Writing and Reading Thai
Writing and reading thai script, how to write thai learn how to write and read thai step by step with kruumui.com. the best and easiest way to learn thai writing. the lessons are well-explained with audio pronunciation. suitable for beginners.
Many foreigners find learning to write and read Thai very complicated. Looking at Thai text may already make you feel overwhelmed – no capital letters, no gaps between each word, no periods, no question marks to show whether the sentence is asking a question. Don’t know where to start!
KruuMui.com Thai Writing and reading online is very well designed and colorful to help you learn Thai from ABC, explaining every step from how we form a syllable to make sentences. Each lesson will take less than 20 minutes! By the end of the course, you will be able to read and write almost anything in Thai!
Here is how to learn Thai writing at Kruumui.com:
Go through the overall Thai language below, no need to remember any consonants, vowels or tones right now. Try to understand the overall concept. Learn each lesson by listening to the audios, repeating after it, practicing writing on your notebook, and by doing the exercises!
Are you ready?
Thai Consonants (Pá-yan-cha-ná Thai)
There are 44 consonants in Thai. Some of them are no longer used and will be skipped. Thai words are broken up into a syllable, each syllable has a distinct tone. You will learn the consonants by class, middle, high and low. The reason you need to know the class of consonant is because the class affects how the syllable is pronounced. Every consonant can be initial consonant, some consonant is a part of a vowel and some work as a final consonant.
กอ gaw - ไก่ gài
Middle class - final ก, ขอ käw - ไข่ kài, high class - final ก, ค kaw - ควาย kwaai, low class - final ก, ฆ kaw - ระฆัง rá-kang, งอ ngaw - งู nguu, low class - final ง, จอ jaw - จาน jaan, middle class - final ด, ฉ chäw - ฉิ่ง chìng, ช chaw - ช้าง cháng, low class - final ด, ซอ saw - โซ่ sôo, ฌอ chaw - เฌอ cher, high class - final ด, ญ yaw - หญิง yïng, low class - final น, ฎ daw - ชฎา chá-daa, middld class - final ด, ฏอ dtaw - ปฏัก pà-dtàk, ฐอ täw - ฐาน täan, ฑ taw - มณโฑ mon-too, ฒ taw - เฒ่า pûu-tâo, ณอ naw - เณร neen, ดอ daw - เด็ก dèk, ต dtaw - เต่า dtào, ถ täw - ถุง tüng, ทอ taw - ทหาร tá-häan, ธ taw - ธง tong, น naw - หนู nüu, บ baw - ใบไม้ bai-mái, middle class - final บ, ปอ bpaw - ปลา bplaa, ผอ päw - ผึ้ง pûng, ฝอ fäw - ฝา fäa, พ paw - พาน paan, low class - final บ, ฟอ faw - ฟัน fan, ภ paw - สำเภา säm-pao, ม maw - ม้า máa, low class - final ม, ย yaw - ยัก yák, low class - final ย, รอ raw - เรือ rua, ลอ law - ลิง ling, low class - final น, วอ waw - แหวน wäan, low class - final ว, ศ säw - ศาลา säa-laa, ษอ säw - ฤๅษี ruu-sïi, ส säw - เสือ süa, ห häw - หีบ hìip, ฬอ law - จุฬา ju-laa, ออ aw - อ่าง àang, middle class, ฮอ ngaw - นกฮูก nók-ngûuk.
Thai Vowels (Sà-ra Thai)
There are 32 vowels, 2 different kinds, short and long vowels. Some vowels comes in front of initial consonants, some go above, under, behind, front-back, front-above-behind! Some change form when followed by final consonants. You will learn each vowels step by step. Some vowels that not often seen, will not bring them up in the lessons. To show the position of each vowel, will use ‘อ- aw’ as initial consonant. You do not need to remember all of them now, just go through and repeat the sounds.
a – A laska
aa – Ah
i – K i t
ii – E agle
eu – Eu !
euu – Euuh !
u – B oo t (shorter)
uu – B oo t
e – P e t
ee – A id
ae –
aae – A thlete
o – Oh (shorter)
oo – Oh
aw – Aw (Short sound)
aw – L aw
er – Er (short sound)
er – Ear th
ia – ia (short Sound)
ia – P ia no
eua – (shorter)
eua –
ua – (shorter sound)
ua – Oo-aah
ai – I
ao –
Thai Tone Marks
There are 5 tones, 4 tone marks in Thai Script. A tone mark will place above the initial letter, or above a vowel.
For english transliteration will use ( a)-middle tone, (à)-low tone, (â)-falling tone, (á)-high tone and (ä)-rising tone.
อ อ่ อ้ อ๊ อ๋
- Final Consonants
The consonants that work as a final consonant may sound different from its initial sound. There are 2 types of final consonants, sonorant final and stop final. Thai final doesn’t have a strong sound like in English. These sounds are normally unvoiced, so aren’t fully sounded.
Stop Final: ก ด บ
Sonorant final: น ม ง ย ว, summarize what determine the tone.
What determine the syllable tone? The script tone marks ( อ อ่ อ้ อ๊ อ๋ ) are not the only ones that determine the tone of syllables, don’t be confused with the English transliteration tone marks.
1. Consonants Class
Whether the syllable has an initial consonant in the middle, high or low class
2. Vowel Lenght
Whether the syllable has a long or short vowel
3. Tone Mark
Whether or not there is a tone mark placed above the initial consonant of a syllable
4. Final Consonant
Whether the syllable followed by sonorant or stop final
Summary Tone Rules
Thai Basic Sentence structures
After you learn to form syllables/words, now it time to put words into sentences. In Thai we write from left to right, just like English. The way we form a sentence also similar. One basic sentence will start with a subject, following by an action/verb and an object (Subject + Verb + Object) . Ex
I love you = pöm rák khun = ผม รัก คุณ
Pöm ผม = I (male)
rák รัก = to love
khun คุณ = you
However there is no space between word in a sentence. So the sentence “I love you” should be like “ผมรักคุณ” There is a space between sentences to show the sentence is ended, no period (.) or (?) is used to end a sentence in Thai.
Learn Thai Writing has never been this simple!
- Thai Tones example
- Thai vowels
- Question words
- Nationality
- Date and Month
- Transportations
- Writing Lesson Plan
- More Long Vowel
- Tone Mark อ่
- Tone Mark อ้
- Tone Mark อ๊ & อ๋
- Short Vowel
- More Short Vowel
- Dead & Live Syllable
- Sonorant Final ง
- Sonorant Final น
- Sonorant Final ม
- Sonorant Final ย
- Sonorant Final ว
- Stop Final ก
- Stop Final ด
- Stop Final บ
- Seven Vowel that Change Form
- High Class Consonant with Long Vowel
- High Class Consonant with Short Vowel
- High Class consonant with Sonorant Final
- High Class Consonant with Stop Final
- High Class Consonant with อ่
- High Class Consonant with อ้
- Low Class Consonant (Paired)
- Low Class Consonant with Long Vowel
- Low Class Consonant with short Vowel
- Low Class Consonant with Sonorant Final
- Low Class Consonant, Long Vowel with Stop Final
- Low Class Consonant, Short Vowel with Stop Final
- Low Class consonant with อ่
- Low Class Consonant with อ้
- One Phrase a Day
- Travel Thai
- Thai Movies
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Learn Thai with Mod
Learning Thai made easy with Mod!
Our Thai lessons focus on “realistic Thai”, meaning sentences and usage that will make you sound like an actual Thai person rather than a formal and dull text book.
Lesson 1 – Read and Write Thai
Wednesday November 23, 2011 by Mod 85 Comments
Sawatdee ka,
Thai language has 44 letters, 32 vowels, 4 tone marks and various other symbols for pronunciation.
Today I would like to talk about Thai letters. There are 44 letters in Thai language. (not too many to remember, right? 🙂 )
In order to read Thai correctly, you will need to know what the class of each letter is. It is good for your pronunciation too;)
Thai letters are categorized into 3 classes;
[1] Middle class consonants or อักษรกลาง [àk –sŏrn glaang] [2] High class conoconats or อักษรสูง [àk –sŏrn sŭung] [3] Low class consonants or อักษรต่ำ [àk –sŏrn dtàm]
*อักษร [ àk –sŏrn] means letter, alphabet
* กลาง [glaang] means middle
* สูง [ sŭung] means high/tall
* ต่ำ [ dtàm] means low
This is the whole 44 Thai letters. Number under each letter tells you what class it is. [1] middle class [2] high class and [3] low class.
I found this photo in the internet. I am sorry I don’t remember which website.
Next lesson is Middle Class Consonants : http://wp.me/p1dKYh-kw
Reader Interactions
Saturday May 14, 2022 at 09:54
There is a mistake in the consonant chart at the top of this page. ฝ is shown as low class but it should be high class.
Wednesday May 18, 2022 at 10:14
Thank you for your comment. I will correct it.
Monday April 11, 2022 at 14:48
Hello swatadee khrup……. Phom chuu Arjun Kaushal khrup. Can you write my name in Thai……. I’ll be thankful to you for this kindness.
Monday May 9, 2022 at 15:44
Sawatdii ka Arjun, I am sorry for the late reply. I just saw your comment today. Your name in Thai is อาร์จัน 🙂
Wednesday July 27, 2022 at 17:35
Can you write my name in Thai? I am Ron Gabriel. Thank you in advance
Monday January 9, 2023 at 13:25
Apologies for the delay in my response. รอน เกเบรียล Ron = รอน Gabriel = เกเบรียล
Thursday May 7, 2020 at 16:05
Hello Khru Mod. I would just like to ask a method on how to easily memorize the letters and how to use them properly in terms of spelling. I love your videos by the way it has a fun roleplays and I learned many words from it although I don’t know how to spell in Thai. I’m Romy by the way a Filipino who loves to learn new languages.
Thursday March 28, 2019 at 02:16
Hi! I’m new in this lenguage! I’m Chilean and I can speak English and a little Japanese, and now I wanna learn Thai, and I found this web site… and I love it.
I have a question… well 2 questions… First, what do you recommend me to do… learn the alphabet first or learn some vocabulary? and why the consonant have 3 levels_… the pronuntiation changes depending of each level?
I’ll waiting your answer, thanks very much for this page!! it’s amazing
Wednesday April 10, 2019 at 17:19
Sawatdee ka Chilean, thank you for visiting my site. I am happy to hear that you found my lessons useful in your Thai learning.
1) If you don’t have a need to speak the language right away, it is a good start to learn the alphabets first. It will help you to understand Thai sounds and that will help with your pronunciation.
2) Thai alphabets are divided in to three classes because they have different tone rules. The tone changes depending on the class of the consonant.
Sunday January 21, 2018 at 20:30
Hi Mod, I just started to learn thai alphabet but still confused, I can speak little in thai but learning the alphabet make me confused. Can you help me?
Tuesday March 20, 2018 at 18:28
Sawatdee ka Lia, apologies for the delay in my response. My computer was in the repair shop for 3 months.
We are happy to help you learn Thai. Please write us at [email protected] to schedule a free trial lesson.
We look forward to hearing from you. 🙂
Wednesday January 10, 2018 at 15:04
How can I right words in Thai? In creating thai words, is it letter by letter or we need to follow rules in making one. Its confusing me.
Tuesday October 24, 2017 at 22:28
Hello? I am a Filipino and I am fond of learning Languages. I know how to speak Japanese a little and now I want to learn Thai too. I find it very difficult to learn Thai language. I can’t seem to get it especially their script it’s so hard to familiar and all the tone. Haha I want to be a Thai speaker someday.
Wednesday October 18, 2017 at 04:00
Sawatdee khrup!!! I am a Filipino and I want to be a singer and actor in thailand.I am now starting to learn thai words but I don’t know how to write and read thai…Can You Help Me???
Wednesday October 18, 2017 at 11:47
Sawatdee ka Jade,
Thank you for visiting our website. We teach one-to-one Thai lessons and we can help you learn to read and write Thai. If you are interested to start learning Thai with us please find further details via the link below; https://learnthaiwithmod.com/skype-training/
Please write us at [email protected] to discuss about your lessons.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Best regards, Mod
Monday November 6, 2017 at 18:02
Ok I will message you in your email. khop khun khrup
Tuesday February 13, 2018 at 17:45
Sawadee ka mod, I am from America and I came to Thailand about 6 months ago and I’m supposed to be in school but I need help learning how to read and write thai. Can you help me?
Monday March 19, 2018 at 16:00
Sawatdee ka Parlissia,
Apologies for the delay in my response. My computer was broken and in the repair shop for almost three months.
We are happy to help you learn to read and write Thai. Please write us at [email protected] We offer a free trial lesson so we can find out what you would like to achieve and how we can work best together.
Look forward to hearing form you.
Thursday August 10, 2017 at 13:07
I feel so frustrated Mod. I can not make any sense if thai words. I speak three languages and trying russian as forth, but thai is so difficult. I can not make sense of words. Helppppp!!!am going to ChiangMai and Bangkok next year!!!
Saturday September 30, 2017 at 15:48
Sawatdii ka, I heard that Russian language was very difficult.
We offer private Thai lessons via Skype. We are happy to help you to learn to read and write Thai language. If you are interested please write us at [email protected],ail.com to schedule a free trial lesson. Please find more detials here: https://learnthaiwithmod.com/skype-training/
Sunday April 30, 2017 at 11:53
Hai I want to learn Thai .but I am searching thai alphabet .its not showing properly in converted English .so please how I can learn please sugest me.
Tuesday June 6, 2017 at 15:49
We offer private lessons via Skype. Please see more details here: https://learnthaiwithmod.com/skype-training/ If it is convenient for you please write us at [email protected] to schedule a trial lesson so you can find out how we can work best together. 🙂
Saturday September 9, 2017 at 18:55
it is free?
Wednesday November 29, 2017 at 05:21
really? lol free lessons in addition to all the free videos? Do you work for free?
Sunday March 25, 2018 at 10:29
We offer one free trial class so students can find out if they would like to start learning Thai with us and how we can work best together. If you are interested to start learning Thai seriously we are happy to help, please see more details here: https://learnthaiwithmod.com/skype-training/
Thursday January 26, 2017 at 16:42
What will be my name in Thai and its pronunciation. My name is Shivangi
Monday April 10, 2017 at 11:02
You can actually choose any Thai names you like. If you prefer to have a name with meaning that you like you could look into the list in this link: http://www.thai-language.com/id/589844
Thursday January 19, 2017 at 21:54
May I asked why it is that reading (more towards reciting)the vowels by the first grade Thai pupils, they are reading it in the following way ie.
กอ-อึ-กึ กอ-อือ-กือ กอ-อุ-กุ กอ-อู-กู etc etc
I understand that the first syllable กอ ko to read out the “k” syllable and the last syllable กึ ku when ึ is added to the ก consonant.
Why reciting the pair of consonant+vowel the อ had to be spelled out also.
Saturday September 30, 2017 at 16:35
Hi Charlie, apologies for the delay in my response. I tried to answer your question a couple of times before but I don’t know my website didn’t let it go through.
Every Thai alphabet is read with อ sound – ก is read กอ, ข is read ขอ , อ is read ออ
I am sorry I don’t know why we have to read it with “อ” sound.
Wednesday December 14, 2016 at 05:55
Hi Mod, I wanna ask about the consonants, above you stating there are three consonants class, is there any conditions when the consonants used each for middle, high or low? for example one class used for name?!…or it’s just to differentiate the pronunciation (for the tones) ? I’m confused learning Thai because of the tones, gender identity and [for example] there are many P in Thai’s alphabets 🙂 I just confused when it used? or it will be give different meaning if you put different letter? and what your suggestion? learn the dictionary first or the alphabets^^. Thank you ^^
Thursday November 24, 2016 at 22:21
Ah i want to learn how to write in thai is there any easy way on how to learn?
Tuesday December 6, 2016 at 09:28
I would suggest you to start by learning the Thai alphabets by classes and then mix them with long vowels first. And of course a lot of repeating and practicing! 🙂
Monday October 24, 2016 at 16:56
I am trying to learn a little bit of thai, and I want to start it my my name. to convert it to thai writing, Can you help me? My name is Lei Villa (Ley – vil -ya)
Tuesday December 6, 2016 at 15:25
Your name in Thai would write เล วิลญ่า It sounds beautiful. 🙂
Wednesday December 21, 2016 at 17:44
how about mine?
Saturday September 30, 2017 at 16:23
Your name could be written มาร์ริซ 🙂
Thursday October 6, 2016 at 22:11
Sawatdee P’Mod,
Can you explain to me how to create a word in thai.
Tuesday December 6, 2016 at 16:23
The most basic word in Thai is created by one consonant and one vowel. For example, put together the consonant “ก” which has ‘g’ sound and the vowel “า” which gives ‘aa’ sound then you get the word “กา” /gaa/ which means crow. Then when you want different tones , a tone mark is added.
Wednesday May 3, 2017 at 18:36
Mam my name is Muhammad Muzammal Majeed. Plz translate into thai. I will be thankful to you.
Tuesday June 6, 2017 at 15:31
I think it would be written in Thai like this –> มูฮัมหมัด มูซัมมัล มะยิด
Thursday August 18, 2016 at 14:16
Hello Kru Mod. I had learned basic Thai language in college but it still hard for me to memorize all of the Thai alphabets. Do you have any tips to memorize it easily? Thank you for this awesome blog 🙂
Wednesday August 17, 2016 at 10:35
sawat dee krub! MOD! how can i read thai? Is it easy to learn!
Khxbkhun na krub!
Wednesday April 27, 2016 at 19:31
Hi Mod!!. In thai alphabet there’s a lot of kh in low class. How can I determine if what kh should I use in writing??.
Thursday April 28, 2016 at 15:57
Sawatdii ka John, in low class consonants there are two “kh” letters – ค and ฅ. “ฅ” is obsolete so there is only one letter left to use. 🙂
Monday February 29, 2016 at 11:22
Sawatdee ka p’Mod can u send me thai vowels, so tha I can pratices write it and read it and learn to communicate.
Thursday April 7, 2016 at 18:43
Sawatdii ka Pat, I have a post on Thai vowel here: https://learnthaiwithmod.com/2012/09/lesson-4-thai-vowels/
Thursday April 7, 2016 at 19:44
A more complete lesson with video is here: https://learnthaiwithmod.com/2015/04/lesson-5-thai-long-vowels/
Thursday October 22, 2015 at 22:36
Hi Mod, can i check if 2consonants have been obsolete and today only 42 consonants being use now aday?
Friday October 23, 2015 at 09:17
That is correct. ฃ and ฅ are not used anymore. 🙂
Tuesday December 1, 2015 at 05:48
If you are trying to learn the Thai alphabet, check out: http://ff724w2rxf38sed8ekev2hem1m.hop.clickbank.net/ — I was able to teach myself the Thai alphabet in just 60 minutes 🙂
Saturday February 13, 2016 at 03:49
Its very RUDE to SPAM another persons Language Site and your link is BEING SPAMMED EVERYWHERE. Shame on you.
Mod has taken the time to offer free tools for learning the Thai Language and you come here hawking your over priced poo.
Monday January 2, 2023 at 18:21
Okay MISS ANNA. don’t you think he must have taken efforts to make his website?? Hmmm…. Interesting, isn’t it? I’m not against Mod and I’m not even on Andrew’s side. But perspective plays a great role. Next time, try it out. An by the way, whatever ever done is done with efforts (even though it’s the stupidest thing possible).
Sunday October 11, 2015 at 11:30
I want to learn Thai on beginning. I am staying in Hong Kong most of the time and is there any Thai class in Hong Kong? Thanks for your kind assistance!
Wednesday October 14, 2015 at 10:29
Sawatdee ka Edward, we also teach one-to-one Thai lessons via Skype. We have been teaching students from around the World ; America, Europe, Australia, Asia over the years. From our experience we find that Skype lessons are as effective as in-person lessons. We always prefer meeting the student for a complimentary lesson to find out what the student wishes to achieve and how we can best work together.
Let me know if this is convenient and I can schedule a free trial appoint for you. 🙂
Please write me at [email protected]
Look forward to hearing from you.
Saturday October 10, 2015 at 11:21
Thanks Mod for this and all the other useful resources in this section. I have learned to read Thai script but my one frustration is to be able to read modern Thai script that one finds on billboards and advertising for example. I can’t find a site that has the traditional and modern script side by side. Do you know of such a site? Or could you even prepare a lexicon with both scripts next to each other. Thanks again. Great site!
Wednesday October 14, 2015 at 11:57
Thank you for your kind comments. I am sorry I am not aware of a site that provide modern script together with traditional ones. I think this is a good idea. I will create a post about this in the future. 🙂
Sunday August 16, 2015 at 10:34
Sawatdee ka p’Mod, I just wanted to know that, is it necessary to memorize all 44 consonants? Or do I just memorize the ones you just showed in your Thai alphabet video?
Thursday March 12, 2015 at 10:53
Im very confused about this
Saturday March 21, 2015 at 12:37
Please explain what confuses you. 🙂
Saturday May 7, 2016 at 19:54
Hi Krung Mod and Prae…
I am Edward and I really have nothing to say about the post I am replying to…but wish to convey my appreciation for all the obvious hard work you two Gentle-Ladies have done over the years. I am a resident, long vacation, of Thailand and have attended a few classes but I like you 2 ladies best. I will move to Bkk just to be next to you… just kidding… I live in Hua Hin and Nakhon Sawan. OK now that I have sweetened you up… Do you have any videos explaining all the consonants and their different sounds regarding syllable position? And also the little symobols such as ma-ek and mai toe.
Thanks ladies … I love you.
Tuesday May 10, 2016 at 12:14
Sawatdii ka Edward,
Thank you for your kind comments. We don’t have many videos on reading lessons. We will keep your suggestion in mind when we do new videos in the future. 🙂
Tuesday December 30, 2014 at 06:58
I know how to speak thai since my mom is from Thailand but I was born in America but I never really learned how to read or write in Thai and is there a website that can teach me. It’s seems really difficult
Thursday March 5, 2015 at 10:57
You can try http://www.thai-language.com 🙂
Thursday October 2, 2014 at 11:40
Hello, I`m Vina. I`m Indonesian. I want to learn Thailand. And the important things are I want to able write and speak in Thailand. Please help me. Thank 🙂
Friday June 13, 2014 at 17:03
hi.Im alodia… I want to learn to how to speak thailand,how to write in thailand and how to understand the letters in thailand! I know how to pronounce the thai letters but I can’t read. Hehehe! Help me please…thank you!
Friday May 16, 2014 at 17:09
i am sure i would learn to read alot quicker if you were to set vowels and letters up much the same as your 190 words e book.
Monday June 2, 2014 at 22:24
I will try to do more of reading lessons. Thank you for your suggestion. 🙂
Monday March 10, 2014 at 03:12
This was a very helpful Thai Script Chart. I am new at writing Thai. I found this most helpful due to Tones added in number context.
Friday January 10, 2014 at 05:43
Is it possible for you to cover all the letters above? i mean like how to say it with a brief example for each of them as well.
Sunday September 29, 2013 at 01:09
I fond the picture here: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=385253838156512&set=pb.140444652637433.-2207520000.1380391508.&type=3&src=https%3A%2F%2Ffbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net%2Fhphotos-ak-frc3%2F429836_385253838156512_46449390_n.jpg&size=588%2C316
Monday November 12, 2012 at 20:31
Why is GOR-GAI a kh? JOR JAHN a c/t? DTOR DEK a t? sorry just want to get it right
Tuesday November 13, 2012 at 12:36
I didn’t notice the English letters below the Thai alphabets at all. I am sorry this confuse you. Thai alphabets can be used as [1] first consonant and [2] final consonant. For example จ /jor jaan/ as a first consonant it give “j” sound, and as a final consonant it gives “d” sound like ด /.dor dek/. I need to remove this picture and replace with more clear explanation. Once again please accept my apology.
Tuesday November 13, 2012 at 12:38
ก /gor-gai/ as a first consonant has ‘g’ sound like in the English word ‘gun’, and as the final consonant it gives ‘k’ sound. ด /dor dek/ is ‘d’ sound for both first and final consonant.
Wednesday May 22, 2013 at 17:36
The chart follows IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) rules.
ก is written as K (an unaspirated K sound, pronounced like in the English word “scratch”).
ข is written as Kh (an aspirated K sound, pronounced like in the English word “cat”).
An example: The Thai city Khon Kaen – ขอนแก่น.
The English would transliterate the name of this city like Kon Gaen.
So it depends which transliteration system you use. I prefer IPA because the rules are international and comprehensible for people from all over the world, not only for native English speakers. I am not a native English speaker and the way English people transliterate Thai text looks and sounds a bit strange to me.
Monday January 6, 2014 at 06:19
You are correct about English translation. I am English speaking and Thai translation often looks strange to me. My translator on my computer does not always choose the correct word that is intended for the statement and it sometimes make the entire statement hard to understand.
Saturday September 29, 2012 at 21:08
I notice that a lot of the letters are not in your Consanants video
Tuesday July 3, 2012 at 19:27
Hi! Mod..i am just curious if i going to learn thai….which that you recommend?to learn speak or learn to write is easier?
Thursday September 26, 2013 at 22:32
Maybe you should learn English first.
Friday January 3, 2014 at 14:51
Sunday April 22, 2012 at 08:24
when is the next blog?
Thursday October 17, 2013 at 18:03
can i learn how to read and write thai?
Friday October 18, 2013 at 22:32
Sawatdee ka Jessebelle, thank you for your message. Absolutely, you can learn to read and write Thai. Would you be interested in taking Skype lessons? Please contact me at [email protected]
Sunday January 26, 2014 at 04:12
I am only 9 year old I am come from thailand I move to blackpool and my school was learning about thailand but I don’t know how to write in thailand
Sunday January 26, 2014 at 12:34
Sawatdee ka Nat, thank you for visiting my website. I will do more post on reading and writing. Please join my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/learnthaiwithmod and subscribe to my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/ThaiwithMod 🙂
Sunday February 26, 2012 at 21:13
Can i see the vowels?
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Learn To Write Thai Alphabet
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Thai (ภาษาไทย)
Thai is a Tai-Kadai language spoken by about 60 million people mainly in Thailand ( ประเทศไทย ), where it is an offical language and the de facto national language. There are also Thai speakers in other places, including 153,000 in the USA, 64,800 in Taiwan, 58,800 in Germany, 55,400 in Australia, 43,600 in Sweden and 30,000 in Malaysia.
Thai at a glance
- Native name : ภาษาไทย (phasa thai) [pʰāːsǎːtʰāj]
- Language family : Kra-Dai, Tai, Southwestern Tai, Chiang Saen, Thai
- Number of speakers : c. 60 million
- Spoken in : Thailand, USA, Taiwan, Germany, Australia, Sweden, Malaysia and other countries
- First written : c. 1292
- Writing system : Thai alphabet
- Status : Official language in Thailand. Recognised minority language in Cambodia, Malaysia and Myanmar
- An introduction to Thai
- Thai alphabet (ตัวอักษรไทย)
Sample text in Thai
Sample videos in thai.
- Links to more information
- Thai Phrases
- Thai Numbers
- Thai family words
- Tower of Babel in Thai
- Thai learning materials
- Thai alphabet for Sanskrit
Thai is closely related to Lao, and northern dialects of Thai are more or less mutually intelligible with Lao, particularly the Lao spoken in northern Thailand. Thai vocabulary includes many words from Pali, Sanskrit and Old Khmer.
Thai alphabet ( ตัวอักษรไทย )
It is thought that the Thai alphabet was based on the Old Khmer alphabet, which dates from 611 AD. The oldest known inscriptions in Thai appeared in about 1292 AD. According to tradition, the Thai alphabet was created by King Ramkhamhaeng ( พ่อขุนรามคำแหงมหาราช ).
Notable features
- Type of writing system : Abugida / Syllabic Alphabet consisting of 44 basic consonants, each with an inherent vowel: [o] in medial position and [a] in final position. The [a] is usually found in words of Sanskrit, Pali or Khmer origin while the [o] is found native Thai words. The 18 other vowels and 6 diphthongs are indicated using diacritics which appear in front of, above, below of after the consonants they modify.
- Writing direction : left to right in horizontal lines.
- 8 of the letters are used only for writing words of Pali and Sanskrit origin.
- For some consonants there are multiple letters. Originally they represented separate sounds, but over the years the distinction between those sounds was lost and the letters were used instead to indicate tones.
- Thai is a tonal language with 5 tones. The tone of a syllable is determined by a combination of the class of consonant, the type of syllable (open or closed), the tone marker and the length of the vowel. More details .
- There are no spaces between words, instead spaces in a Thai text indicate the end of a clause or sentence.
Thai alphabet and pronunciation
The Royal Thai General System of Transcription (RTGS), the official standard for the romanisation of Thai, is used here. Many other romanisation systems are used elsewhere.
Consonants ( พยัญชนะ )
A recording of the Thai alphabet by ปัณณวิช ตันเดชานุรัตน์ (Pannawit Tandaechanurat)
How to write write and pronounce Thai consonants:
- Consonants are divided into three classes: low (เสียงต่ำ), mid (เสียงกลาง) and high (เสียงสูง) , which help to determine the tone of a syllable.
- The sounds represented by some consonants change when they are used at the end of a syllable (indicated by the letters on the right of the slash). Some consonants can only be used at the beginning of a syllable.
- Duplicate consonants represent different Sanskrit and Pali consonants sounds which are pronounced identically in Thai.
- The letter o ang acts as a silent vowel carrier at the beginning of words that start with a vowel.
- The names of the consonants are acrophonic and intended to help with learning them.
Vowel diacritics ( รูปสระ )
How to write write and pronounce Thai vowels:
Numerals ( ตัวเลขไทย )
A recording of these numbers by ปัณณวิช ตันเดชานุรัตน์
How to write write and pronounce Thai numerals:
A recording of the Thai tone marker names by ปัณณวิช ตันเดชานุรัตน์
Tone indication
The tone of a syllable is determined by a combination of the following factors:
Summary of Thai tone rules
Download Thai alphabet charts in Excel , Word or PDF format
A recording of this text by Jo S.
Transliteration
Rao túk kon gèrt maa yàang ìt-sà-rà, rao túk kon mee kwaam kît láe kwaam kâo jai bpen kŏng rao ayng. Rao túk kon kuan dâi ráp gaan bpà-dtì-bàt nai taang dieow gan.
Transliteration by http://www.thai2english.com/online/
Translation
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. (Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Information about Thai | Phrases | Numbers | Family words | Tower of Babel | Learning materials
- Learn Thai with Glossika - ThaiPod101.com - Learn Thai with Free Podcasts - Find Thai Tutors with LanguaTalk
Information about the Thai language http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_language http://www.geckovilla.com/Thai_Language.html
Online Thai lessons and other resources http://www.thai-language.com http://langhub.com http://www.thai-flashcards.com http://ressources.learn2speakthai.net/all-maanii-books/ https://lingopolo.org/thai/online-lessons http://www.youtube.com/user/thailanguagehut http://polymath.org/thai.php http://ilovelanguages.org/thai.php
A New Life in Thailand by Nigel Cobbett - a comprehensive ebook guide to travel and living in Thailand, and the Thai language http://nigelcobbett.weebly.com
Online Thai dictionaries http://www.thai-language.com/dict/ http://dictionary.meelink.com http://lexitron.nectec.or.th/2009_1/ http://www.thai2english.com
Information about Thai transliteration and Romanization systems http://slice-of-thai.com/pronunciation-guides/
Thai phrases http://thai-language.com/ref/phrases http://thaiarc.tu.ac.th/thai/thphrase.htm https://www.tielandtothailand.com/easy-useful-thai-phrases-words/ https://wikitravel.org/en/Thai_phrasebook
Online Thai keyboards and translation https://translatiz.com/keyboard/thai-kedmanee https://translatiz.com/keyboard/thai-pattachote https://translatiz.com/th
Online Thai radio https://onlineradiobox.com/th/thailandworldservice/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/thai
Your name in Thai http://www.cnx-translation.com/your-name-in-thai.php
Information about King Ramkhamhaeng the Great http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramkhamhaeng
Tai-Kaidai languages
Ahom , Aiton , Bouyei , Isan , Kam , Khamti , (Tai) Khün , Lao , Lue , Northern Thai (Kam Mueang) , Shan , Sui , Tai Dam , Tai Dón , Tai Laing , Tai Nuea , Tai Phake , Tai Ya , Thai , Yang Zhuang , Zhuang
Languages written with the Thai script
Bisu , Isan , Kuy , Northern Khmer , Northern Pwo , Nyah Kur , Pāli , Sanskrit , Thai
Abugidas / Syllabic alphabets
Ahom , Aima , Arleng , Badagu , Badlit , Basahan , Balinese , Balti-A , Balti-B , Batak , Baybayin , Bengali , Bhaiksuki , Bhujimol , Bilang-bilang , Bima , Blackfoot , Brahmi , Buhid , Burmese , Carrier , Chakma , Cham , Cree , Dehong Dai , Devanagari , Dham Lipi , Dhankari / Sirmauri , Ditema , Dives Akuru , Dogra , Ethiopic , Evēla Akuru , Fraser , Gond , Goykanadi , Grantha , Gujarati , Gunjala Gondi , Gupta , Gurmukhi , Halbi Lipi , Hanifi , Hanuno'o , Hočąk , Ibalnan , Inuktitut , Jaunsari Takri , Javanese , Kaithi , Kadamba , Kamarupi , Kannada , Kawi , Kerinci , Kharosthi , Khema , Khe Prih , Khmer , Khojki , Khudabadi , Kirat Rai , Kōchi , Kulitan , Kurukh Banna , Lampung , Lanna , Lao , Lepcha , Limbu , Lontara/Makasar , Lota Ende , Magar Akkha , Mahajani , Malayalam , Manpuri / Meitei (Modern) , Manpuri (Old) , Marchen , Meroïtic , Masarm Gondi , Modi , Mon , Mongolian Horizontal Square Script , Multani , Nandinagari , Newa , New Tai Lue , Ojibwe , Odia , Pahawh Hmong , Pallava , Phags-pa , Purva Licchavi , Qiang / Rma , Ranjana , Rejang (Kaganga) , Sasak , Savara , Satera Jontal , Shan , Sharda , Siddham , Sinhala , Sorang Sompeng , Sourashtra , Soyombo , Sukhothai , Sundanese , Syloti Nagri , Tagbanwa , Takri , Tamil , Tanchangya (Ka-Pat) , Tani , Thaana , Telugu , Thai , Tibetan , Tigalari , Tikamuli , Tocharian , Tolong Siki , Vatteluttu , Warang Citi
Other writing systems
Page last modified: 15.03.23
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Learn Thai – Rapid Method
Learn to read thai using the “rapid.
Thai is a remarkably easy language. It’s only classed as a difficult language because it is usually taught in a very complicated manner.
The reason why Thai is so easy is because it is logical and consistent (unlike English, which is probably the most inconsistent and complicated language in the world). The grammar is as simple as can be (unlike French or German). The writing system is 100% phonetic (unlike English or Chinese): every letter has only one sound.
So what about the tones you might ask? Many words have different meanings if you pronounce them with a different tone – but we have tones in English, and it isn’t always so easy to tell what your meaning is in English if you vary the tone. Right?
The tones are kinda important in that you need to vary the tone where expected otherwise you the listener will be taken aback and have to ask “come again…?” But in normal (fast), colloquial speech, words are mostly all run together in a kind of monotone and only a few important words – and the ending of a phrase – needs to be sounded out with the correct tone.
In the Rapid Method, we separate out the letters and their sounds from the tones in a two-step process. Learn all the letters first. You can easily learn the Thai alphabet in a day, but that isn’t enough to be able to read Thai. There’s a lot more involved, such as how the vowels are positioned ( surrounding the consonant letter, not following each consonant in a left-to-right manner as in English), whether to fuse two letters together (as in “ pr ayer”) or pronounce them separately (as in “ p a r iah”) and how to separate out words when they are written without spaces in-between.
Once you can sound out each word accurately, then you learn how to figure out the tone for each word. You are expected to repeat the course, but this time adding in the tone. After doing this many times, you develop a kind of mental shorthand or dexterity and it becomes automatic and almost immediate.
And – a bit like learning to drive where everything seems so complicated and up in the air at first – it becomes very easy. It turns out that tones are the easiest and least significant part of the Thai language!
Why learn to read before speaking Thai?
Many people don’t see the need to read Thai. You might be impatient to start speaking and conversing with Thai people as quickly as possible, so you might feel that learning to read is a waste of time; and it seems unbelievably complicated because of the dozens of letters (officially 59 or 72, depending how you count) and hundreds of senseless rules that you’d have to learn.
After all, all the beginner text books and classes use a kind of phonetic transliteration so that you can begin to speak and understand Thai straight away.
So “Hello, how are you?” becomes “sà-wàt dee khráp (or khà) – sàbai dee mǎi khráp (or khá)”
What’s wrong with this?
Firstly, this is one of many ways to spell Thai words phonetically, with or without the strange diacritics to denote the so-called “tones”. Alternative spellings might include “sawasdii khrup” or “sawad di krap”. And don’t get me started on the completely wrong and arbitrary official government transliterated spellings for names of people or towns or even the word “city”.
There is no standard and you either have to restrict your learning to books and courses that follow one of the more popular transliteration methods, or try to figure out the correct pronunciation from various ambiguous spellings used in different language schools, courses or videos.
Secondly, nearly all the transliteration schemes are fundamentally wrong! Unless you want to learn the International Phonetic Alphabet and transcribe everything into IPA (because few if any textbooks bother with it), you will probably end up learning the wrong pronunciation for about half of all the words you learn.
And even then, the tones are usually taught incorrectly. In the beginning, when I tried to pronounce each tone deliberately and accurately, I found that no-one could understand me. That’s because I sounded like a sick whale, with the sing-song way I was trying to speak.
If I were to transliterate “Hello. How are you?” more accurately then the closest approximation I would get is something like “s’watdee crub!? (or cah!) s’baai dee maai? crub!? (or cah!?)”
It’s just as confusing, you’re not sure whether “crub” rhymes with “cub” or with “coop”, for instance – and it’s still wrong anyway!
So let me explain why learning to read is so important.
The first reason is simply so that you can continuously pick up vocabulary from your surroundings. If you rely on transliterated text then you have to work much harder by sitting down with a language course designed for foreigners (and still end up with a mere approximation for each word). This is boring and time-wasting, and you will probably never learn current language usage either (like slang or texting or social media expressions).
But another crucial reason is that you will not only know how to pronounce Thai words accurately so that people can understand you when you speak – but ALSO be able to hear Thai more clearly.
I’ve done a lot of research in this and there’s plenty of evidence to show that we nearly always mishear what people say – and that then becomes an integral part of our vocabulary and mental understanding of a language.
This is why there are many native English speakers who say “I should of done it”. These are people who don’t like to read, so they’ve picked up a kind of aural grammar – and they’ve heard “should’ve” as “should of” and that’s how it will remain for the rest of their lives.
In fact, this is one of the main reasons why language has evolved over the generations. Children pick up words and expressions from their parents, family and friends, and errors creep in. Because so many people were illiterate until only the last hundred years or so, these errors got passed on to their children… and over dozens of generations, the language gradually changed.
So, why is this important when learning a foreign language?
The main reason is that we hear whatever it is we think we are hearing. So if you’ve learnt to say or understand something inaccurately then you will hear it inaccurately as well.
Worse, if you are relying on picking up the language simply by listening to people then you will make incorrect guesses and learn the wrong vocabulary and expressions entirely.
In Thai, the typical misunderstandings that “aural” learners develop include hearing the R sound as an L. So you will hear farang saying things like “teelak” or “sabai dee lor?” or “falang” or even “laan” (for shop, when it actually means court or courtyard).
And in general foreigners who learn Thai aurally tend to mishear a lot of what Thai people say and learn a substantial vocabulary that is actually incorrect!
Then when you do try to speak, firstly it sounds like you have a cold; but mostly you will be hard to understand because you seem to be using words that don’t make sense to a Thai person.
I know! I spoke like this for my first few years in Thailand and, no matter how slowly and deliberately I spoke, hardly anyone could understand what I was saying!!!
It was only when I taught myself to read (with my Rapid Method) that I finally realized why. You’ll be surprised at the obscenities that we can sometimes utter as a result of our mangled speech.
Whatever you do, don’t talk about snow or buffaloes or dipping sauce , for example, unless you’ve seen the Thai spelling and practiced enunciating these words clearly and unambiguously. (You will have to ask a very close Thai friend to explain why these words can sound so obscene when mispronounced!)
Check out this principle for yourself. Listen to the TED talk below.
But I don’t need to read, you might say!
Actually, you do need to learn to read first if you want to learn easily and pick up vocabulary without conscious study and to pronounce Thai correctly.
It really doesn’t take long, so long as you follow the Rapid Method. Just try it yourself now and learn – and remember! – the top 25 letters in only 25 minutes.
In Thailand, you are surrounded by a “living visual dictionary” so you can’t help but pick up vocabulary from your environment. Moreover, you’re more likely to remember the meanings of words this way because your mind more easily remembers the context or situation where you saw each word than if you just tried to memorize it from a vocabulary list.
Without knowing how to read, it’s like the world is foggy and out of focus. So many signs and notices with squiggly marks on them and you have no idea what they say or mean!
But once you are literate, it’s like having glasses if you’re short-sighted (or more accurately like having an operation to have cataracts removed).
The Rapid Method’s Magic
The ‘Rapid Method’ simplifies the language to only what you need to know, so no learning the Thai alphabet, Ko Kai, Do Dek, etc. You will learn to ‘see’ the shapes and ‘solve the puzzle’ for each word.
Each letter has a personality based on its ‘sex’, which is either boy , girl or ladyboy! This only matters much later, when you learn how to work out the tones for each word. This bizarre way identifying the letters actually makes tones a doddle.
“But I am very busy and, besides, Thai is an obscure language compared with Chinese or Spanish… and I can get by and work or manage my business in Thailand successfully enough without knowing more than a smattering of Thai.”
Many people feel this way, and they are right. It’s not essential to know Thai to be able to live and work here comfortably and successfully. Nevertheless, I think it is more useful than you would expect to be able to communicate in Thai if you want to live and work here. I’ve researched the most effective ways of learning a language – with the busy person in mind. I realize that we are all busy with work, family, sports/entertainment and a hectic social life. Devoting time to ‘studying’ is a pretty low priority for most of us (and I include myself).
So my approach is to find ways of learning Thai that requires very little time and effort. I’ve discovered that learning to read is the most important first step. If you attend one of my Read Thai bootcamps then it can be done and dusted in a week.
This then leads on to being able to absorb Thai effortlessly from the environment, the ‘living dictionary’ that surrounds us.
Although it seems counter-intuitive, if you want to be able to speak and communicate then the quickest and most efficient way is through reading… along with listening practice and speech training.
More about this in the follow-on 30-week Everyday Thai for Beginners course and the 50-lesson, one-year Rapid Fluency Course …
- I define ‘fluency’ to mean being able to read and understand people and communicate effortlessly at normal speed without thinking about it . Although being ‘fluent’ can quickly develop into mastering the language at a high level, it does not necessarily mean that you will be capable of advanced and academically correct usage of the language.
Learn The Thai Alphabet
I’m going to give you all the resources you need to learn the Thai alphabet really fast. I’ll be your Kru, which means teacher in Thai. You can call me Khun Kru Fon.
Fon Ngamvilaidee
At first glance I know it looks hard. The Thai alphabet has a completely different script to the English alphabet.
You’re also used to just 26 letters, but now you’ll have to learn 44 consonants พยัญชนะ, phayanchaná ) and 15 vowel symbols that comprise 32 vowels (สระ, sara).
But like anything in life, the sooner you get started, the faster you’ll learn.
About Thailand’s Alphabet
The script is derived from Pali, Sanskrit Old Khmer script, and tradition says that it was created by King Ramkhamhaeng the Great (พ่อขุนรามคำแหงมหาราช) in 1283.
It is read left to right, with vowels sitting on top and below consonants. The alphabet also has 5 tones to learn : low, mid, high, falling, rising. The ‘mid’ tone has no tone mark, so essentially there are 4 to identify.
Thai is a tonal language. The tones correlate with the vowels and indicated in the script by a combination of the class of the initial consonant (high, mid or low), vowel length (long or short), closing consonant (dead or live) and, if indicated, one of four tone marks.
There are a couple of rules to bear in mind when learning to read or write Thai. Firstly, Thai language does not use lower case or capital letters. Secondly, there are no spaces and little punctuation.
This is perhaps the hardest thing to get to grips with because it is in direct contrast to what you’re used to. However, once you immerse yourself in the Thai Alphabet day-in-day-out you’ll soon become used to its form.
Thai Consonants
Each Thai consonant is associated with a Thai word to help with learning. For example, ข is kho khai (ข ไข่), in which kho is the sound it represents, and khai (ไข่) is a word that starts with the same sound and means “egg”.
Two consonants still included in the alphabet, but no longer in use, are ฃ ( kho khuat ) and ฅ ( kho khon ).
These still appear on some keyboards and in character sets but have been officially dropped from writing. The reason is primarily because of the fact that when Edwin Hunter McFarland developed the first Thai typewriter in 1892, there simply wasn’t enough space for all characters, and so it was decided to leave these two out.
You can start learning the Thai consonants here.
Thai Vowels
There are 32 vowels in the Thai alphabet, but only 30 are in use. Vowels are split into three groups: singular (18 vowels), compound (6) consonant-like (8). Vowels are pronounced either long or short.
Many of the vowels cannot stand alone to be pronounced and so these vowels are featured with the consonant “or aang”, which is a special letter because it can be both a consonant and a vowel.
You can start learning the Thai vowels here.
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- , February 20, 2023
Thai Writing – Useful List Of 44 Thai Alphabet
Writing is one of the main elements of a language. Alongside reading and speaking, it is a core skill essential to truly learn and understand a language.
However, many people put the majority of their focus on their speaking ability to the detriment of these other skills. This is all well and good for basic conversation and communication for short visits; it does miss out on a major part of the language.
In this post, you will learn the basics of Thai writing to start learning Thai vocals and vowels. Let’s begin!
The Basics Of The Thai Alphabet
Believe it or not, Thai language is actually derived from the old Khmer script known as ‘ aksorn Thai ’ (อักษรไทย). This Thai script is now used all throughout Thailand and even in some neighboring countries. The script is said to have been created by King Ramkhamhaeng the Great (พ่อขุนรามคำแหงมหาราช) in 1283.
At first glance, Thai writing might appears to be made up of squiggles, circles, and lines. But, we’ll be sharing all the unique, beautiful characters in the Thai language .
It is written left to right, though due to the way characters are ordered, you may need to look above or to the right of a character to read it properly. Also, Thai is traditionally written without using and punctuation or spaces between words. These days, however, you will find that some punctuation is used and spaces are often put between each word.
So those were the basic facts about Thai writing. Now, let’s look at the characters that make up the Thai Alphabet.
Thai Alphabet Chart
Have you wondered know how many characters or letters are there in the Thai alphabet? In total, there are 72 characters in the Thai alphabet!
This can be split up into 44 consonants and 28 vowels . Then, you can also split it further into 3 consonant classes , 12 long vowels, and 16 short vowels.
Don’t get intimidated though! It may seem like a lot compared to the 28 letters of the Latin alphabet, but you should note that six characters (2 consonants and 4 vowels) are no longer used, being a relic from old Thai or otherwise taken from Sanskrit or Pali.
Before we learn more about the Thai Alphabet, there are a few things that need to be covered. Remember that this is just a guide to pronunciation as the Thai language doesn’t have an official transliteration system. This means that books and websites will write out a Thai word using the Latin alphabet in different ways.
This is due to the use of aspirated consonants in Thai, which isn’t present in the English language. As such, they try to find ways to signify or replicate the sound. There are also some more difficult pronunciations that don’t really have an equivalent in English. Either way, keep in mind that different sources will write things out differently.
Keep in mind that there are no upper or lower-case versions of characters. They stay the same wherever they are in the sentence. This should, of course, be good news for all of us learning Thai as we don’t need to be able to identify more character varieties.
One more thing to note is that the Thai consonants are generally shown with an acrophonic. This refers to words that start with that consonant’s sound. The equivalent in English would be to say ‘U as in Universe’.
Thai Consonants & Their Pronunciation: Introduction To Thai Writing
You also may have noticed in this list that some of the characters look almost exactly the same as each other. For example, ผ and ฝ are nearly identical other than an extended line. This means that, especially when written by hand, it can be difficult to tell which it should be. The same can happen with different fonts. Ultimately, you will need to train yourself and learn each of these to the best of your ability.
Thai Vowels & Their Pronunciation
While we say that there are 28 vowels, it is better categorized as a combination of long and short vowel sounds. There are actually 32 in total but 4 are no longer in everyday use.
Once again, there is no real transliteration system in place, meaning that different books and websites may write out a Thai word using the Latin alphabet using different characters.
As we talked about previously, Thai words are written in a unique way. The vowels don’t necessarily follow the consonant to its right, and instead can be placed above, below, to the left, and to the right of it. They can also be in a combination of these placements. It may therefore help to learn the consonants first so that you can recognize these characters, then you can identify the vowels. The consonants act as a base for these vowels, after all.
Finally, the word for the vowel in Thai is ‘ sara ’ (สระ). When writing out the vowels, it is typical to write this before each individual vowel. For example, ‘ sara a ’ (สระอะ) is written, which would be the same as writing ‘vowel a’ in English.
What Are The Thai Short Vowels
What are the thai long vowels.
There are 7 vowels that can change their form. This happens when they are followed by a consonant, and is done to help prevent confusion that can happen with certain combinations while making things clearer and faster overall. Note that these only change the way they are written, and do not impact the pronunciation or tone. We can look at these another time.
Otherwise, as you can tell by the two tables, the Thai language distinguishes between the length of vowels. That means that the vowel length can change the meaning of a word. You will have to learn to be strict about the length you pronounce as you learn or you might be misunderstood.
How Is The Punctuation In Thai?
The Thai language does not use punctuation like in English, but not to the same extent. While full stops/periods can be used to signify the end of a sentence, blank spaces are used more often. Commas can also appear with the same function as in English. There are brackets and quotation marks too.
One form of punctuation unique to Thai is the ‘ kho mut ’ ๛ (โคมูตร). This symbol is used to signify the end of a story or document. There are also some other special Thai characters you should know when learning how to write and read the Thai language.
Why Is Learning The Thai Alphabet Important?
As mentioned, reading and writing, two skills that require an understanding of the Thai Alphabet, make up a significant part of language learning . While speaking ability alone can get you far, there will be some occasions where reading and writing will also prove useful.
Another thing to point out is that learning the Thai Alphabet can also help you with your speaking. Let’s not forget that a lot more opportunities to learn will open up. You can start reading documents, books, and other materials that you couldn’t read before. This will greatly increase the speed at which you can learn and improve your skills . Your vocabulary will increase significantly, and you will gain further insight into the culture of Thailand.
When visiting Thailand, you will find that many of the more authentic experiences, eating or otherwise, are not always signposted in English or any other language. They will use their native Thai to write out their menu or whatever else they have on offer. As a traveler, you may well be looking for an authentic Thai cultural experience rather than a tourist-orientated one. For this reason, learning to read Thai can be invaluable for visitors to Thailand.
Secrets To Learning The Thai Alphabet Fast!
Unfortunately, there is no single method that will help you learn Thai overnight. It will require time and effort on your part to learn the characters of the Thai Alphabet and get to the point where you can read it with ease.
There are, however, some ways you can speed up the process. These best practices will help optimize your learning and potentially cut down the amount of time it takes.
Is the Thai alphabet easy to learn? Ideally, you should start out learning the alphabet from the get-go. You can learn each individual character and know exactly how it is pronounced if you practice diligently.
Bear in mind that the length of the vowel – that is, how long you hold the syllable – can change the meaning of a word. Therefore, spending the time to learn each character can actually improve your pronunciation and reduce any awkward misunderstandings.
Another tip is to use associations as a way to remember things such as pronunciation and how to write the characters. For example, you may look at the character (ต) and think that it looks like a tooth. You can use this association to immediately recall that the character that looks like a tooth is ‘ dtɔɔ-dtào (ต เต่า). Do this with all the characters and you should over time be able to memorize them.
Due to the quirk mentioned above about how characters are ordered and read, you will find that in some words the vowels are placed not only next to a consonant but also above it or even behind it. This is because consonants act as a base for the vowels to attach to.
This can make the learning process a bit more complicated. By focusing first on the consonants so that you can better identify them, you should be able to see the vowels easier.
Finally, you should just try to draw the characters out by hand. Trace it, freehand it and repeat. It is quite interesting to see how your handwriting improves over time until a point where it is recognizable and easily readable. Also, seeing your progress can be great motivation to continue your learning.
Learn More Thai With Related Lessons You’ll Find In The Ling App
There are some related lessons you can learn in the Ling app related to learning the Thai Alphabet . As well as having its own alphabet, Thai also has its own number system. These Thai numerals can be seen in many places, including on banknotes. Some shopkeepers have been known to use these Thai numerals to hide the ‘local’ prices of their goods from foreigners. However, they appear alongside the number system we are familiar with in the West the majority of the time. Either way, it is useful to learn.
When it comes to writing, you will unlock the ability to test your understanding of grammar . You can better communicate with other people. This is especially the case when it comes to online and the digital world.
Download the Ling app now on the Play Store or App Store , and start your language learning journey today!
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Write It! Thai 4+
Write to learn thai, designed for ipad.
- 4.7 • 108 Ratings
- Offers In-App Purchases
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Description.
Learn how to write the Thai alphabet in a fast, efficient and fun way. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you’re able to remember new things with our real handwriting recognition and guided lessons. • Practice and test Learn stroke by stroke how to correctly write each letter and then test your ability to write and recognize what you’ve learned. • Earn stars The faster you’re able to complete tests the more stars you’ll earn. Can you prove your mastery by achieving 3 stars on each lesson? • Custom review Review everything you’ve been studying to make sure you don’t forget anything you’ve studied. • Audio support We had our own audio professionally recorded so that you can start pairing sounds which what you’re learning. • Offline support Need to study on the go? No internet connection required so you’ll be able to catch up on your learning whether you’re on a train, plane or bus.
Version 3.1.21
Performance improvements and bug fixes.
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108 Ratings
This is the first Thai app I’ve found that is successfully helping me learn the letters of the Thai alphabet. Others just show you the letters and expect them to stick, but this breaks them down into smaller groups and has you trace each one which really helps with retention.
Excellent app but needs little improvement
Overall I like this app very much! I’m much more concentrated when I have to trace the letters so I memorize the consonants more easily. There’s only one problem. For vowels, you provide the names of the vowels other than their actual pronunciation. As a beginner, and I believe most of the users are, I care more about how to pronounce the vowels themselves but not their names. We don’t need to know their names to practice Thai, but we do need to know the pronunciation.
Excellent little app for learning to read Thai characters
I love it all. If possible, please allow a “review” setting that allows the user to make a specific Thai character list so that they can practice characters that they are having a difficult time with. :)
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