Basic Cantonese

by Virginia Yip, Stephen Matthews

Basic Cantonese introduces the essentials of Cantonese grammar in a straightforward and systematic way. Each of the 28 units deals with a grammatical topic and provides associated exercises, designed to put grammar into a communicative context. Special attention is paid to topics which differ from English and European language structures. This new edition • clear, accessible format • lively examples to illustrate each grammar point • informative keys to all exercises • glossary of grammatical terms Basic Cantonese is ideal for students new to the language. Together with its sister volume, Intermediate Cantonese, it forms a structured course of the essentials of Cantonese grammar.

Genres: Linguistics

190 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Virginia Yip is Professor at the Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Reviews

[Claire Binkley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is closest to what I had. I think the language has evolved from this, but to maintain Cantonese at all in the community I will return my book. I have a 1994, not 1999 copy. As a linguist, I appreciate what Yip and Matthews did, and I think you might too if you have a glance through.

The book was set up like any standard linguistics textbook, and it was explaining how to express oneself in this particular language better. While I did think it might do better for being a little more recent than what I had, I also think that grammar doesn't dramatically change over thirty years.