Cantonese Online Resources Review

Here are some of my favourite (and not so favourite) online resources for learning Cantonese.

#10 ILOVELANGUAGES

This resource has some interesting information if you are learning Cantonese, but I have noticed that many of the entries are in Written Cantonese. Of course, this may be useful at a later stage of your Cantonese learning journey, but in my opinion, the spoken form is much more important if you are starting out. I have come across this problem with a lot of the online resources available. Vocabulary is presented in its written form and not in its spoken form. This means that when you open your mouth, you will probably sound like you are reading a newspaper to your interlocutor.

#9 Learn Cantonese!

By the same creator of CantoDict*, this site provides you with some vocabulary list, some information about grammar and other wonderful tips and tricks about studying Cantonese. Although good for beginners, I find the lists very limited and some entries are missing.

#8 Learn Cantonese

Another good vocabulary resource for beginners, but once again, some entries are missing and therefore I have a few concerns as to the authenticity of the other entries.

#7 Dim Sum Saying

This YouTube channel has sound-clips of hundreds of Cantonese words and idioms as well as some clips from Cantonese movies demonstrating the use of those expressions.

#6 CantoneseClass101

I have not become a member of Cantonese Class101 (this is a service you need to pay for), but I have looked at some of their free learning material on YouTube with the teacher, Miss Olivia. You can find it by typing ‘CantoneseClass101’ into YouTube search.

#5 Cantonese Corner

Some wonderful videos looking at Cantonese pronunciation and expressions taught by Sue who has lived in HK since the early 80s. She has started up some online lesson packages that you can purchase as well.

#4 How To Study Cantonese

On this site, there are various blog posts looking at different aspects of Cantonese, from greetings to vocabulary comparisons.

#3 CantoLounge

A great resource with language learning hints, Cantonese grammar explanations, and much more. You can also download a Cantonese particle cheat sheet as well as a beautifully created Cantonese Learning Guide that you can download.

#2 CantoDict

One of the best resources that I have found has been CantoDict, a project that started in 2003 by the owner of the Learn Cantonese! website, and has continued to grow thanks to volunteer contributions.

There are several ways that you can search for words in the dictionary. You can search for an English word or for a Cantonese or Mandarin word, you can also search for a Chinese character or for a transliteration among other methods.

You can also narrow down your search by hitting ‘hide written’ or ‘hide spoken’ variants, which, using the former, is what I normally do to find the Cantonese spoken variant of a word.

The downside is that there are often so many results that it’s hard to know which one to go for. There are sometimes examples of the word’s usage in the dictionary entry which can help you decide if you have found the right translation.

#1 iTalki / Online Language Learning Correspondent

I'm afraid to say that nothing can beat finding someone whose mother tongue is Cantonese. Why not find yourself a teacher online using iTalkie, or find a language learning partner who wants to learn your language too. Lang8 is a wonderful site for this (although at the current moment, they are not accepting new members, so keep checking their site). My Language Exchange might also help you find someone to practice with.