bato, mi ben drape

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

Literally, “bato [untranslatable], I was there”.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bato mi ˈben dɾaˈpe/, [ba̠tʊ̞ mi ˈbɪ̞n dɾa̠ˈpɪ̞], [bɑ̟tɔ̝ mi ˈbe̝n dɾɑ̟ˈpe̝]

Phrase

bato, mi ben drape

1. (idiomatic) A formulaic phrase used by a member of the audience to interrupt a storyteller, in order to sing a song related to the story, after which the storyteller resumes his tale