# Cantonese: 醒醒你



## indigoduck

Hi all,

I was watching TVB and there was a commercial that went like this "福禄寿 醒醒你“.  I think this has something to do with 醒狮舞 since it is close to chinese new year, but i'm not certain.

What does 醒醒你 mean in english?

Thanks in advance.


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## OneStroke

I don't watch TVB, (or TV in general), so I've never seen that advert before. I can't tell what they're trying to say without the context. However, I don't think it's related to the lion dance because we usually say 舞獅 in speech in HK. Given that it comes from an advert, I think 醒 means giving someone an advantage/present (as in, 見你咁乖，醒你聽日有得去海洋公園先). Maybe that's referring to Chinese New Year sales?


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## indigoduck

OneStroke said:


> I don't watch TVB, (or TV in general), so I've never seen that advert before. I can't tell what they're trying to say without the context. However, I don't think it's related to the lion dance because we usually say 舞獅 in speech in HK. Given that it comes from an advert, I think 醒 means giving someone an advantage/present (as in, 見你咁乖，醒你聽日有得去海洋公園先). Maybe that's referring to Chinese New Year sales?



It makes sense.

How to translate "見你咁乖，醒你聽日有得去海洋公園先" into putonghua?


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## OneStroke

I'd probably say 既然你這麼乖巧，就獎勵你一下，讓你明天到海洋公園玩吧！


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## SuperXW

OneStroke said:


> I'd probably say 既然你這麼乖巧，就獎勵你一下，讓你明天到海洋公園玩吧！


Actually, I don't think a native Mandarin speaker would use 乖巧 as a colloquial word. 既然你这么乖 would be good enough.


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## OneStroke

I see. I thought I had to use 乖巧 in Putonghua.


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## indigoduck

SuperXW said:


> Actually, I don't think a native Mandarin speaker would use 乖巧 as a colloquial word. 既然你这么乖 would be good enough.



Would the mandarin equivalent of 醒醒你 be "让你好赚点" or maybe something like "给你一点好处" ?


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## SuperXW

indigoduck said:


> Would the mandarin equivalent of 醒醒你 be "让你好赚点" or maybe something like "给你一点好处" ?


I think you've got the point. But 奖你/奖励你 is still the most common expression.


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## Ghabi

醒你 is not exactly about "reward", but is more about "giveaway". For example, I've bought a ticket for a movie tonight but for some reason can't go, so I just give it to you, saying: 今晚九點半戲飛,醒你啦.

A very common expression is 私人醒嘅 "just for you!", used when you're offering unsolicited freebies/tips to someone. For example, a horse player may tell another: 私人醒嘅:今晚第四場二號,win硬!


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## OneStroke

I agree with that. I used 'reward' because I have no idea what a PTH equivalent would be.


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## indigoduck

SuperXW said:


> I think you've got the point. But 奖你/奖励你 is still the most common expression.






Ghabi said:


> 醒你 is not exactly about "reward", but is more about "giveaway". For example, I've bought a ticket for a movie tonight but for some reason can't go, so I just give it to you, saying: 今晚九點半戲飛,醒你啦.



Ah ha!  How about the word 赏 in putonghua?  

In terms of pronounciation, they both start with "s"


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## OneStroke

No '赏' starts with 'sh'. http://www.zdic.net/zd/zi/ZdicE8ZdicB5Zdic8F.htm 

I think '赏' also means 'reward' (那人很有義氣，就是賞他一萬兩白銀，他也不會投降的。)


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## SuperXW

indigoduck said:


> Ah ha!  How about the word 赏 in putonghua?  <br>


<br>
赏你 also expresses a similar sense. I think it's even more "arrogant" (in a joking tone) than 奖你, since it definitely&nbsp;puts yourself into a superior position. <br>


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