its very common here to add a quick "go" before dai ได้. I asked my husband years ago why they do and he said it just sounds better, that it didn't add or change the meaning. Is this a Southernism?

I don't believe it is Southern specific. I use it in Chiangmai such as "arai godai" อะไรก็ได้

Actually just asked my wife to spell it out and she asked to type it, my response ก็ได้

These are the adverb definitions:

1. OK

2. all right

3. fine

4. okay

My feeling on it is that ได้ means you can do it, while ก็ได้ is more of an up2u response, that is you can if you want but don't have to.

It is common throughout width and breadth of the realm.

A contemporary English translation might be: "Whatever..."

I hear it up here in Chiang Mai too.

Edit: duh..Tywais has already mentioned that.. so nvm!

Edited October 24, 200916 yr by eek

its very common here to add a quick "go" before dai ได้. I asked my husband years ago why they do and he said it just sounds better, that it didn't add or change the meaning. Is this a Southernism?

ก็ได้ is great! You can use it in loads of different situations. It is often used to show a mild indifference to something. It isn't really like English where if you respond with "whatever" it usually implies you don't care. ก็ได้ is often like "I don't have preference" or "I'll let you decide."

Q: กิน pizza มั้ย = Wanna get some pizza?

A: กิน (pizza) ก็ได้ = I could eat pizza.

Q: ดูหนังมั้ย = Wanna see a movie?

A: ดูหนังก็ได้ = I could watch a movie.

And slightly different, but equally useful...

Q: อยากกินอะไร = What do ya wanna eat?

A: กินอะไรก็ได้ = I can eat whatever.

Q: แล้วดูเรื่องอะไรอะ = Well, which movie should we see?

A: ดูเรื่องอะไรก็ไ้ด้ = I can watch anything. (or 'You choose')

Edited October 24, 200916 yr by Gwindarr

Interesting, its just that you never know what is and isn't. Was talking to my taxi driver in Bangkok the other day, he was from Koh Chang, about seafood etc. And i said I really like "whai" and he said, "whats that?" So, then I had to go on to explain it was kind of like a squid, but had a head and eight arms and was less chewy than squid.

That's when I found out that the rest of the country does not call octopus "whai" but ปลาหมึกยักษ์ (blah meuk yaak) .

ก็ได้ can also combined to make the following useful expressions:

wherever ที่ไหนก็ได้

[tee(2) nai(4) go:(1) dai(2)]

whenever เมื่อไรก็ได้

[meua(2) rai go:(1) dai(2)]

whatever อะไรก็ได้

[a:rai go(1) dai(2)]

i'd like to put "gor" as the most overused word in the thai language. i put 'na ka/krub' right after that.

gOr....