ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Cantonese grammar

Cantonese grammar is just a set of rules that help you talk in Cantonese language. It’s like the instructions that help you build a Lego tower.

Like all other languages, Cantonese has different words that are used to show different things. For example, “go” means “walk” in Cantonese. “Je” means “go” in a direction like “go to the park”.

Cantonese also has different ways of putting words together to make sentences. In Cantonese, the sentence structure is usually “Subject-Verb-Object”. This means that you put the person or thing doing the action first, then the action they’re doing, and then the thing they’re doing it to.

For example, if you want to say “I am eating an apple”, you would say “ngo5 sik6 jat1 gwo2 hai6”.

In Cantonese, there are also many particles that are used to show different things such as time or emphasis. For example, “ji” is used to ask questions in Cantonese like “lei5 heoi3 maan6hou2?” (did you go to the supermarket?)

There are also different verb tenses in Cantonese like the present tense or past tense. For example, “ngo5 heoi3 dou1 lei5 gong2 zyu6yu5” means “I will teach you Cantonese”.

Overall, Cantonese grammar is just the rules that you follow to talk in Cantonese language. As you keep practicing, you’ll get better and better at using these rules to express your thoughts and ideas.
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