14 QUANTIFICATION AND EXISTENTIAL SENTENCES

14.1 UNIVERSAL QUANTIFICATION: ‘ALL’, ‘EVERY’ AND ‘EACH’

14.1.1 SYNTAX OF DŌU

係唔係	個個	都	想	休息	呀?
Haih-mhaih	go-go	dōu	séung	yāusīk	a?
be-not-be	CL-CL	all	wish	rest	SFP
‘Does everyone want a break?’

14.1.2 REDUPLICATED QUANTIFIERS

佢	套套	(戲)	都	話	唔好	睇	嘅
Kéuih	tou-tou	(hei)	dōu	wah	mhóu	tái	gé
s/he	CL-CL	(film)	all	say	not-good	see	SFP
‘He says every film is not worth seeing.’ (film critic)

14.1.3 SÓ YÁUH (GE)

我	帶	晒	所	有	(嘅)	資料	嚟
Ngóh	daai	saai	só	yáuh	(ge)	jīlíu	làih
I	bring	all	whatever	have	(LP)	material	come
‘I’ll bring all the materials with me.’

14.1.4 MÚIH ‘EACH, EVERY’

我哋

每

次

嚟

(親)

呢

間

酒樓

都

喺

嗰度

坐

嘅

Ngóhdeih

múih

chi

làih

(chān)

lī

gāan

jáulàuh

dōu

hái

gódouh

chóh

ge

we

every

time

come

(PRT)

this

CL

restaurant

all

at

there

sit

SFP

‘We sit there whenever we come to this restaurant.’

14.1.5 ‘ANY’

佢	乜嘢	八卦	嘢	都	有興趣	嘅
Kéuih	mātyéh	baatgwa	yéh	dōu	yáuh-hingcheui	ge
s/he	what	gossip	stuff	all	have-interest	SFP
‘He’s interested in any kind of gossip.’

14.2 RELATIVE QUANTITIES: MUCH/MANY, LITTLE/FEW

14.2.1 COMPARING QUANTITIES: ‘MORE’ AND ‘LESS’

我	瞓	得	比	以前	多
Ngóh	fan	dāk	béi	yíhchìhn	dō
I	sleep	ADV	than	before	more
‘I sleep more than I used to.’

14.2.2 MOST

大	部	份	人	都	會	留	喺	香港
Daaih	bouh	fahn	yàhn	dōu	wúih	làuh	hái	Hēunggóng
large	CL	part	people	all	will	stay	at	Hong Kong
‘Most people are staying in Hong Kong.’

14.3 EXISTENTIAL SENTENCES

14.3.1 INDEFINITE ‘SOME’

有	啲	地方	唔	俾	人	食	煙	嘅
Yáuh	dī	deihfōng	m̀h	béi	yàhn	sihk	yīn	ge
have	some	place	not	let	people	eat	smoke	SFP
‘In some places they don’t let you smoke.’

14.3.2 NEGATIVE ‘NONE, NO ONE, NOTHING’

冇	幾	多	時間	剩	喇
Móuh	géi	dō	sìhgaan	jihng	la
not-have	how	much	time	remain	SFP
‘There isn’t much time left.’