kam4 jat6噙日

Jyutpingkam4 jat6

Yalekàhm yaht

Definition

Yesterday.

colloquialtime

How it's used

This is the standard colloquial way to refer to the day before today in spoken Cantonese. While written Chinese uses 昨天, using that in casual conversation can sound overly formal or stiff. It is common to hear it pronounced with a slightly different initial consonant depending on the speaker's dialect, but 噙日 remains the most recognizable written form for this spoken term.

Examples

kam4噙jat6日ngo5我heoi3去zo2咗tou4圖syu1書gun2館tai2睇syu1書。

I went to the library to read books yesterday.

nei5你kam4噙jat6日dim2點gaai2解mou5冇faan1返hok6學aa4呀？

Why didn't you go to school yesterday?

Common phrases

kam4噙jat6日haa6下zau3晝

yesterday afternoon

kam4噙jat6日je6夜maan5晚

yesterday night

Common mistake

Learners often confuse this with 琴日, which is a common variant character used for the same word. Both are perfectly acceptable in informal writing, but 噙日 is frequently preferred in educational materials to distinguish it from the musical instrument 琴.