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Should I learn Cantonese and Mandarin at the same time?

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Should I learn Cantonese and Mandarin at the same time?

If you want to speak Cantonese, you better live in a Cantonese environment for a long time. If you learn Cantonese and Mandarin at the same time, it will double your time and energy, and maybe lower your efficiency. There is a Chinese saying: one mind can’t focus on two things.

What should I learn first Cantonese or Mandarin?

It doesn’t really matter which you learn first. Just know that Mandarin is useful throughout the entire mainland, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore while Cantonese is useful in basically just Hong Kong. Sure there are parts of Guangdong that speak it, but it functions more as a local dialect.

Is learning Mandarin easy if you know Cantonese?

3. Mandarin is easier to learn. Cantonese is seen to be more difficult because it has from 6 to 9 tones, each of which signify different things (while Mandarin only has 4 tones). In addition, because of its greater prevalence, it is easier to find Mandarin study materials than Cantonese study materials.

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Can a Cantonese person understand Mandarin?

Yes and no. Cantonese and Mandarin are not mutually intelligible in spoken form. Through written Standard Chinese, speakers of both languages can communicate, which when read aloud is Mandarin to Mandarin speakers and very formal to Cantonese speakers.

How can I learn Cantonese?

  1. Step 1: Skip Chinese Characters and Find a Good Beginner’s Cantonese Course.
  2. Step 2: Get a Cantonese Tones Cheat Sheet.
  3. Step 3: Listen to Cantonese Every Day.
  4. Step 4: Transfer Useful Cantonese Words to Flashcards.
  5. Step 5: Use Mnemonics to Make Sure Tricky Cantonese Words Stick in Your Mind.

Is it better to learn Cantonese or Mandarin?

So it seems as though Mandarin is more practical than Cantonese. That’s not to say that learning Cantonese is a waste of time, and for some people, it may be the better choice, but for most people wanting to speak “Chinese”, Mandarin is the way to go.

How do you say hi in Cantonese?

1. Non Time-Sensitive Hello in Cantonese. The universal greeting in Cantonese is 你好, which literally translates as “you good.” Both of the syllables should be pronounced using rising tones, with the second tone slightly higher than the first. If someone says 你好 to you, you can simply respond with 你好 as well.

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