Taishanese is rich in sentence-final particles. They are context sensitive. Combined with tone change and syllable stretching, they are used to indicate sentence types as well as to inject mood and emotion into the conversation. The following are examples of finals attached to the verb 来 [lɔi22] come:
来22嘞55 [lɔi22 lak55] ♫
Suggestive, inviting, proposing, beckoning: Come! Come!
来22啦55- [lɔi22 la:55] ♫
Urging, calling out over distance: Come!
来22啦22 [lɔi22 la:22] ♫
Commanding, mildly impatient: Come!
来22啦552 [lɔi22 la552] ♫
Pleading, irritated: come!
来22ya55- [lɔi22 ya:55]; 来22哇33[lɔi22 va:33] ♫
Confirming with excitement: (S/he/they/I/we) will come.
来22喎32 [lɔi22 vɔ:32] ♫
Contradicting one's expectation, i.e. responding to the host's question 'They will not come, right?': (They) will come!
来225ya22 [lɔi225 ya22] ♫
Calling out, impatient, imploring: Come! What are you waiting for?
来22吗33?[lɔi22 ma33] ♫
Enquiring: Are you coming?
来22咕55哇33 [lɔi22 gu55 va:33] ♫
Guessing: I think (S/he/They) will come?
来22咯55呢22 ;[lɔi22 lɔ55 nei22] ♫
to inform evidently with confidence, i.e. as one spots the expected guest coming: (Somebody you've been waiting for) is/are coming.
来22啦55嘛33? [lɔi22 la55 ma33] ♫
Enquiring: (You are) coming, right?
来22啊55嘛33? [lɔi22 ?a55 ma33] ♫
Enquiring: (S/he/They is/are) coming, right?
来22啦55啊33![lɔi22 la55 ?a33] ♫
Inviting, patronizing: Come on!
来223咯55么21 [lɔi223 lɔ55 mɔ21] ♫
Greeting, as expected: Oh, you've come. This could be a friendly greeting toward a close friend or junior relative. It could also be an unfriendly remark.
来223咯55哟33 [lɔi223 lɔ55 yɔ33] ♫
Informing: (S/he) has come. or They've come.
来22咯55哇33[lɔi22 lɔ55 va33]; 来22咯33- [lɔi22 lɔ:33] ♫
To inform, warning: (somebody) is/are coming!
来22咯33 [lɔi22 lɔk33]
Acknowledging: I'm coming
来22yei33[lɔi22 yei33]; 来225yei33[lɔi225 yei33] ♫
Challenging: Come on! Come and get me!
来225- yei33- [lɔi:225 yei:33] ♫
Begging: Please come, would you?
A few more common finals:
吱嘛 [dzi55 ma33] i.e. impatiently: just (doing something) for obvious reason.
么[mɔ21] for yes/no type question with affirmative presumption from the speaker
睇下吱嘛. 晤得么? 乜该紧张啊? Just taking a look, isn't that allowed? Why so jumpy?
[hai55 ha21 dzi55 ma:33/m22 dak22 mɔ:21/mɔt55 kɔi21 gin55 dziaŋ335 ?a:33] ♫
吱啦 [dzi33 la55] used to making a emphasized informative statement, usually a precondition for something.
亦未曾吃吱啦, 就走553咯! (They have) not yet eaten, yet left!
[yiak32 miaŋ21 hiak33 dzi33 la:55, diu32 dǝu553 lɔk33] ♫
啦嘛 [la55 ma22] is used to reconfirm the previous statement(s), kind of like that's how it is, or that's why.
啊 [?a33] is a question final.
去哪啊? Where are you going? [hui33 nai215 ?a33]
吃 a 饭未啊? Have you eaten? [hiak33 a33 fan32 mi32 a33]
喲 [yɔ33] is used for warning and stressed. Usually interchangeable with 哇[va33].