How to form questions in Cantonese
Cantonese makes questions in three main ways: a yes or no pattern using A not A, sentence final particles, and question words like who, what, and where. Word order stays the same as a statement, which is easier than English in many cases.
Yes or no questions: the A not A pattern
The most common way to ask a yes or no question in Cantonese is to repeat the verb or adjective with "m4" in the middle. The listener answers by repeating the affirmative or negative half.
To answer, repeat the verb or its negative form. "sik6 (yes I eat)", "m4 sik6 (no I don't)".
Particle questions: the softer way
Adding a sentence final particle turns a statement into a question."aa3" is the most neutral and friendly. "me1" adds surprise or doubt. "mei6" asks have you done X yet.
Both ask roughly the same question, but the A not A pattern feels more direct and the particle version feels more conversational."sik6 m4 sik6 jyu4" is a clean factual question. "sik6 jyu4 aa3" sounds like you are checking in over a meal.
Question words
Cantonese question words go in the same place a regular noun would go. The word order does not change.
| Question word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| mat1 je5 乜嘢 | What |
| bin1 go3 邊個 | Who, which one |
| bin1 dou6 邊度 | Where |
| gei2 si4 幾時 | When |
| dim2 (gaai2) 點(解) | Why, how come |
| dim2 joeng2 點樣 | How |
| gei2 do1 幾多 | How many, how much |
What
Who
Where
When
Why
How
How much, how many
Or questions
To ask "A or B", use "定係 ding6 hai6" between the two options.
Word order stays the same
One of the easier features of Cantonese questions is that you do not flip the word order. "You go where" stays "you go where". The question word slots into the same place as the equivalent statement, the way Cantonese always does it.
- Statement: "ngo5 heoi3 hoeng1 gong2 (I go to Hong Kong)"
- Question: "nei5 heoi3 bin1 dou6 (you go where)?"
Quick recap
- Yes or no: A not A ("sik6 m4 sik6") or statement plus particle ("sik6 jyu4 aa3").
- What: mat1 je5.
- Who: bin1 go3.
- Where: bin1 dou6.
- When: gei2 si4.
- Why: dim2 gaai2.
- How: dim2 joeng2.
- How much: gei2 do1.
- Word order does not change.
