We all know that most Hong Kong people don't bother to speak English anymore. I seldom hear English when I travel on the MTR or walk in the streets, except when I am in Central or on the Mid-Levels escalator. I hear more people speaking in Putonghua than English nowadays. That was not the case just a few years ago. But Putonghua has now definitely edged out English in Hong Kong. MTR announcements nowadays are made first in Cantonese, then Putonghua, and finally in English. Even the government's so-called announcements of public interest, or APIs, shown on the English channels of TV stations are hardly ever in English nowadays. They are mostly in Cantonese, with English subtitles.
T
he word "edge" has many meanings but the expression "edge out" used this way means to slowly push something out. Putonghua has slowly pushed out English in Hong Kong. In some areas of Hong Kong, I hear more Putonghua than Cantonese. Whenever I am in Tsim Sha Tsui, Causeway Bay, or on the East Rail, I feel Putonghua has "edged out" even Cantonese. The expression "hardly ever" means very seldom. Even senior government officials in Hong Kong hardly ever speak in English nowadays. I hardly ever hear young Hong Kong people speak in English. Whenever I hear young Chinese people speak in English on the train, which is very seldom, they speak in either American or Canadian accents. This tells me they did not grow up in Hong Kong.
I worry that Putonghua will slowly edge out Cantonese in Hong Kong. I hope this does not happen, but more and more Hong Kong people are now learning Putonghua. They feel they have to move with the times. The expression "move with the times" means to keep up with changes in society, or in the modern world. Some elderly people do not like to move with the times by learning how to use computers or smartphones. Hong Kong people feel they must move with the times by learning Putonghua because more mainlanders will come here as Hong Kong's economy becomes more dependent on mainland China.
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我們誰都知道，香港人已不再費勁去說英語了。我搭港鐵或在街上走時，已很少聽見人說英語，除非身處中環或半山扶手電梯。今時今日，我聽到人說普通話比說英語還多，幾年前的情況卻大大不同，但現時在香港，普通話卻絕對把英語擠出（edged out）香港了。港鐵現在的廣播，先是廣東話，後是普通話，最後才是英語。即使政府在電視台英語頻道的所謂公眾利益宣佈，或叫政府宣傳片（API），現在也極少（hardly ever）以英語廣廣播。它們大多是以粵語廣播，配上英語字幕。
Edge這個字有許多意思，但習語edge out在這裏則解作慢慢把某事排擠出去。在香港，普通話逐漸將英語擠出去。我聽到的普通話比廣東話還多。每當我身處尖沙咀、銅鑼灣，或是在東鐵線上，我感到普通話甚至把廣東話擠出去（edged out）了。習語hardly ever意思是極少。即使香港的政府高官現在也極少（hardly ever）說英語了，我亦極少（hardly ever）聽見香港年輕人說英語。每當我少有地聽到年輕的華裔年輕人在列車上說英語，他們往往是帶着美式或加拿大口音。這讓我知道，他們並不在香港長大。
我擔心普通話會在香港慢慢把廣東話擠出去（edge out）。我希望這不會發生，但愈來愈多香港人在學普通話。他們認為自己得與時並進（move with the times）。習語move with the times解作與時並進，追上社會或現代世界的轉變。有些上了年紀的人，不喜歡學用電腦或智能電話以追趕時代步伐（move with the times）。香港人感到自己必須學習普通話，與時並進（move with the times），因為香港經濟越發倚賴中國大陸，而有更多的內地人來港。mickchug@gmail.com
中譯:七刻
Michael Chugani 褚簡寧
Source: http://news.stheadline.com/dailynews/headline_news_detail_columnist.asp?id=302385§ion_name=wtt&kw=126
