle or an object after the verb, we put 先 sin1 after them. For separable verbs, we put 先 sin1 after the whole verb. As a rule of thumb, we usually put 先 sin1 at the end of the sentence or before the sentence particle, if any.
我哋睇一睇先。
ngo5 dei6 tai2 jat1 tai2 sin1.
I will have a look first.
先 sin1 is put after the verb 睇一睇 tai2 jat1 tai2 (‘have a look’).
我幫你哋收一收啲餐牌先呀吓。
ngo5 bong1 nei5 dei6 sau1 jat1 sau1 di1 caan1 paai2 sin1 aa3 haa2.
I will collect the menus for you first.
先 sin1 is put after the object 啲餐牌 di1 caan1 paai2 (‘the menus’).
The adverb 先 sin1 can also mean ‘for now’.
我哋要一支啤酒先吖唔該。
ngo5 dei6 jiu3 jat1 zi1 be1 zau2 sin1 aa1 m4 goi1.
We want one bottle of beer for now, please.
先 sin1 is put after the object 一支啤酒 jat1 zi1 be1 zau2 (‘one bottle of beer’).
When we use 先 sin1 to mean ‘for now’, we often use the aspect particle 住 zyu6 at the same time. 住 zyu6 also means ‘for now’. We use it to indicate we will do an activity for now.
我哋要住一支啤酒先吖唔該。
ngo5 dei6 jiu3 zyu6 jat1 zi1 be1 zau2 sin1 aa1 m4 goi1.
We want one bottle of beer for now, please.
The aspect particle 住 zyu6 is put after the verb 要 jiu3.
28.6 Topics I
A topic is a type of grammatical component in a sentence. It is a special characteristic in the sentence structure of Chinese.
A topic appears at the beginning of a sentence. It sets the theme of the sentence which we will use to interpret the rest of the sentence. In grammar, we call the part after the topic comment.
There are different types of topics. In this lesson, we will see that the object of a sentence is sometimes moved to the beginning of the sentence and becomes the topic of the sentence.
Sometimes only part of the object is moved to the beginning of the sentence.
We will learn about other types of topics in later lessons.
28.7 The Verbal Particle 晒 saai3 (‘all’)
The verbal particle 晒 saai3 can add the meaning of ‘all’ to a sentence. We use it to indicate that an activity has been done to all the people or things involved.
今日賣瀨尿蝦。
gam1 jat6 maai6 laai6 niu6 haa1.
We sell mantis shrimp today.
↓
今日賣晒瀨尿蝦。
gam1 jat6 maai6 saai3 laai6 niu6 haa1.
We have sold all the mantis shrimp today.
To indicate something is all gone, we can use the verb 冇 mou5 (‘to not have’) with 晒 saai3 to say 冇晒 mou5 saai3 (‘all gone’).
今日冇瀨尿蝦。
gam1 jat6 mou5 laai6 niu6 haa1.
There are no mantis shrimp today.
↓
今日冇晒瀨尿蝦。
gam1 jat6 mou5 saai3 laai6 niu6 haa1.
The mantis shrimp are all gone today.
Since 晒 saai3 indicates an activity has been done, we often use the sentence particle 喇 laa3 at the same time (See Grammar and vocabulary 13.6).
今日賣晒瀨尿蝦喇。
gam1 jat6 maai6 saai3 laai6 niu6 haa1 laa3.
We have already sold all the mantis shrimp today.
今日冇晒瀨尿蝦喇。
gam1 jat6 mou5 saai3 laai6 niu6 haa1 laa3.
The mantis shrimp are already all gone today.
When using 晒 saai3, we sometimes move the object of the sentence to the beginning of the sentence, making it the topic of the sentence.
瀨尿蝦今日賣晒喇。
laai6 niu6 haa1 gam1 jat6 maai6 saai3 laa3.
We have already sold all the mantis shrimp today.
瀨尿蝦今日冇晒喇。
laai6 niu6 haa1 gam1 jat6 mou5 saai3 laa3.
The mantis shrimp are already all gone today.
28.8 The Question Word 幾多 gei2 do1 (‘how many, how much’) II (Container Classifiers)
In Grammar and Vocabulary 11.6, we learned that the question word 幾多 gei2 do1 is similar to how many or how much in English. We also learned that if the noun is countable, we often add a classifier between 幾多 gei2 do1 and the noun.
We can also put a container classifier (e.g., 碗 wun2 ‘bowl’) between 幾多 gei2 do1 and the noun. This is especially useful when the noun is uncountable (e.g., 飯 faan6 ‘rice’).
請問要幾多碗白飯嘅？
cing2 man6 jiu3 gei2 do1 wun2 baak6 faan6 ge2?
May I ask how many bowls of white rice you want?
When 幾多 gei2 do1 is followed by a classifier, 幾多 gei2 do1 can be contracted to 幾 gei2.
請問要幾碗白飯嘅？
cing2 man6 jiu3 gei2 wun2 baak6 faan6 ge2?
May I ask how many bowls of white rice you want?
We usually omit the noun if it is obvious in the context.
| A: | 請問要唔要白飯嘅？ cing2 man6 jiu3 m4 jiu3 baak6 faan6 ge2? May I ask if you want white rice? |
| B: | 要呀。 jiu3 aa3. Yes. |
| A: | 請問要幾多碗 cing2 man6 jiu3 gei2 do1 wun2 May I ask how many bowls you want? |
| B: | 要三碗吖唔該。 jiu3 saam1 wun2 aa1 m4 goi1. We want three bowls, please. |
28.9 Vocabulary List
28.10 Vocabulary: Types of Drinks
28.11 Vocabulary: Chinese Tea
28.12 Vocabulary: Soft Drinks
28.13 Vocabulary: Beer Brands
Communication
In the Communication section, you will learn:
- Ordering Food I
Ordering Food I
In some Chinese restaurants, a pot of tea will be served at our table. The server will ask what type of tea we want right after we have sat down.
We can order more than one type of tea.
We can also get a pot of hot water.
When we are ready to order the food, we can get the server’s attention by saying:
- We can replace 叫 giu3 (‘to order’) with 嗌 aai3 (‘to order’).
If the server is busy at the moment, they may ask us to wait.
A few moments later…
- Notice we don’t usually use 吖 aa1 in a sentence with the modal verb 想 soeng2 even if we are making a request.
For food with more than one portion size, we need to specify the size.
We can put 例牌 lai6 paai2 (‘customary portion’) before or after the dish name.
If we haven’t specified the portion size, the server will ask us.
If we want to check if some food is available, we can say:
For some dishes, we need to choose the ingredient (e.g., the type of vegetable for a vegetable dish). We can ask about the available choices.
If we don’t ask, the server will ask:
Once we have finished saying the food we want to order, the server will usually ask if we need anything else.
- We use the sentence particle 喇 laa3 here because the state has changed from ‘there are things we need to order’ to ‘there are no more things we need to order’.
The server will usually repeat what we have ordered for us to check.
The server will sometimes ask us to confirm the order.
If there is something incorrect, we can correct it this way:
In some restaurants, the server will ask if we want some white rice to eat with the dishes. The rice is usually served with a bowl.
The server may also ask if we want some soft drink or beer.
- 啲餐牌 di1 caan1 paai2 / 啲menu di1 men1 niu2 means ‘the menus’. We will learn to say ‘the …’ in later lessons.