Teochew phrasebook

Teochew (潮汕話/潮汕话 Diê⁵ suan³ uê⁷ or 潮州話/潮州话 Diê⁵ ziu¹ uê⁷), also Romanized as Chiuchow, is the main language of the Chaoshan region in Eastern Guangdong, around the cities of Shantou, Chaozhou and Jieyang. It is also fairly common in Hong Kong and among overseas Chinese, especially in Southeast Asia, with Bangkok, Phnom Penh, Pontianak and Johor Bahru being examples of Southeast Asian cities where Teochew speakers form the majority among the ethnic Chinese community.

Each of the three main Teochew-speaking cities in China, as well as each overseas region where it is spoken, has its own slightly different variant, though they are similar enough not to hinder mutual comprehension; the prestige dialect is that of Chaozhou, though the Shantou dialect is more commonly heard due to the city's economic dominance. The overseas variants are influenced by other local languages; the Teochew spoken in Singapore and Malaysia has loan words from Malay and Hokkien, while the Teochew spoken in Thailand has loan words from Thai.

All Chinese languages, in general, use the same set of characters in reading and writing in formal settings, based on standard Mandarin. This means that a Teochew speaker and a Mandarin speaker cannot talk to each other, but either can generally read what the other writes. However, when Teochew is written in a more colloquial form, there are significant differences with standard Mandarin, thus necessitating the use of some extra characters not commonly used in Mandarin, and meaning that a Mandarin speaker will not be able to understand everything. Use the Chinese phrasebook for reading most writing in Teochew-speaking areas.

Teochew is closely related to Minnan Hua and Hainanese, but only partly mutually intelligible with Minnan Hua and mutually unintelligible with Hainanese. Teochew is not mutually intelligible with Mandarin or Cantonese, but it is common for Teochew speakers to also know one or both of those. Foreigners in the region usually choose to learn Mandarin rather than Teochew because it is much more widely used.

Pronunciation guide

Like other dialects of Chinese, Teochew is written using Chinese characters but employs its own unique pronunciation. Traditional Chinese characters are used in some overseas Teochew communities, while simplified characters are used in mainland China. Where differences exist, in this guide, we write the traditional Chinese characters before the slash and simplified Chinese character after it.

Peng'im, which was developed by the Guangdong provincial government in 1960, is generally the most common system for Romanizing Teochew, and will be used in this guide. See Wikipedia for details if needed. However, as most native speakers do not know how to read Romanized Teochew, stick to Chinese characters for written communication.

Vowels

The letters a, i and u are pronounced as in Spanish, Italian and German.

Vowels can also be nasalized in Teochew. In Peng'im, this is represented by an n at the end of the syllable after the vowel.

Vowel combinations

Consonants

While Mandarin only distinguishes between aspirated and unaspirated (unvoiced) consonants, and English only distinguishes between voiced and unvoiced consonants meaning-wise, Teochew makes a distinction in both cases. This means that aspirated unvoiced (p, t, k, c), unaspirated unvoiced (b, d, g, z), and unaspirated voiced (bh, gh, r) are all separate phonemic consonants in Teochew. Pronouncing everything accurately is therefore going to be a challenge for native English or Mandarin speakers. However, unlike in Mandarin, there is no "tongue rolling" (pinyin zh, ch, sh, r) initial consonant.

Teochew retains some final consonants of Middle Chinese that Mandarin has lost, such as b, g, and m. On the other hand, Teochew has lost the n final consonant that Mandarin has retained, and you will often hear native Teochew speakers mispronouncing the n final as ng when speaking Mandarin. The final m and ng are pronounced as in English, but b and g are different. They are similar to English p and k but unreleased. This means that the mouth moves into the position of making the consonant, but no burst of air is released.

Furthermore, an h at the end of a syllable in Peng'im represents a glottal stop (ʔ); this is the sound in the middle of the English word 'uh-oh'.

Tones

Teochew is a tonal language, meaning that the tone must be correct in order to convey the correct meaning. Tone sandhi is rather complex in Teochew, which makes it a little harder to learn than Mandarin. In general, tone sandhi occurs on all syllables of a word other than the final syllable.

Teochew has 8 different tones, denoted with a superscript number after the syllable in Peng'im. Tone sandhi is rather complex in Teochew, making it harder to learn than Mandarin. In general, tone sandhi occurs on all syllables other than the final syllable of a word.

Tone 9 as seen in the table occurs only after tone sandhi, and is described as a high falling tone.

Phrase list

Basics

Pronouns

Teochew pronouns are somewhat more complicated than in Mandarin. 我 ua² is the standard first person pronoun, 汝 le² is the standard second person pronoun, and 伊 i¹ is the standard third person pronoun. Unlike English, Teochew has only one third person pronoun, and does not distinguish between "he", "she" and "it". Unlike in English, Teochew makes a distinction between the inclusive and exclusive first person plurals, so the equivalent of "we" is 阮 uang² in you want to exclude the person(s) you are addressing, and 咱 nang² if you want to include the person(s) you are talking too. The other plurals are more straightforward; 恁 ning² is the equivalent of the plural "you", while 伊儂 i¹ nang⁵ is the equivalent of "they".

To be or not to be?

Teochew, as in Mandarin, does not have words for "yes" and "no" as such; instead, questions are typically answered by repeating the verb. Common ones include: ; To be or not to be: 是 si⁶, 唔是 m⁶-si⁶ ; To have or not have / there is or is not: 有 u⁶, 無/无 bho⁵ ; To be right or wrong: 着/著 diêh⁸, 唔着/唔著 m⁶-diêh⁸

; Hello. : 汝好。 le² ho². ; How are you? : 汝好無？/汝好无？ le² ho² bho⁵? ; Not bad : 𠁞孬/𠀾孬 bhoi⁶ mo² ; Fine, thank you. : 好，㩼謝。/好，㩼谢。 ho², zoi⁷ sia⁷. ; What is your name? : 汝叫乜名? le² giê³ mih⁴ mian⁵? ; My name is ______ . : 我個名是 ____。/我个名是 ____。 ua² gai⁷ mian⁵ si⁶ ______ . ; Nice to meet you. : . () ; Please. : 請。/请。 cian². ; Thank you. : 㩼謝。/㩼谢。 zoi⁷ sia⁷. ; You're welcome. : 免客氣。/免客气。 miang² kêh⁴ ki³. ; Excuse me. (getting attention) : . () ; Excuse me. (begging pardon) : 孬意思。 mo² i³ se³. ; I'm sorry. : 對唔住。/对唔住。 dui³ m⁶ zu⁶. ; Goodbye : 再见。/再見。 zai³ giang³. ; Goodbye (informal) : . () ; I can't speak Teochew. : 我唔曉呾潮汕話。/我唔晓呾潮汕话。 ua² m⁶ hiou² dan³ diê⁵ suan¹ uê⁷. ; Do you speak English? : 請問汝會曉呾英文𠁞？/请问汝会晓呾英文𠀾？ cian² mung⁷ le² oi⁶ hiou² dan³ êng¹ bhung⁵ bhoi⁶? ; Is there someone here who speaks English? : 請問有人會曉呾英文無？/请问有人会晓呾英文无？ cian² mung⁷ u⁶ nang⁵ oi⁶ hiou² dan³ êng¹ bhung⁵ bho⁵? ; Help! : 救命！ giu³ mian⁷! ; Look out! : 小心！ (siê² sim1^!) ; Good morning. : . () ; Good evening. : . () ; Good night. : . () ; Good night (to sleep) : . () ; I don't understand. : 我𠁞聽。/我𠀾听。 ua² bhoi⁶ tian¹ ; Where is the toilet? : 廁所在底塊？/厕所在底块？ cê³ so² do⁶ di⁷ go³?

Problems

; Leave me alone. : . (.) ; Don't touch me! : ! (!) ; I'll call the police. : . (.) ; Police! : 警察！ gêng⁶ cag⁴! ; Stop! Thief! : ! ! (! !) ; I need your help. : . (.) ; It's an emergency. : . (.) ; I'm lost. : . (.) ; I lost my bag. : . (.) ; I lost my wallet. : . (.) ; I'm sick. : . (.) ; I've been injured. : . (.) ; I want to see a doctor. : 我愛睇醫生。/我爱睇医生。 ua² ain³ toin² ui¹ sêng¹. ; Can I use your phone? : ? (?)

Numbers

Numbers in Teochew follow the same system as other varieties of Chinese.

; 0 : 空 kang³ ; 1 : 一 zêg⁸ / ig⁴ Note: ig⁴ is used in the ones and tens place (except for the number 1 itself) and in ordinal numbers, whereas zêg⁸ is used for multiples of numbers 100 and greater, as well as before counter words. ; 2 : 兩/两 no⁶ / 二 ri⁶ Note: 二 ri⁶ is used in the ones and tens place (except for the number 2 itself) and in ordinal numbers, whereas 兩/两 no⁶ is used for multiples of numbers 100 and greater, as well as before counter words. ; 3 : 三 san¹ ; 4 : 四 si³ ; 5 : 五 ngou⁶ ; 6 : 六 lag⁸ ; 7 : 七 cig⁴ ; 8 : 八 boih⁴ ; 9 : 九 gao² ; 10 :十 zab⁸ ; 11 :十一 zab⁸ ig⁴ ; 12 :十二 zab⁸ ri⁶ ; 13 :十三 zab⁸ san¹ ; 14 :十四 zab⁸ si³ ; 15 :十五 zab⁸ ngou⁶ ; 16 :十六 zab⁸ lag⁸ ; 17 :十七 zab⁸ cig⁴ ; 18 : 十八 zab⁸ boih⁴ ; 19 : 十九 zab⁸ gao² ; 20 : 二十 ri⁶ zab⁸ ; 21 : 二十一 ri⁶ zab⁸ ig⁴ ; 22 : 二十二 ri⁶ zab⁸ ri⁶ ; 23 : 二十三 ri⁶ zab⁸ san¹ ; 30 : 三十 san¹ zab⁸ ; 40 : 四十 si³ zab⁸ ; 50 : 五十 ngou⁶ zab⁸ ; 60 : 六十 lag⁸ zab⁸ ; 70 : 七十 cig⁴ zab⁸ ; 80 : 八十 boih⁴ zab⁸ ; 90 : 九十 gao² zab⁸ ; 100 : 一百 zêg⁸ bêh⁴ ; 200 : 兩百/两百 no⁶ bêh⁴ ; 300 : 三百 san¹ bêh⁴ ; 1,000 : 一千 zêg⁸ coin¹ ; 2,000 : 兩千/两千 no⁶ coin¹

Like Mandarin, Teochew groups numbers starting from 10,000 into units of four digits starting with 萬/万 bhuêng⁷. "One million" would therefore be "one hundred ten-thousands" (一百萬/一百万) and "one billion" would be "ten hundred-millions" (十億/十亿).

; 10,000 : 一萬/一万 zêg⁸ bhuêng⁷ ; 20,000 : 兩萬/两万 no⁶ bhuêng⁷ ; 100,000 : 十萬/十万 zab⁸ bhuêng⁷ ; 1,000,000 : 一百萬/一百万 zêg⁸ bêh⁴ bhuêng⁷ ; 10,000,000 : 一千萬/一千万 zêg⁸ coin¹ bhuêng⁷ ; 100,000,000 : 一億/一亿 zêg⁸ êg⁸ ; 1,000,000,000 : 十億/十亿 zab⁸ êg⁸ ; 1,000,000,000,000 : 一兆 zêg⁸ diou⁶ ; number _____ (train, bus, etc.) : _____號/____号 ______ ho⁷ ; half : 半 buan³ ; less : 少 ziê² ; more : 㩼 zoi⁷

Time

; now : 只陣/只阵 zi² zung⁵ ; later :( kin kia__) ; before : (__) ; morning : 眠起 mung⁵ ki² / 猛早 mên² za² ; noon : 日晝/日昼 rig⁸ dao³ ; afternoon : 下旰 ê⁷ gua³ ; evening : 暝昏 mên⁵ hung¹ ; night : 暝旰 mên⁵ gua³ / 暝暗 mên⁵ am³ ; midnight : 半暝 buan³ mên⁵

Clock time

; 1:00 : 一点/一點 zêg⁸ diam² ; 2:00 : 两点/兩點 no⁶ diam² ; 2:30 : 两点半/兩點半 no⁶ diam² buan³ / 两点三十分/兩點三十分 no⁶ diam² san¹ zab⁸ hung¹ ; 3:00 : 三点/三點 san¹ diam²

Duration

; _____ minute(s) : _____ 分鐘/_____ 分钟 ______ hung¹ zêng¹_ ; _____ hour(s) : _____ 點鐘/_____ 点钟 ______ diam² zêng¹_ ; _____ day(s) : _____ 日 ______ rig⁸_ ; _____ week(s) : _____ 禮拜/_____ 礼拜 ______ loi² bai³_ ; _____ month(s) : _____ 個月/ _____ 个月 ______ gai⁵ ghuêh⁸_ ; _____ year(s) : _____ 年 ______ ni⁵_

Days

; today : 今日 gim¹ rig⁸ / 囝日 gian² rig⁸ ; yesterday : 昨日 za¹ rig⁸ ; tomorrow : 明起 muan³ ki² / 明日 muan³ rig⁸ ; this week : 只個禮拜/只个礼拜 zi² gai⁵ loi² bai³ ; last week : 頂個禮拜/顶个礼拜 dêng² gai⁵ loi² bai³ ; next week : 後個禮拜/后个礼拜 ao⁶ gai⁵ loi² bai³

; Sunday : 禮拜/礼拜 loi² bai³ ; Monday : 拜一 bai³ ig⁴ ; Tuesday : 拜二 bai³ ri⁶ ; Wednesday : 拜三 bai³ san¹ ; Thursday : 拜四 bai³ si³ ; Friday : 拜五 bai³ ngou⁶ ; Saturday : 拜六 bai³ lag⁸

Months

; January : 一月 ig⁴ ghuêh⁸ ; February : 二月 ri⁶ ghuêh⁸ ; March : 三月 san¹ ghuêh⁸ ; April : 四月 si³ ghuêh⁸ ; May : 五月 ngou⁶ ghuêh⁸ ; June : 六月 lag⁸ ghuêh⁸ ; July : 七月 cig⁴ ghuêh⁸ ; August : 八月 boih⁴ ghuêh⁸ ; September : 九月 gao² ghuêh⁸ ; October : 十月 zab⁸ ghuêh⁸ ; November : 十一月 zab⁸ ig⁴ ghuêh⁸ ; December : 十二月 zab⁸ ri⁶ ghuêh⁸

Writing time and date

Colors

; black : 烏色/乌色 ou¹ sêg⁴ ; white : 白色 bêh⁸ sêg⁴ ; gray : 灰色 huê¹ sêg⁴ ; red : 紅色/红色 ang⁵ sêg⁴ ; blue :藍色/蓝色 nam⁵ sêg⁴ ; yellow : 黃色/黄色 ng⁵ sêg⁴ ; green : 青色 cên¹ sêg⁴ ; orange : 柑色 gan¹ sêg⁴ ; purple : 紫色 zi² sêg⁴ ; brown : 赤色 ciah⁴ sêg⁴

Transportation

Bus and train

; How much is a ticket to ___? : () ; One ticket to _, please. : () ; Where does this train/bus go? : () ; Where is the train/bus to ___? : () ; Does this train/bus stop in _? : () ; When does the train/bus for _____ leave? : () ; When will this train/bus arrive in ___? : ()

Directions

走 or 行

While the character 走 (zao²) means "to walk" in modern Standard Mandarin, Teochew retains the Classical Chinese meaning of the character, in which it means "to run" (a meaning that is also retained in other southern dialects and Japanese). Instead, the character 行 (gian⁵) is used to mean "to walk" in Teochew.

; How do I get to _____ ? : 請問汝做呢去_____啊？/请问汝做呢去_____啊？ cian² mung⁷ le² zo³ ni⁵ ke³ _____ a⁷? ; ...the train station? : () ; ...the bus station? : () ; ...the airport? : () ; ...downtown? : () ; ...the youth hostel? : () ; ...the _____ hotel? : () ; ...the American/Canadian/Australian/British consulate? : () ; Where are there a lot of _? : 底塊有好㩼_____啊？/底块有好㩼_____啊？ di⁷ go³ u⁶ hoh⁴ zoi⁷ _____ a⁷? ; ...hotels? : () ; ...restaurants? : () ; ...bars? : () ; ...sites to see? : () ; Can you show me on the map? : () ; street : (__) ; Turn left. : 斡去倒手爿 uêg⁴ ke³ do³ ciu² boin⁵ ; Turn right. : 斡去正手爿 uêg⁴ ke³ zian³ ciu² boin⁵ ; left : 倒 do³ ; right : 正 zian³ ; in front of the _____ : _____頭前 / ___头前 tao⁵ zoin⁵ ; behind the _____ : _後爿 / _后爿 ao⁶ boin⁵ ; straight ahead : 直直去 dig⁸ dig⁸ ke³ ; inside : 內爿/内爿 lai⁶ boin⁵ ; outside : 口爿 kao² boin⁵ ; towards the _____ : () ; past the _____ : () ; before the _____ : () ; Watch for the _. : () ; intersection : () ; north : 北 bag⁴ ; south : 南 nam⁵ ; east : 東 dang¹ ; west : 西 sai¹ ; uphill : () ; downhill : ()

Taxi

; Taxi! : (__) ; Take me to ___, please. : () ; How much does it cost to get to _? : () ; Take me there, please. : ()

Lodging

; Do you have any rooms available? : () ; How much is a room for one person/two people? : () ; Does the room come with... : () ; ...bedsheets? : () ; ...a bathroom? : () ; ...a telephone? : 電話/电话 diêng⁶ uê⁷ ; ...a TV? : 電視機/电视机 diêng⁶ si⁶ gi¹ ; May I see the room first? : () ; Do you have anything quieter? : () ; ...bigger? :(kou tua) ; ...cleaner? :( kou pek) ; ...cheaper? :(kou phi) ; OK, I'll take it. : () ; I will stay for _____ night(s). : 我愛徛_____暝。/我爱徛_____暝。 ua² ain³ kia⁶ _____ mên⁵. ; Can you suggest another hotel? : () ; Do you have a safe? : () ; ...lockers? : () ; Is breakfast/supper included? : () ; What time is breakfast/supper? : () ; Please clean my room. : (__) ; Can you wake me at _? : () ; I want to check out. : ()

Money

; Do you accept American/Australian/Canadian dollars? : () ; Do you accept British pounds? : () ; Do you accept euros? : () ; Do you accept credit cards? : () ; Can you change money for me? : () ; Where can I get money changed? : () ; Can you change a traveler's check for me? : () ; Where can I get a traveler's check changed? : () ; What is the exchange rate? : () ; Where is an automatic teller machine (ATM)? : ()

Eating

One peculiarity of Teochew is that it does not distinguish between eating and drinking. As such, the verb 食 (ziah⁸) is used to refer to both eating and drinking.

; A table for one person/two people, please. : () ; Can I look at the menu, please? : () ; Can I look in the kitchen? : () ; Is there a house specialty? : () ; Is there a local specialty? : () ; I'm a vegetarian. : () ; I don't eat pork. : 我無食豬肉。/我无食猪肉。ua² bho⁵ ziah⁸ de¹ nêg⁸. ; I don't eat beef. : 我無食牛肉。/我无食牛肉。ua² bho⁵ ziah⁸ ghu⁵ nêg⁸. ; I only eat kosher food. : () ; Can you make it "lite", please? (less oil/butter/lard) : () ; fixed-price meal : () ; a la carte : () ; breakfast : () ; lunch : () ; tea (meal) : () ; supper : () ; I want . : 我愛。/我爱_____。 _ua² ain³ ____. ; I want a dish containing _. : () ; chicken : 雞/鸡 goi¹ ; duck : 鴨/鸭 ah⁴ ; goose : 鵝/鹅 gho⁵ ; beef : 牛肉 ghu⁵ nêg⁸ ; pork : 豬肉/猪肉 de¹ nêg⁸ ; mutton : 羊肉 iên⁵ nêg⁸ ; fish : 魚/鱼 he⁵ ; ham :( ) ; sausage : () ; cheese : () ; eggs : 卵 neng⁶ ; salad : () ; vegetables : 菜 cai³ ; (fresh) fruit :( bua) ; bread : 麵包 min⁷ bao¹ ; toast : () ; noodles : 麵/面 min⁷ ; rice (cooked) : 飯/饭 bung⁷ ; rice (raw) : 米 bhi² ; congee / rice porridge : 糜 muê⁵ ; beans : 豆 dao⁷ ; May I have a glass of _? : () ; May I have a cup of _? : () ; May I have a bottle of _? : () ; coffee : 咖啡 gia¹ hui¹ ; tea (drink) : 茶 dê⁵ ; juice : () ; (bubbly) water : () ; (still) water : 水 zui² ; milk : 奶 ni⁶ ; beer : 啤酒 bi⁵ ziu² ; red/white wine : () ; May I have some _? : () ; salt : 鹽/盐 iam⁵ ; sugar : 糖 teng⁵ ; soy sauce : 豉油 si⁷ iu⁵ ; black pepper : () ; butter : 牛油 ghu⁵ iu⁵ ; Excuse me, waiter? (getting attention of server): () ; I'm finished. : 我食好。ua² ziah⁸ ho². ; delicious. : 好食 ho² ziah⁸ ; Please clear the plates. : (__) ; The check, please. : 結數/结数 gig⁴ siou³

Bars

; Do you serve alcohol? : () ; Is there table service? : () ; A beer/two beers, please. : () ; A glass of red/white wine, please. : () ; A pint, please. : () ; A bottle, please. : () ; _____ (hard liquor) and _____ (mixer), please. : () ; whiskey : () ; vodka : () ; rum : () ; water : 水 zui² ; club soda : () ; tonic water : () ; orange juice : () ; Coke (soda) :( phi zui) ; Do you have any bar snacks? : () ; One more, please. :(cek kai ge) ; Another round, please. : () ; When is closing time? : () ; Cheers! : ()

Shopping

; Do you have this in my size? : () ; How much is this? :( cia hok coi lui?) ; That's too expensive. :( cia khak kue kui__) ; Would you take _? : () ; expensive : 貴/贵 gui³ ; cheap : 便 pin¹ ; I can't afford it. : () ; I don't want it. : 我莫 ua² mai³ ; You're cheating me. : () ; I'm not interested. : (..) ; OK, I'll take it. : 好，我挈伊。 ho², ua² kiêh⁸ i¹. ; Can I have a bag? : () ; Do you ship (overseas)? : () ; I need... : () ; ...toothpaste. : 牙膏 ghê⁵ go¹ ; ...a toothbrush. : 齒漱/齿漱 ki² ciu³ ; ...tampons. : . () ; ...soap. : 餅藥/饼药 pian² iêh⁸ ; ...shampoo. : () ; ...pain reliever. (e.g., aspirin or ibuprofen) : () ; ...cold medicine. : () ; ...stomach medicine. : ... () ; ...a razor. : () ; ...an umbrella. : 雨遮 hou⁶ zia¹ ; ...sunblock lotion. : () ; ...a postcard. : () ; ...postage stamps. : () ; ...batteries. : () ; ...writing paper. : 紙/纸 zua² ; ...a pen. : 筆/笔 big⁴ ; ...English-language books. : 英文書/英文书 êng¹ bhung⁵ ze¹ ; ...English-language magazines. : 英文雜誌/英文杂志 êng¹ bhung⁵ zab⁸ zi³ ; ...an English-language newspaper. : 英文報紙/英文报纸 êng¹ bhung⁵ bo³ zua²

Driving

; I want to rent a car. : 我愛稅車。/ 我爱税车。 ua² ain³ suê³ cia¹. ; Can I get insurance? : () ; stop (on a street sign) : () ; one way : () ; yield : () ; no parking : () ; speed limit : () ; gas (petrol) station : () ; petrol : () ; diesel : (__)

Authority

; I haven't done anything wrong. : () ; It was a misunderstanding. : () ; Where are you taking me? : () ; Am I under arrest? : () ; I am an American/Australian/British/Canadian citizen. : () ; I want to talk to the American/Australian/British/Canadian embassy/consulate. : () ; I want to talk to a lawyer. : () ; Can I just pay a fine now? : ()

Related: Chinese phrasebook

Related: Cantonese phrasebook

Related: Minnan phrasebook