الكباية دي صغيرة، بس كباية الشاي كبيرة.

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Breakdown of الكباية دي صغيرة، بس كباية الشاي كبيرة.

• كبير: big
• دي: this
• شاي: tea

Questions & Answers about الكباية دي صغيرة، بس كباية الشاي كبيرة.

Why is دي after الكباية instead of before it?

In Egyptian Arabic, demonstratives like دي for this usually come after the noun:

• الكباية دي = this cup
• الراجل ده = this man

This is different from English, where this comes before the noun.

Also, دي is the feminine singular form, which matches كباية, a feminine noun.

Why does the sentence use both الـ and دي in الكباية دي?

That is normal in Egyptian Arabic. The combination:

• ال + noun + دي/ده

is a very common way to say this + noun.

So:

• الكباية دي = this cup
• literally something like the cup this

It may feel redundant to an English speaker, but it is standard in Egyptian Arabic.

Why is there no word for is in the sentence?

In Arabic, present-tense sentences like X is small usually do not need a verb equivalent to is.

So:

• الكباية دي صغيرة = This cup is small
• كباية الشاي كبيرة = The teacup is big

This is called a nominal sentence. Arabic simply puts the subject and the description together, without a present-tense copula.