Trevor Kafka 康明
Professional Teacher
未呀 (Cantonese) etymologically related to 吗 (Mandarin)? In Cantonese, you can say 你食咗飯未呀? and in Mandarin you can say 你吃了饭吗? 未呀 is mei6 aa3 and 吗 is ma. Is there any chance that 吗 has etymological origins as a contraction of 未呀 or is the similarity of the pronunciations simply coincidental?
Feb 5, 2020 5:09 AM
Answers · 4
no, they are two different words
February 5, 2020
There is such relation between 没 and 未.But what you’ve said above maybe just coincidence.
February 5, 2020
The word "呀" in "未呀"actually can be omitted. Moreover, the meaning of "未" is "didn't ", "呀" and "吗" are mood auxiliary words. the mood meaning of "呀" has many meanings, and "吗" usually just expresses doubt/question. Therefore, in this sentence, the similarity of pronunciation is just a coincidence.
February 5, 2020
they are similar,,,and 未呀 means 没呀
February 5, 2020
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Trevor Kafka 康明
Language Skills
Chinese (Mandarin), Chinese (Cantonese), Dutch, English, French, Japanese, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese
Learning Language
Chinese (Mandarin), Chinese (Cantonese), Dutch, Japanese, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese