Hi everyone. If anyone could help me..I had a few questions about counting money in Cantonese. I just wanted for clarification of "cents" in Cantonese... Correct me on anything that is wrong?
1) For just ten cent increments (only 10, 20, 30, 40...except for 50, 60, 70, 80, 90) , you just say "goh yut" for 10 cents, "goh yi" for 20 cents," "goh sam" for 30 cents, "goh sei" for 40 cents, and so on?
2) For cents that are less than 10 cents, do you just say the number and the word "seen" for cents?
3) For all other numbers, do you just say the number of the ones place, then "hou" and the number that follows for the tens place? Such as... 11 cents would be "yut hou yut" and 19 would be "yut hou guw"?
Another question, what does "leung ya mun" / "sam ya mun " / or "sei ya mun" mean?
Thank you so much to whoever can help me.
Always,
Kimmy
help with numbers..thank you.!
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Sebastian Hew
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
1) The counting system you describe for ten cent increments seems to be the Hong Kong system. I don't use it personally, but I've had it used at me. (I live in Sydney.) I, myself, use 'gok' 角 for increments of ten cents, so, 85 cents is 'baat gok bun' 八角半.
2) I don't use 'seen', nor have I ever heard the word used, although it seems like HK usage to me too. I use 'dzam' for cent.
I'm not sure what 'leung ya mun' means, but 'sam a man' and 'sei a man' mean, respectively, thirty and forty dollars.
Sebastian.
2) I don't use 'seen', nor have I ever heard the word used, although it seems like HK usage to me too. I use 'dzam' for cent.
I'm not sure what 'leung ya mun' means, but 'sam a man' and 'sei a man' mean, respectively, thirty and forty dollars.
Sebastian.
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Thomas Chan
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
kimmy wrote:
> Hi everyone. If anyone could help me..I had a few questions
> about counting money in Cantonese. I just wanted for
> clarification of "cents" in Cantonese... Correct me on
> anything that is wrong?
>
> 1) For just ten cent increments (only 10, 20, 30, 40...except
> for 50, 60, 70, 80, 90) , you just say "goh yut" for 10
> cents, "goh yi" for 20 cents," "goh sam" for 30 cents, "goh
> sei" for 40 cents, and so on?
> 2) For cents that are less than 10 cents, do you just say the
> number and the word "seen" for cents?
> 3) For all other numbers, do you just say the number of the
> ones place, then "hou" and the number that follows for the
> tens place? Such as... 11 cents would be "yut hou yut" and
> 19 would be "yut hou guw"?
The basic pattern I would use for an amount like $x.yz is x man y hou z,
e.g., $3.00 is saam man; $3.80 is saam man baat hou; $3.82 is saam man
baat hou yi. However, when y or x is 5, 'half' (for half of a dollar, or half of a
dime) is substituted, e.g., $3.85 is saam man baat hou bun (rather than
saam man baat hou m); $3.50 is saam man bun (rather than saam man m
hou).
If x is at least one, then the go- pattern can be used instead sometimes,
e.g., $3.40 is saam go sei; $3.50 is saam go bun; $3.80 is (also) saam go
baat. If x is one, then omit the dollar amount since it is implied e.g., $1.40 is
go sei; $1.50 is go bun; $1.80 is go baat.
For amounts under a dollar, $0.yz, basically I would use y hou z sin, e.g., 86
cents is baat hou luk sin; 85 cents is baat hou bun sin. But if a multiple of
ten cents, then I would use y hou ji or y hou, e.g., 40 cents is sei hou ji, 50
cents is m hou ji. If under twenty cents, then use the number plus sin
instead of trying to count a single dime plus some pennies, e.g., 2 cents is
leung sin; 7 cents is chat sin; 17 cents is sap chat sin.
I presume you know when to use yi and when to use leung for "2", e.g.,
$2.34 is leung man saam hou sei (not yi man saam hou sei); $3.24 is
saam man yi hou sei; $3.42 is saam man sei hou yi; $3.20 is saam man
yi hou or saam go yi; $2.00 is leung man.
I think that's it, unless I've missed some exceptions (I didn't learn a money
counting as a set of rules, so I had to reconstruct the system).
> Another question, what does "leung ya mun" / "sam ya mun " /
> or "sei ya mun" mean?
It looks like twenty dollars, thirty dollars, and forty dollars, but I would say
yi sap man, sa a man (not saam a man), and sei a man, respectively.
Twenty-something, thirty-something, and forty-something can abbreviate
(this happens to numbers in general, not just for money counting), e.g.,
$20 is yi sap man, but $21 is ya yat man and $23 is ya saam man; $30 is
saam sap man, but $31 is sa a yat man and $33 is sa a saam man; $40 is
sei sap man, but $41 is sei a yat man and $43 is sei a saam man.
Thomas Chan
tc31@cornell.edu
> Hi everyone. If anyone could help me..I had a few questions
> about counting money in Cantonese. I just wanted for
> clarification of "cents" in Cantonese... Correct me on
> anything that is wrong?
>
> 1) For just ten cent increments (only 10, 20, 30, 40...except
> for 50, 60, 70, 80, 90) , you just say "goh yut" for 10
> cents, "goh yi" for 20 cents," "goh sam" for 30 cents, "goh
> sei" for 40 cents, and so on?
> 2) For cents that are less than 10 cents, do you just say the
> number and the word "seen" for cents?
> 3) For all other numbers, do you just say the number of the
> ones place, then "hou" and the number that follows for the
> tens place? Such as... 11 cents would be "yut hou yut" and
> 19 would be "yut hou guw"?
The basic pattern I would use for an amount like $x.yz is x man y hou z,
e.g., $3.00 is saam man; $3.80 is saam man baat hou; $3.82 is saam man
baat hou yi. However, when y or x is 5, 'half' (for half of a dollar, or half of a
dime) is substituted, e.g., $3.85 is saam man baat hou bun (rather than
saam man baat hou m); $3.50 is saam man bun (rather than saam man m
hou).
If x is at least one, then the go- pattern can be used instead sometimes,
e.g., $3.40 is saam go sei; $3.50 is saam go bun; $3.80 is (also) saam go
baat. If x is one, then omit the dollar amount since it is implied e.g., $1.40 is
go sei; $1.50 is go bun; $1.80 is go baat.
For amounts under a dollar, $0.yz, basically I would use y hou z sin, e.g., 86
cents is baat hou luk sin; 85 cents is baat hou bun sin. But if a multiple of
ten cents, then I would use y hou ji or y hou, e.g., 40 cents is sei hou ji, 50
cents is m hou ji. If under twenty cents, then use the number plus sin
instead of trying to count a single dime plus some pennies, e.g., 2 cents is
leung sin; 7 cents is chat sin; 17 cents is sap chat sin.
I presume you know when to use yi and when to use leung for "2", e.g.,
$2.34 is leung man saam hou sei (not yi man saam hou sei); $3.24 is
saam man yi hou sei; $3.42 is saam man sei hou yi; $3.20 is saam man
yi hou or saam go yi; $2.00 is leung man.
I think that's it, unless I've missed some exceptions (I didn't learn a money
counting as a set of rules, so I had to reconstruct the system).
> Another question, what does "leung ya mun" / "sam ya mun " /
> or "sei ya mun" mean?
It looks like twenty dollars, thirty dollars, and forty dollars, but I would say
yi sap man, sa a man (not saam a man), and sei a man, respectively.
Twenty-something, thirty-something, and forty-something can abbreviate
(this happens to numbers in general, not just for money counting), e.g.,
$20 is yi sap man, but $21 is ya yat man and $23 is ya saam man; $30 is
saam sap man, but $31 is sa a yat man and $33 is sa a saam man; $40 is
sei sap man, but $41 is sei a yat man and $43 is sei a saam man.
Thomas Chan
tc31@cornell.edu
-
Thomas Chan
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
Sebastian Hew wrote:
> 1) The counting system you describe for ten cent increments
> seems to be the Hong Kong system. I don't use it personally,
> but I've had it used at me. (I live in Sydney.) I, myself,
> use 'gok' 角 for increments of ten cents, so, 85 cents is
> 'baat gok bun' 八角半.
That seems a bit northern. Hong Kong and Macau's coins are marked with
hou 毫 and sin 仙[1] (oddy enough, since they use patacas, not cents), but
during Republican times, provincially-minted coins from southern provinces
used 毫 (and sometimes also 仙, but small coins didn't always exist because
of inflation). One can see this in the photos given in numismatics catalogs.
[1] But dollars are still marked yun 圓 rather than man 文 or man 蚊.
Do you also use 分 for the cents place instead of 仙?
> 2) I don't use 'seen', nor have I ever heard the word used,
> although it seems like HK usage to me too. I use 'dzam' for
> cent.
What character is dzam?
Thomas Chan
tc31@cornell.edu
> 1) The counting system you describe for ten cent increments
> seems to be the Hong Kong system. I don't use it personally,
> but I've had it used at me. (I live in Sydney.) I, myself,
> use 'gok' 角 for increments of ten cents, so, 85 cents is
> 'baat gok bun' 八角半.
That seems a bit northern. Hong Kong and Macau's coins are marked with
hou 毫 and sin 仙[1] (oddy enough, since they use patacas, not cents), but
during Republican times, provincially-minted coins from southern provinces
used 毫 (and sometimes also 仙, but small coins didn't always exist because
of inflation). One can see this in the photos given in numismatics catalogs.
[1] But dollars are still marked yun 圓 rather than man 文 or man 蚊.
Do you also use 分 for the cents place instead of 仙?
> 2) I don't use 'seen', nor have I ever heard the word used,
> although it seems like HK usage to me too. I use 'dzam' for
> cent.
What character is dzam?
Thomas Chan
tc31@cornell.edu
-
highyun
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
I will add something to Thomas Chan's system.
1. In some occasion "man" can be substited by "goh", for example:
$4.50 can be sei goh bun and $3.82 can be saam goh baat hou yi,
but when it comes to $4.00,you should never say sei goh,you can
just say sei man.
2. there is another adding about numbers. $20 can be yi sap man or
ya man,but 20 cannot be ya sap,but just be yi sap. And so is 30, 40,
....90.
3. the money unit is little different between Hongkong and Canton.
Hongkong use cent while Canton use fan. So ￥8.54 is bai man ng hou
sei fan or bai man ng hou sei(fan is omitted).
highyun@21cn.com
1. In some occasion "man" can be substited by "goh", for example:
$4.50 can be sei goh bun and $3.82 can be saam goh baat hou yi,
but when it comes to $4.00,you should never say sei goh,you can
just say sei man.
2. there is another adding about numbers. $20 can be yi sap man or
ya man,but 20 cannot be ya sap,but just be yi sap. And so is 30, 40,
....90.
3. the money unit is little different between Hongkong and Canton.
Hongkong use cent while Canton use fan. So ￥8.54 is bai man ng hou
sei fan or bai man ng hou sei(fan is omitted).
highyun@21cn.com
-
kimmy
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
thanks for the help...
but one more question, does "leurng ya mun" and "ya leurng mun" mean the same thing? or does one refer to 20-something dollars, and the other refer to 22 dollars?
thanks~!
but one more question, does "leurng ya mun" and "ya leurng mun" mean the same thing? or does one refer to 20-something dollars, and the other refer to 22 dollars?
thanks~!
-
Sebastian Hew
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
> That seems a bit northern. Hong Kong and Macau's coins are marked
> with hou 毫 and sin 仙[1] (oddy enough, since they use patacas, not
> cents), but during Republican times, provincially-minted coins from
> southern provinces used 毫 (and sometimes also 仙, but small coins
> didn't always exist because of inflation). One can see this in the photos
> given in numismatics catalogs.
I have seen coins marked with 毫, but I can't say the same for 仙.
> Do you also use 分 for the cents place instead of 仙?
Only in writing; in speech, I use 'dzam', pronounced like 箴, although I can't say I know how to write it.
Sebastian.
> with hou 毫 and sin 仙[1] (oddy enough, since they use patacas, not
> cents), but during Republican times, provincially-minted coins from
> southern provinces used 毫 (and sometimes also 仙, but small coins
> didn't always exist because of inflation). One can see this in the photos
> given in numismatics catalogs.
I have seen coins marked with 毫, but I can't say the same for 仙.
> Do you also use 分 for the cents place instead of 仙?
Only in writing; in speech, I use 'dzam', pronounced like 箴, although I can't say I know how to write it.
Sebastian.
-
Terence
Re: help with numbers..thank you.!
Interesting!
I heard boat people of Hong Kong say ji6(yi) as long5 at all times, even normally we will say ji6 sap6 for 20, they still say it long5 sap6.
The word long5 uttered by boat people is generally loeng5 in standard Cantonese as the same as hong1 in Hong Kong should be sounded as hoeng1.
Generally, we Hong Kong Cantonese will not say loeng5 a6 man1 except for fun.
For 10+. we say sap6 leng4 man1 where leng4 is from ling4 零which is pronounced as leng4 verbally. (some scholars said it was from 來)
For 20+, jaa6 leng4 man1, 廾 is the character for jaa6(the same sound as ya).
For 30+, saa1 a6 leng4 man1, 卅 is the character for (aa1+a6). a6 becomes the abbreviation for sap6 and applies to the rest from40+ to 90+.
Please note 卅 do not sound the same if you look them up in dictionaries. However, people like to sound what the radicals look like.
P.S. sin1 or sometimes sin1 si2 is a direct sound translation from cents and it only used in Hong Kong. In written form, it is fan1 分 though it had been written as 仙 during the colony time.
I heard boat people of Hong Kong say ji6(yi) as long5 at all times, even normally we will say ji6 sap6 for 20, they still say it long5 sap6.
The word long5 uttered by boat people is generally loeng5 in standard Cantonese as the same as hong1 in Hong Kong should be sounded as hoeng1.
Generally, we Hong Kong Cantonese will not say loeng5 a6 man1 except for fun.
For 10+. we say sap6 leng4 man1 where leng4 is from ling4 零which is pronounced as leng4 verbally. (some scholars said it was from 來)
For 20+, jaa6 leng4 man1, 廾 is the character for jaa6(the same sound as ya).
For 30+, saa1 a6 leng4 man1, 卅 is the character for (aa1+a6). a6 becomes the abbreviation for sap6 and applies to the rest from40+ to 90+.
Please note 卅 do not sound the same if you look them up in dictionaries. However, people like to sound what the radicals look like.
P.S. sin1 or sometimes sin1 si2 is a direct sound translation from cents and it only used in Hong Kong. In written form, it is fan1 分 though it had been written as 仙 during the colony time.