A-not-A on an English word

Level 4

In Hong Kong Cantonese, you can turn English verbs and adjectives into questions using the A-唔-A structure (e.g., Sure唔sure?). It is a hallmark of casual, modern 'Kongish'.

How It Works

This construction is a productive way to form polar (yes/no) questions using English elements. It follows the logic of the native A-not-AB pattern.

1. Morphological Rules:

  • Monosyllabic words: Repeat the entire word.
    Example: check → check唔check (cek1-m4-cek1).
  • Polysyllabic words: Repeat only the first syllable, then add 唔 (m4), then the full word.
    Example: happy → hap唔happy (hep1-m4-hep1-pi2).
  • Phonology: The repeated first syllable is almost exclusively pronounced with a high level tone (Tone 1) to fit Cantonese speech rhythms. For example, confirm becomes kan1-m4-kan1-foem1.

2. Structural Restrictions:
While native Cantonese allows two forms for two-syllable words (e.g., 開心唔開心 or 開唔開心), English loanwords are more restrictive. They only allow the clipped A-not-AB form (hap唔happy). You cannot repeat the full English word before the negator (no happy唔happy).

3. Usage and Register:
This is highly informal. It is extremely common in Hong Kong among friends, colleagues, and youth, but should be avoided in formal writing or professional presentations where standard Cantonese or English is expected.

4. Word Types:
It primarily applies to verbs (actions) and adjectives (states). It is rarely used with nouns unless the noun is being used as a description (e.g., man唔man for 'is he manly?').

Examples (5)

  1. 你O唔OK呀？

    Are you okay with that?

    Word by Word: You O-not-OK [particle]?

    The most common example. 'OK' is treated as a two-syllable word, so only the 'O' is repeated in the A-not-A pattern.

  2. 份contract你check唔check呀？

    Are you going to check the contract?

    Word by Word: [Classifier] contract you check-not-check [particle]?

    'Check' is a single syllable, so the whole word is repeated around the negator 唔 (m4).

  3. 你sure唔sure佢會嚟？

    Are you sure he will come?

    Word by Word: You sure-not-sure he will come?

    Here, the English adjective 'sure' is used in the A-not-A slot to ask for confirmation.

  4. 你覺得佢man唔man呀？

    Do you think he is manly?

    Word by Word: You feel he man-not-man [particle]?

    Even though 'man' is a noun in English, here it functions as an adjective meaning 'manly' (man1) within the A-not-A structure.

  5. 你con唔confirm聽日去試衫？

    Do you confirm we are going for the fitting tomorrow?

    Word by Word: You con-not-confirm tomorrow go try-shirt?

    For the three-syllable word 'confirm', only the first syllable 'con' is repeated. '試衫' (si3 saam1) means to try on clothes or go for a fitting.

Common Mistakes

  • Repeating the entire long word instead of just the first syllable.

    你Happy唔happy呀？
    你Hap唔happy呀？

    While 'Happy唔happy' might be understood, native speakers almost always truncate polysyllabic English words to the first syllable in this pattern.

  • Using the pattern in formal situations.

    陳經理，份報告你con唔confirm呀？
    陳經理，份報告你確認咗未呀？

    Using code-mixed A-not-A with a superior or in a formal meeting can sound overly casual or even disrespectful.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

A-not-A on an English wordLevel 4

Learn This First

This pattern applies the standard Cantonese A-not-A question formation to English loanwords. To understand it, learners must first be familiar with the basic 'X-not-X' question structure and how the negator '唔' functions. It also assumes the learner is comfortable using English words within a Cantonese sentence context.