daai6 bun3大半
Jyutpingdaai6 bun3
Yaledaaih bun
Definition
More than half; the majority or greater part of something.
colloquialtimedescriptions
How it's used
Focus on the sense of a significant majority rather than a precise mathematical fraction. It often implies that the duration or quantity mentioned is surprisingly large or has taken up a considerable amount of time. When used with time expressions, it carries a slightly subjective tone of emphasis.
Examples
I have already written more than half of this report.
Related words
Common phrases
the better part of a day
the better part of a month
Common mistake
Avoid using this to mean exactly fifty percent, as it specifically denotes a portion that exceeds half. It is also not typically used for countable individual items like people or objects, but rather for continuous quantities like time, distance, or abstract amounts.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
