It all sounds very difficult.. Actually Cantonese can almost be mastered with clever phonetics. Cantonese cannot be simply said as we do with English, it almost has to be sung. An example to make this clearer is the word gow (how but with a g). It can mean number 9, a dog, old or even penis depending on how it is said i.e. which tone is used.

Another example is the word yau or phonetically, yow. It is said using different tones;

TONE MEANING

• High level yow = to worry or to rest
• Mid level yow = thin
• Low falling yow = oil or swim
• Low rising yow = have or friend
• Low level yow = again or right

When I first arrived in Hong Kong in 1989 I was driving our company car to the old airport to pick up colleagues who were joining us at our new film production company. Getting lost quite easily I was frequently rolling down my window at traffic lights asking where the airport was.
One time I really got things wrong when I asked "Fay guy cherng, high bin doe" instead of "Fay gay cherng, high bin doe". I was actually asking where the 'fat chicken port' was instead of the 'flying machine port'. Needless to say I received several strange looks. Such is the importance of tone.

It is vital to remember that to be understood we must get the tones as correct as possible. So please take the time to note the direction of the tone marks. After a few focused minutes you will realise they are very easy to understand.

Additionally, you will see some English words in brackets e.g. (hut) this is to help give the correct sound for some of those Cantonese words that are difficult to correctly fonetisise e.g; Number 7 is chut, as in the sound of (hut).

A point we need to make is we are unable to find an English word to represent the correct sound for sung, fung, lung or loong so it's best to listen to pronunciations on our website - www.ezeefonetics.com

A bit of history

Hong Kong
Herng Gong = Hong Kong or Fragrant Harbour. The name actually refers to Aberdeen Harbour on the south side of HK Island. Literally translated Herng means 'pleasant aroma or fragrant' and Gong means harbour.

In the early years, Aberdeen was the major port in the area trading in Herng, or incense wood. This locally grown wood was exported all over China to be made into joss sticks. So it was due to this trade that Aberdeen earned its name Herng Gong Jy (why) or "Little Incense Harbour".

At the time, Western seamen started dropping by to purchase supplies and to collect drinking water from Waterfall Bay to the west. When they asked the name of this fishing village, they were told it was Herng Gong and through the communication it made its way to being called Hong Kong which they used for the whole Island.

Kowloon
Gow Loong = Kowloon or 9 Dragons.
The mountains near the coast of the mainland peninsula opposite Hong Kong island.

Legend has it that Emperor Ping, one of two boy emperors of the Sung Dynasty whose court fled to Hong Kong more than eight centuries ago, counted eight mountains in the area and decided to name it "Eight Dragons" (in accordance with the belief that dragons inhabit every mountain). One of the Emperor's clever courtiers reminded the emperor that as emperors were also believed to be dragons, the place should be named "Nine Dragons" - with Ping being the ninth. Although this may be a legend, it is a historical fact that the boy emperor's travelling palace actually came to Hong Kong, in fact there is an ancient carved rock inscription located in a small park on the edge of Hong Kong International Airport recording the imperial visit.