Common English Mistakes in Instructional Guides by Cantonese Speakers

This page focuses on errors typically made by native Cantonese speakers from Hong Kong when writing a Instructional Guide in English.

Mistake Example #1

Overuse of direct translations from Cantonese

To make the rice dumplings, firstyou need to soak the glutinous rice overnight,. tThenyou, wrap the rice withn bamboo leaves. After that,you boil the dumplings for about three hours,. and you can eat them when tTheya’rebest enjoyed hot. RBemsurember to pfutlly submerge the dumplings in thewater, and you must covkerep the potcovered, orelse the water will evaporate too qun awaickly.

Text corrected by:
Gregg, Los Angeles, CA

"I made changes for it to sound more natural and polished."

To make rice dumplings, first soak the glutinous rice overnight. Then, wrap the rice in bamboo leaves. After that, boil the dumplings for about three hours. They’re best enjoyed hot. Be sure to fully submerge the dumplings in water and keep the pot covered, or the water will evaporate too quickly.

To make the rice dumplings, first you need to soak the glutinous rice overnight, then you wrap the rice with bamboo leaves. After that, you boil the dumplings for about three hours, and you can eat them when they are hot. Remember to put the dumplings in the water, and you must cover the pot, or else the water will run away.

Mistake Example #2

Overuse of 'very' to emphasize adjectives

To make avery delicious cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea, you must be vextremely careful with the brewing process. First, it is verhighly important to use very fresh black tea leaves and verypiping hot water to ensure the flavor is versuitably strong. After steeping the tea, add verycondensed milk to achieve the vsupery-creamy texture thati's veryso characteristic of this drink.

Text corrected by:
Gregg, Los Angeles, CA

"This needed tweaking to address overuse of the word "very.""

To make a delicious cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea, you must be extremely careful with the brewing process. First, it is highly important to use very fresh black tea leaves and piping hot water to ensure the flavor is suitably strong. After steeping the tea, add condensed milk to achieve the super-creamy texture that's so characteristic of this drink.

To make a very delicious cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea, you must be very careful with the brewing process. First, it is very important to use very fresh black tea leaves and very hot water to ensure the flavor is very strong. After steeping the tea, add very condensed milk to achieve the very creamy texture that is very characteristic of this drink.

Mistake Example #3

Confusion with countable vs. uncountable nouns ('She has much friends')

To make a delicious cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea, you need to follow afew simple steps. First, gather muchany tea leaves and some evaporated milk. Boil water and add the tea leaves, letting them steep for several minutes. After that, strain the tea into a cup and add much milk to achieve the desired creaminess. Stirit well and enjoy your authentic Hong Kong milk tea experience.

Text corrected by:
Vince, United States

"Very good! Just a couple of changes to make the instructions consistent."

To make a delicious cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea, you need to follow a few simple steps. First, gather many tea leaves and some evaporated milk. Boil water and add the tea leaves, letting them steep for several minutes. After that, strain the tea into a cup and add milk to achieve the desired creaminess. Stir it well and enjoy your authentic Hong Kong milk tea experience.

To make a delicious cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea, you need to follow few simple steps. First, gather much tea leaves and some evaporated milk. Boil water and add the tea leaves, letting them steep for several minutes. After that, strain the tea into a cup and add much milk to achieve the desired creaminess. Stir well and enjoy your authentic Hong Kong milk tea experience.