A1
Comparing with 過 — 我高過佢
How Cantonese builds a comparison with 過 rather than 比, why the word order inverts against Mandarin, and how to say “not as … as” and “the same as”.
This is the clearest single demonstration that Cantonese is not Mandarin with different sounds. Mandarin puts the comparison first and the adjective last — 我比他高. Cantonese does the opposite.
我高過佢。
Ngo5 gou1 gwo3 keoi5.
I’m taller than him.
今日凍過琴日。
Gam1jat6 dung3 gwo3 kam4jat6.
It’s colder today than yesterday.
Read it in order — I, tall, surpassing, him. 過 is the same character that marks experience, doing a completely different job: there it follows a verb, here it follows an adjective.
我比佢高。
我高過佢。
比 with the adjective at the end is the Mandarin pattern. It turns up in formal written Cantonese under Mandarin influence, and it is not what anyone says.
No 好
The same rule as 好 with a plain adjective in reverse: 過 already supplies the degree, so the filler has nothing to do.
我好高過佢。
我高過佢。
好, 非常 and 太 are all out, exactly as 很 is barred from a Mandarin 比 sentence.
Saying how much
The amount goes after the whole comparison.
呢個貴過嗰個好多。
Ni1 go3 gwai3 gwo3 go2 go3 hou2 do1.
This one’s a lot more expensive than that one.
佢大過我三歲。
Keoi5 daai6 gwo3 ngo5 saam1 seoi3.
He’s three years older than me.
Not as … as
冇 plus 咁 plus the adjective. 咁 is so, that much, and it is one of the most common words in Cantonese.
我冇佢咁高。
Ngo5 mou5 keoi5 gam3 gou1.
I’m not as tall as him.
今日冇琴日咁凍。
Gam1jat6 mou5 kam4jat6 gam3 dung3.
It isn’t as cold today as yesterday.
Note that the negative does not use 過 at all — it is a different construction rather than the same one negated.
With nothing to compare against, 冇咁 sits straight in front of the adjective and means not so, not that.
今日冇咁凍。
Gam1jat6 mou5 gam3 dung3.
It isn’t so cold today.
呢間冇咁貴。
Ni1 gaan1 mou5 gam3 gwai3.
This one isn’t as expensive.
The same as
同 joins the pair and 一樣 closes it.
我同佢一樣高。
Ngo5 tung4 keoi5 jat1joeng6 gou1.
I’m as tall as he is.
呢個同嗰個一樣。
Ni1 go3 tung4 go2 go3 jat1joeng6.
This one and that one are the same.