Personal pronouns — one easy system
| Cantonese | Jyutping | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 我 | ngo5 | I / me | Don't forget the ng- initial |
| 你 | nei5 | you (singular) | Mandarin's polite 您 is NOT a spoken-Cantonese pronoun — 你 works for everyone |
| 佢 | keoi5 | he / she / they | Gender-neutral — no he/she split |
| 我哋 | ngo5 dei6 | we / us | 哋 dei6 = plural marker |
| 你哋 | nei5 dei6 | you (plural) | "you all" |
| 佢哋 | keoi5 dei6 | they / them | |
| 大家 | daai6 gaa1 | everyone | Very common — literally "big family" |
That's the whole system. No case changes (I/me both 我), no gender, and plurals are just the singular + 哋. One warning: 哋 works only for pronouns — you can't say 學生哋 for "students".
係 hai6 — "to be" (identity)
係 (hai6) equates two things — who/what something IS. It links a subject to a noun or identity, never to an adjective or a place:
我係學生
Pronunciation ngo5 hai6 hok6 saang1
I am a student
佢係我老師
Pronunciation keoi5 hai6 ngo5 lou5 si1
he/she is my teacher
呢個係咩?
Pronunciation ni1 go3 hai6 me1
what is this?
我唔係香港人
Pronunciation ngo5 m4 hai6 hoeng1 gong2 jan4
I'm not from Hong Kong
喺 hai2 — "to be at" (location)
喺 (hai2) means "to be at/in" a place — and also works as the preposition "at/in":
我喺香港
Pronunciation ngo5 hai2 hoeng1 gong2
I am in Hong Kong
佢喺屋企
Pronunciation keoi5 hai2 uk1 kei2
he/she is at home
你喺邊度?
Pronunciation nei5 hai2 bin1 dou6
where are you?
喺香港工作
Pronunciation hai2 hoeng1 gong2 gung1 zok3
work in Hong Kong (喺 as preposition)
有 jau5 — "to have / there is"
有 (jau5) covers both "to have" (possession) and "there is/are" (existence):
我有錢
Pronunciation ngo5 jau5 cin2
I have money
呢度有廁所
Pronunciation ni1 dou6 jau5 ci3 so2
there is a toilet here
你有冇時間?
Pronunciation nei5 jau5 mou5 si4 gaan1
do you have time?
有冇 = "have or not" — the standard yes/no pattern
係 vs 喺 vs 有 — side by side
| Cantonese | Jyutping | Job | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 係 | hai6 | identity: A IS B | 我係醫生 — I'm a doctor |
| 喺 | hai2 | location: A IS AT B | 我喺香港 — I'm in Hong Kong |
| 有 | jau5 | possession/existence | 我有問題 — I have a question / 呢度有... — there is... |
佢係香港人，喺香港住
Pronunciation keoi5 hai6 hoeng1 gong2 jan4, hai2 hoeng1 gong2 zyu6
he's a Hong Konger, lives in Hong Kong
係 for identity, 喺 for location — both in one sentence.
我係學生，喺大學讀書
Pronunciation ngo5 hai6 hok6 saang1, hai2 daai6 hok6 duk6 syu1
I'm a student, studying at university
Sound check: hai6 is tone 6 (low flat), hai2 is tone 2 (mid rising). Say them side by side until the pitch difference is automatic.
Mini practice
How do you say "they" in Cantonese?
佢哋 (keoi5 dei6). Singular 佢 (keoi5) is already gender-neutral; 哋 makes it plural.
"I am in Hong Kong" — 係 or 喺?
喺 (hai2): 我喺香港. 係 is for identity ("I'm a student"), 喺 for location.
Why is 我係攰 wrong?
係 links two nouns only. Adjectives work as verbs: 我好攰 (ngo5 hou2 gui6) = "I'm tired".
How do you say "I don't have money"?
我冇錢 (ngo5 mou5 cin2). The negative of 有 is 冇 — 唔有 is never used.
佢係邊個? vs 佢喺邊度? — what's the difference?
佢係邊個 = "who is he/she?" (identity, 係). 佢喺邊度 = "where is he/she?" (location, 喺).
