Course Description

This level is for complete beginners, and for heritage learners who understand some Cantonese from family but have never studied it. We begin with the sound system, which is the key to being understood: the six tones, the final consonants -p, -t and -k that Mandarin has lost, and the initials and finals of [Jyutping / Yale] romanisation, which you will use throughout the course to read and note down new words. From there, lessons focus on everyday spoken Cantonese: greetings and introductions, numbers and money, food and eating out, shopping, transport, time and making plans. You learn the grammar that shapes ordinary speech, including word order, classifiers such as 個, 隻 and 張, the aspect markers 咗, 緊 and 過, and the sentence-final particles, such as 呀, 喇 and 嘅, that give Cantonese much of its tone and meaning. Characters are optional at this stage. If you choose to learn them, we use traditional script and introduce the colloquial forms, such as 係, 唔, 冇 and 佢, that appear in everyday written Cantonese. If you already speak Mandarin, you can follow a version of this level built around the differences between the two languages, so that you move quickly past what you already know. By the end of this level, you will be able to introduce yourself, order food in a restaurant, handle shopping and directions, and chat briefly about your family and work. You will follow slow, clear speech on familiar topics, read romanisation confidently and, if you have chosen to, recognize a set of common characters. The level corresponds roughly to CEFR A1–A2.