How to Say "Today" in Cantonese

今日

gam¹ jat⁶

今日 (gam¹ jat⁶) is the Cantonese word for today.

今日 is used to refer to the current day, functioning as an adverb or a noun.

Meaning: on the current day (adv)

What does it mean word for word?

The term 今日 is composed of the character 今, which means 'current' or 'this'.

While 今日 (gam¹ jat⁶) is the standard term for 'today' in Cantonese, 今天 (gam¹ tin¹) is also used, though 今日 is more common in spoken Cantonese.

In some areas of Guangdong province, 今朝 is used interchangeably with 今日.

As an adverb, 今日 can be placed at the beginning of a sentence or immediately before the verb to indicate when an action occurs.

gam¹ jat⁶

In casual slang, people use 今日份 to describe 'today's portion', which can refer to a specific mood, a task or a meal.
Cantonese speakers may use 今日 to refer to 'these days' or the 'modern era' rather than just the current 24-hour period.
The character 日 within 今日 is not just a word for 'day', but is also the character used for 'sun', linking the concept of a single day to the celestial body itself.

今日有啲凍。
It's a little cold today.
This sentence shows how to use 今日 to describe the weather.
Tatoeba #611602 by nickyeow, translation #387411 by CK
今日唔使上堂。
There are no classes today.
This sentence shows how to use 今日 to talk about scheduled events like classes.
Tatoeba #7045431 by nickyeow, translation #4012500 by CK
你今日搞咩呀？
What is it with you today?
This sentence shows how to use 今日 when asking about someone's behavior.
Tatoeba #9536309 by nickyeow, translation #9501186 by casaniere
124 more sentences on Tatoeba

Two friends are discussing their plans for the day.

曉彤 Hiu Tung

子健，今日你有冇時間？
zi2 gin6, gam1 jat sze6 nei5 jau5 mou5 si4 gaan3?
Zijian, do you have time today?
子健 Tsz Kin

有呀，我想去睇戲。
jau5 aa1, ngo5 soeng2 heoi3 tai2 hei3.
Yes, I want to go see a movie.
曉彤 Hiu Tung

好呀，今日星期五，人應該唔多。
hou2 aa1, gam1 jat sing1 kei4 ng5, jan4 jing1 goi1 m4 do1.
Great, today is Friday, so there shouldn't be many people.
子健 Tsz Kin

正，咁我哋一陣見。
zeng3, gam2 ngo5 dei6 jat1 zan6 gin3.
Perfect, I'll see you in a bit then.

Sources

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