mud, mire, to paste, to plaster
坭 centers on soft, wet earth: mud or mire, and by extension the act of applying such a substance, as in pasting or plastering.
坭 combines 土 (earth) with 尼, which likely contributes the sound. The character is used for mud or plaster, fitting the earth component.
The left side is earth 土, and the right side 尼 looks like a body sitting in soft ground. Picture the earth turning into sticky mud that you can paste or plaster onto a wall.
For デイ, imagine a day of plastering mud: day -> デイ, and the earth 土 on the left is the mud you spread.