I think a lot of it is word choice and not actual pronunciation. So if I read written Cantonese, I'll come across a phrase that means absolutely nothing in Mandarin, but if it's pronounced out loud in Canto, it means something else. And I think words/characters that mean one thing in one dialect mean another in another dialect (like "biscuit" for Americans and Brits). That and there are a good number of characters that many dialects share, except things are pronounced differently.
In Taiwan, we use the bopomofo system as well, so occasionally you'll see things "spelled" out that way for Taiwanese words. I'm not sure if they use the pinyin system like that in China, though it would be cool.
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timeasmymeasure
Re: More risks:
Date: 2007-05-30 02:09 am (UTC)In Taiwan, we use the bopomofo system as well, so occasionally you'll see things "spelled" out that way for Taiwanese words. I'm not sure if they use the pinyin system like that in China, though it would be cool.