Thanks Simon,
your reply really helps a lot.
I do have another question about the suffix 子 which is used in Mandarin. I read somewhere that Cantonese has more single character words than Mandarin and will often not use suffixes like -子. However, again, does this mean that they are never used or only that they are rarely used. For example, could 鼻子 be used in spoken Cantonese without garnering too many stares? The CantoDict doesn't list it as Mandarin / Standard Written Chinese only; however, it does say on its page that a Cantonese alternative is 鼻哥.
Another example like this would be 屋子, which also doesn't have Mandarin / SWC only but does list a Cantonese alternative, which is simply 屋.
Other compounds with the suffix -子, however, are normally listed as Mandarin / Standard Chinese only.
Also, [www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk].
I'm guessing that the Cantonese alternatives are preferred, but the more Mandarin-esque versions can also be used in spoken Cantonese. Am I right about this?
Sincerely,
Varbird
your reply really helps a lot.
I do have another question about the suffix 子 which is used in Mandarin. I read somewhere that Cantonese has more single character words than Mandarin and will often not use suffixes like -子. However, again, does this mean that they are never used or only that they are rarely used. For example, could 鼻子 be used in spoken Cantonese without garnering too many stares? The CantoDict doesn't list it as Mandarin / Standard Written Chinese only; however, it does say on its page that a Cantonese alternative is 鼻哥.
Another example like this would be 屋子, which also doesn't have Mandarin / SWC only but does list a Cantonese alternative, which is simply 屋.
Other compounds with the suffix -子, however, are normally listed as Mandarin / Standard Chinese only.
Also, [www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk].
I'm guessing that the Cantonese alternatives are preferred, but the more Mandarin-esque versions can also be used in spoken Cantonese. Am I right about this?
Sincerely,
Varbird