Turn Cantonese video or audio into English subtitles, exported as SRT, VTT or plain text with the original timings intact. Cantonese is written without spaces, so word boundaries are decided during recognition and carry into the translation.
Where Cantonese words begin and end
Cantonese is written without spaces between words, so deciding where one word stops is part of recognition rather than something applied to the transcript afterwards. That matters more here than it would for a same-language transcript: the translation into English runs on those segments, and a boundary in the wrong place changes what gets translated.
It is also why subtitle timings on Cantonese audio are worth spot-checking at the start and end of each line, where segmentation decisions land.
How Cantonese audio becomes English subtitles
Audio in Cantonese (粵語) is transcribed first, then translated into English (English). Because the translation runs on the transcript rather than on the audio, the English subtitle file keeps the timings of the original Cantonese speech — each line appears at the moment it was actually said.
From Chinese characters to the Latin alphabet
Cantonese is written in Chinese characters and English in the Latin alphabet, so the exported file uses a different writing system from the audio that produced it. The subtitle formats handle that — SRT and VTT are plain text and carry any script — but the font in whatever plays the file has to cover it.
This is the most common reason a English subtitle track looks correct in an editor and shows boxes or blanks on a device. Test on the target platform before you publish a batch.
Why translate Cantonese video into English
Cantonese is spoken principally in Hong Kong, Macau and Guangdong; English in worldwide. A English subtitle track is what lets one recording reach both audiences without re-recording, re-editing or dubbing it.
Because subtitles are a separate file rather than part of the picture, you can attach several language tracks to the same video and let viewers pick.
About the Cantonese audio
Cantonese is a distinct spoken language from Mandarin, not an accent of it, and it has written conventions of its own for words Mandarin does not use. Select it explicitly for Hong Kong material rather than relying on Chinese.
About the English subtitles
English has a wider spread of accents than any other language here, and the gap between spelling and pronunciation means recognition leans on context rather than sound alone. Names and technical terms are where errors concentrate, because those are exactly the words context cannot predict.
What a Cantonese to English subtitle file looks like
Four lines of Cantonese speech, transcribed and translated, as they come out of the exported SRT. The timings are the Cantonese speaker's — translation does not move them, which is why the file drops onto the original video unchanged.
1
00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:03,240
Let's start with the first question.
2
00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:06,120
Can you hear me clearly?
3
00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:09,300
Please write your questions below.
4
00:00:09,700 --> 00:00:12,040
See you next time.
Cantonese
English subtitle
我哋由第一個問題開始啦。
Let's start with the first question.
你哋聽唔聽得清楚我講嘢？
Can you hear me clearly?
請喺下面寫低你哋嘅問題。
Please write your questions below.
下次見。
See you next time.
What to check before publishing
Names and places, which translation handles less reliably than ordinary prose.
Idiom — a phrase that is natural in Cantonese may need loosening to read well in English.
That the Latin alphabet renders in your player, not just in the editor you exported from.
Timing on fast exchanges, where two speakers overlap.
Transcribe
Transcribe Your Video/Audio to Subtitles Automatically.
Almost always, but it depends on the font rather than the file — SRT and VTT are plain text and carry the Latin alphabet without difficulty. If you see empty boxes, the player is missing a font for the script, not reading the subtitles wrongly.
How do I add English subtitles to a Cantonese video?
Upload the video, set the spoken language to Cantonese and the subtitle language to English, then export the result as SRT and upload it alongside your video. Nothing is burned into the picture, so the subtitles stay switchable.
Does the English subtitle file stay in sync?
Yes. Translation happens on the transcript, so every English line inherits the timing of the Cantonese words it came from. The file will sync with the same video without adjustment.
Can I get the Cantonese transcript as well?
Yes. Transcribing Cantonese into Cantonese subtitles is a separate job on the same recording, and gives you the original-language track alongside the English one.
