Lesson 34 · Connectors & Common Words

同 tung4 — With, And, For

The all-purpose preposition for 'with', 'and', and 'for' — replaces Mandarin 跟/和/給.

For Mandarin Speakers

同 tung4 is Cantonese's multi-purpose word for 'with' (Mandarin 跟 gēn), 'and' (Mandarin 和 hé / 跟 gēn), and 'for someone' (Mandarin 給/幫). You may have already seen it in comparisons (同...一樣), but here we cover the full picture.

同 tung4 is one of Cantonese's most versatile words, serving as a preposition ('with'), conjunction ('and'), and benefactive marker ('for'). It replaces several different Mandarin words.

'With' (accompaniment) — 我同你去 ngo5 tung4 nei5 heoi3 (I'll go with you). 佢同朋友食飯 keoi5 tung4 pang4 jau5 sik6 faan6 (he's eating with friends). Mandarin uses 跟 gēn or 和 hé here.

'And' (conjunction) — 我同你 ngo5 tung4 nei5 (me and you). 咖啡同茶 gaa3 fe1 tung4 caa4 (coffee and tea). In Mandarin, you'd use 和 hé or 跟 gēn.

'For' (benefactive) — 我同你做 ngo5 tung4 nei5 zou6 (I'll do it for you). 同我攞杯水 tung4 ngo5 lo2 bui1 seoi2 (get me a glass of water — lit. 'for me get cup water'). Mandarin would use 幫 bāng or 給 gěi.

Comparisons (同...一樣) — You may have seen this in earlier lessons: 同佢一樣高 tung4 keoi5 jat1 joeng6 gou1 (as tall as him). 同 here means 'with' in the sense of 'compared with'.

同埋 tung4 maai4 — This is a strengthened form meaning 'and also / together with': 我同埋佢一齊去 ngo5 tung4 maai4 keoi5 jat1 cai4 heoi3 (me and him are going together). 同埋 is more emphatic than plain 同.

Examples

我同你去ngo5 tung4 nei5 heoi3I'll go with you

Mandarin: 我跟你去

同 = with (accompaniment) — replaces Mandarin 跟

咖啡同茶，你要邊樣？gaa3 fe1 tung4 caa4, nei5 jiu3 bin1 joeng2?Coffee and tea — which do you want?

Mandarin: 咖啡和茶，你要哪樣？

同 = and (conjunction) — replaces Mandarin 和

同我攞杯水tung4 ngo5 lo2 bui1 seoi2Get me a glass of water

Mandarin: 幫我拿杯水

同 = for (benefactive) — replaces Mandarin 幫/給

我同埋佢一齊嚟ngo5 tung4 maai4 keoi5 jat1 cai4 lai4He and I are coming together

同埋 = and also / together with — strengthened form of 同

呢個同嗰個一樣ni1 go3 tung4 go2 go3 jat1 joeng6This one is the same as that one

同...一樣 = the same as — comparison pattern

Exercises

Fill in the Blank

I'll go with you: 我___你去

Translate

Translate: 'Get me a cup of coffee' (using 同 for 'for me')

Multiple Choice

Which Mandarin words does 同 tung4 replace?

Fill in the Blank

Me and him together: 我___埋佢一齊 (Use the strengthened form)

Translate

Translate: 'This is the same as that' using 同...一樣

← 33. 都 dou1 — All, Also, Even 35. Potential Complements: V + 得/唔 + Result →