Mo wa dada
The English phrase "I am good" is translated into Yoruba as Mo wa dada.
A response used to say that you are doing well when someone asks how you are.
Which one should you use?
To emphasize that you are doing very well, you can use the reduplicated form Mo wa dáadáá instead of Mo wa dada.
When do people say it?
It is culturally polite to follow the response Mo wa dada with ẹ ṣeun (thank you) when someone asks how you are. A common polite way to say this is Mo wa dada, ẹ ṣeun (I am good, thank you).
Did you know?
- The same words Mo wa dada can change their meaning entirely depending on the musical pitch or tonal inflection used by the speaker.
- The word dada in Mo wa dada is derived from the name Dàda.
- In Yoruba, the response Mo wa dada can be delivered with different tonal inflections that subtly signal the speaker's true emotional state, even if the words remain the same.
Example conversation
Babatunde and Titi meet on the street.
- TitiBawo ni, Babatunde?How are you, Babatunde?
- BabatundeMo wa dada, Titi.I am good, Titi.
- TitiInu mi dun lati ri e.I am glad to see you.
- BabatundeEmi naa, Titi.Me too, Titi.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries dada, wa, CC BY-SA 4.0.
