話

That (Introducing a Clause)

Level 3Sounds Like waa6

In Cantonese, 話 (waa6) acts like the English word 'that' in sentences like 'He said that...' or 'I think that...'. It links a reporting verb to the actual information being reported.

How It Works

The word 話 (waa6) is essential for building complex sentences in Cantonese:

1. As a Quotative Marker ('that'):
It follows verbs of communication or cognition to introduce a clause. While often optional, it clarifies where the reported content begins.

2. In Conditionals ('if'):
In the 'if' construction 如果...嘅話 (jyu4 gwo2... ge3 waa6), the phrase 嘅話 (ge3 waa6) acts as a bracket at the end of the condition. You can even drop '如果' and just use '嘅話' to mean 'if'.

3. As a Verb ('to say' or 'to scold'):
It can be the main verb for 'to say' (佢話佢唔嚟 - He says he's not coming). It also means 'to scold' or 'tell off', though it is milder than 鬧 (naau6 - to scold harshly).

4. Common Phrases:

  • 話唔定 (waa6 m4 ding6): Maybe / who knows.
  • 話時話 (waa6 si4 waa6): By the way / speaking of which.

Register Note:
話 (waa6) is the vernacular form. In formal contexts like news, use 表示 (biu2 si6 - to state) or 指出 (zi2 ceot1 - to point out). The word 道 (dou6) is mostly found in literary or archaic styles.

Tone Note:
Use 6th tone (waa6) for verbs and 'that'. The 2nd tone (waa2) is for the noun 'language' (e.g., 廣東話) or the question tag.

Examples (4)

  1. 佢同我講話聽日唔返工。

    He told me that he isn't going to work tomorrow.

    Word by Word: He with me speak say tomorrow not return work.

    Here, 話 (waa6) follows the verb 講 (gong2) to introduce the specific information being told.

  2. 我聽人話呢間餐廳好貴。

    I heard people say that this restaurant is very expensive.

    Word by Word: I hear people say this [classifier] restaurant very expensive.

    話 (waa6) follows the perception verb 聽 (teng1) to report hearsay.

  3. 你唔好以為話我唔知呀。

    Don't think that I don't know.

    Word by Word: You not good think say I not know [particle].

    話 (waa6) follows the cognitive verb 以為 (ji5 wai4 - to mistakenly think) to introduce the thought.

  4. 佢應承話會幫我。

    He promised that he would help me.

    Word by Word: He promise say will help me.

    話 (waa6) links the promise to the action being promised.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 話 (waa6) as a demonstrative 'that'.

    我鍾意話本書。
    我鍾意嗰本書。

    話 (waa6) only introduces clauses (sentences). To say 'that book', you must use the demonstrative 嗰 (go2).

  • Confusing 話 (waa6) with 講 (gong2) for the act of speaking.

    佢喺度話緊。
    佢喺度講緊。

    講 (gong2) refers to the physical act of speaking. 話 (waa6) is used for the content. You 'speak' (講), but you 'say that...' (話).

How It Connects

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

話Level 3That (Introducing a Clause)

Learn This First

The pattern '話' (waa6) acts as a complementizer, similar to the English word 'that' in 'He said that...'. To understand this, a learner needs to be comfortable with basic Cantonese word order and the concept of verbs that can take entire sentences as their objects (like 'think' or 'say').

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

And 2 more in the full list.

Words in This Pattern

话