Meaning & usage
だい is a sentence ending particle that turns a plain form statement into a casual, friendly question, often showing curiosity or concern for the listener. It follows plain verbs and i-adjectives directly as in 何時だい and どうだい, and follows nouns and na-adjectives as なんだい or だい, very often in the extended form んだい as in したんだい. It is informal spoken language with a warm, slightly masculine tone, so avoid pairing it with polite forms like です and ます.
Example sentences 6
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どうしたんだい、マイク。
What's up, Mike?
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なんだい、話したいことって。
What do you want to talk to me about?
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それはそうと、今何時だい？
What time is it, anyway?
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ずっと何をしていたんだい。
What have you been doing?
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いったい、なんなんだい。
What on earth is it?
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「何かがおかしい」「なんでそんなこと言うんだい？」
"Something is off." "Why would you say something like that?"
