(ばい)

ばい
noun
-fold, times
1. -fold, times
Used as a suffix to indicate multiplication.
My salary doubled.
三倍(さんばい)(おお)きさなった
It became three times the size.
I have to put in ten times the effort.
The population increased fivefold, and traffic became congested.
City prices are many times higher than in the countryside, so it's said that living there is tough.

(ばい) is a suffix meaning "times" or "-fold" used to express multiplication.

COMMON EXPRESSIONS:

  • 二倍(にばい): double, twice
  • 三倍(さんばい): triple, three times
  • 何倍(なんばい): how many times?
  • (ばい)になる: to become ~ times (larger/more)
  • (ばい)にする: to make ~ times (larger/more)

PRONUNCIATION NOTES:
With numbers, (ばい) often becomes ばい: 一倍(いちばい), 二倍(にばい), 三倍(さんばい).

CONTRAST:

  • (ばい): multiplicative (2(ばい) = ×2)
  • (ぶん)の: fractional (2(ぶん)の1 = 1/2)
  • パーセント: percentage

Related Words