Emphatic Tone in Penang Hokkien

The emphatic tone is a feature of Taiji Romanisation of Penang Hokkien. It is employed to provide specific emphasis or stress in mostly direct sentences.

Emphatic Tone on Pronouns

The personal pronouns I (wah4) and you (lu4) are capable of taking on the emphatic tone. Use it when you want to provide emphasis or stress to the pronoun. Normal Tone:
Wah1 beh1 chye3. Lu1 tan4 cit1-peng2.
I buy vegetables. You wait here.

Emphatic Tone:
Wah4 beh1 chye3. Lu4 tan4 cit1-peng2.
I buy vegetables. You wait here. In normal sentences, the pronouns wah4/lu4 sandhis to wah1/lu1. With the emphatic tone, they revert to wah4/lu4.

Emphatic Tone on Verbs

Some verbs can take on the emphatic tone to show particular emphasis. Normal Tone:
Ie1 beh1 bak3. Ie1 beh1 chye3.
He bought meat. He bought vegetables.

Emphatic Tone underlined:
Ie1 mm33 si33 ka3nia33 beh1 bak3 kah1 beh1 chye3, ie1 beh4 ban33san1!
He not only bought meat and vegetables, he bought the market! In normal sentences, the verb beh4 sandhis to beh1, but with the emphatic tone, it reverts to beh4.

Penang Hokkien Grammar

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