Learning Thai with Original Thai Words: Learning Thai Quickly and Easily

By Dhyan Manik

Do you want to learn to speak Thai as naturally as Thais do? Thai is not as difficult as you may think! If you follow the guidelines of this book, you will acquire a basic knowledge of the language in just a few weeks. 

 

Students, usually, face several obstacles when studying Thai. In this book, we shall explain clearly wh

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dolphin Books
• Release date: Mar 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9789526651514

Book preview

Original-kannet

Dhyan Manik

Learning Thai

with

Original Thai Words

Learning Thai Quickly and Easily

Copyright © Dhyan Manik 2019

Cover design, layout and epub: by Uri Hautamäki / Data Graphics

Pictures: by Tone Artist

Audio spoken in MP3 format by native speakers can be loaded from the following address: www.thaibooks.net

Thai voices:

Ms. Duangmon Loprakhong

Ms. Waree Singhanart

Mr. Watit Pumyoo

English voice:

Ms. Jiraporn Buasuk

Publisher:

Dolphin Books

[e-mail]

www.dolphinbooks.org

ISBN 978-952-6651-51-4

Acknowledgement

I would like to thank the following people for valuable guidance on Thai syntax and grammar, and assistance with editing and proofreading the text to reflect standard spoken Thai:

Ms. Duangmon Loprakhong, Thai Teacher, Duke Language School, Bangkok

Ms. Waree Singhanart, Thai Teacher, Bangkok

Mr. Watit Pumyoo, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai

I am also grateful to Mr. Walter Kassela for editing and proofreading the English text.

With the help of the above people, the clarity of the written Thai and English text has been significantly improved.

Table of Contents

Cover

Title

Introduction

Chapter 1 - Simple expressions – coming and going

1 – Highlights

1 – A. Sentences

1 – B. Vocabulary

1 – C. How the language works

1 – D. New sounds

1 – E. Simple advice

1 – F. Take it further

Chapter 2 - Using personal pronouns, nouns and adjectives

2 – Highlights

2 – A. Sentences

2 – B. Vocabulary

2 – C. How the language works

2 – D. New sounds

2 – E. Simple advice

2 – F. Take it further

Chapter 3 - My name is…, to have, there is, to show possession

3 – Highlights

3 – A. Sentences

3 – B. Vocabulary

3 – C. How the language works

3 – D. New sounds

3 – E. Simple advice

3 – F. Take it further

Chapter 4 - At the market and buying things

4 – Highlights

4 – A. Sentences

4 – B. Vocabulary

4 – C. How the language works

4 – D. New sounds

4 – E. Simple advice

4 – F. Take it further

Chapter 5 - Eating and drinking

5 – Highlights

5 – A. Sentences

5 – B. Vocabulary

5 – C. How the language works

5 – D. New sounds

5 – E. Simple advice

5 – F. Take it further

Chapter 6 - Going out – romantic meeting

6 – Highlights

6 – A. Sentences

6 – B. Vocabulary

6 – C. How the language works

6 – D. New sounds

6 – E. Simple advice

6 – F. Take it further

Chapter 7 - Question words

7 – Highlights

7 – A. Sentences

7 – B. Vocabulary

7 – C. How the language works

7 – D. New sounds

7 – E. Simple advice

7 – F. Take it further

Chapter 8 - Colours, tastes and flavours

8 – Highlights

8 – A. Sentences

8 – B. Vocabulary

8 – C. How the language works

8 – D. New sounds

8 – E. Simple advice

8 – F. Take it further

Chapter 9 - At the pharmacy and not being well

9 – Highlights

9 – A. Sentences

9 – B. Vocabulary

9 – C. How the language works

9 – D. New sounds

9 – E. Simple advice

9 – F. Take it further

Chapter 10 - Using prepositions, nouns, adjectives and adverbs

10 – Highlights

10 – A. Sentences

10 – B. Vocabulary

10 – C. How the language works

10 – D. New sounds

10 – E. Simple advice

10 – F. Take it further

Chapter 11 - Using adverbs of frequency – how often -words

11 – Highlights

11 – A. Sentences

11 – B. Vocabulary

11 – C. How the language works

11 – D. New sounds

11 – E. Simple advice

11 – F. Take it further

Chapter 12 - Comparisons: more, less, most, same, equal, as

12 – Highlights

12 – A. Sentences

12 – B. Vocabulary

12 – C. How the language works

12 – D. New sounds

12 – E. Simple advice

12 – F. Take it further

Chapter 13 - Using hâi ให้ and dâai ได้ – to give and to get

13 – Highlights

13 – A. Sentences

13 – B. Vocabulary

13 – C. How the language works

13 – D. New sounds

13 – E. Simple advice

13 – F. Take it further

Chapter 14 - Using lɛ́ɛu แล้ว and kɔ̂ɔ ก็

14 – Highlights

14 – A. Sentences

14 – B. Vocabulary

14 – C. How the language works

14 – D. New sounds

14 – E. Simple advice

14 – F. Take it further

Chapter 15 - Expressing Thai tenses

15 – Highlights

15 – A. Sentences

15 – B. Vocabulary

15 – C. How the language works

15 – D. New Sounds

15 – E. Simple advice

15 – F. Take it further

Chapter 16 - Thai tenses – duration of time / point of time

16 – Highlights

16 – A. Sentences

16 – B. Vocabulary

16 – C. How the language works

16 – D. New sounds

16 – E. Simple advice

16 – F. Take it further

Chapter 17 - Expression of time: clock time, days, months, years

17 – Highlights

17 – A. Sentences

17 – B. Vocabulary

17 – C. How the language works

17 – D. New sounds

17 – E. Simple advice

17 – F. Take it further

Chapter 18 - Using classifiers and numbers

18 – Highlights

18 – A. Sentences

18 – B. Vocabulary

18 – C. How the language works

18 – D. New Sounds

18 – E. Simple advice

18 – F. Take it further

Chapter 19 - Using Thai prefixes to form special meanings

19 – Highlights

19 – A. Sentences

19 – B. Vocabulary

19 – C. How the language works

19 – D. New sounds

19 – E. Simple advice

19 – F. Take it further

Chapter 20 - Connecting words, phrases and sentences

20 – Highlights

20 – A. Sentences

20 – B. Vocabulary

20 – C. How the language works

20 – D. New sounds

20 – E. Simple advice

20 – F. Take it further

Chapter 21 - Tones of the Thai language

21 – Highlights

21 – A. Tones with short and long vowels

21 – B. Vocabulary

21 – C. How the language works

21 – D. New sounds

21 – E. Simple advice

21 – F. Take it further

Bibliography

Introduction

As a learner, you will normally face several obstacles when studying Thai. First, Thai uses a script which is unfamiliar to most of us. Secondly, there is no single transliteration system to write Thai sounds with western letters. So, you need to get used to many different transliteration – sometimes called Romanization – styles, which are not always very accurate and can be difficult to understand. Some of them do not contain any tone marks either. Thirdly, the tonal structure of the Thai language can be a major challenge for a beginner to master. Fourthly, Thai uses a complex system of classifiers, which puts some additional load to your shoulders since you need to learn many special count words in order to express plurals of objects.

We shall point out these challenges in a systematic way. So, you will gain the necessary knowledge and understanding about the Thai language as a whole; this will happen easily without too much effort on your part. We shall also point out what you need to know and what you can leave out in the beginning in order to speak Thai fluently!

In this book, we shall concentrate on the original Thai words which form the basics of the Thai language. It is estimated that the original Thai words constitute less than 50% of the total Thai vocabulary. Concentrating first on the original Thai words makes your language studies easier, and you will learn all the Thai consonant sounds and vowel sounds used today in Thai. The original Thai words are used often, and they play a central role in everyday speaking. They are written with the most common Thai consonants and form a kind of core of the Thai language.

Original Thai words have only one vowel sound in each word. They can be called monosyllables. Hence, they are easier to spell and pronounce since they are spelled with the most common consonants, while borrowed foreign words are often spelled with rare consonants and can have more than one syllable in one word.

The Thai writing system is very complex containing sophisticated tone rules and a vast number of consonants (42 altogether) representing only 20 different consonant sounds. This is due to the fact that many foreign words borrowed from foreign languages such as Pali and Sanskrit use rare consonant symbols for the same common Thai sounds. Note, however, that these borrowed words, spelled with different consonant symbols (called rare consonants), do not add any more sounds to the Thai language. Only the spelling is different.

Therefore, it makes sense in the beginning to concentrate on the original Thai words and sounds. Otherwise, your task could prove to be overwhelming and you may even give up. Learning the Thai script comes later if you wish to do so. That is a totally different game. In order to speak Thai well, you do not need to know the Thai writing system. So, your priority should be to learn simple everyday words, all the sounds of the Thai language, and how the language works; that means how the words are put together. If you have enough time and energy to put some effort into learning to speak Thai, you should be able to acquire sufficient knowledge about the Thai language quite fast; then, you are well prepared to make a decision on how to proceed. However, this process will be different for each learner.

Thai is not as difficult as it sounds. It can be made difficult if you start from the wrong perspective. We will make it simple for you. We teach all the sounds of the Thai language and how words are put together in a sentence. That is the basics of any language. You need to know the sounds well in order to be able to communicate with others. You do not need to know how to read or write in Thai script. Learning to read and write Thai takes considerable effort. Understanding the structure and grammar of the Thai language is very important since it may differ considerably from your own language. When you learn a new language as an adult, your brain wants to understand the process. If you do not have the right skills for the new language, your brain will understand things in its own way based on knowledge from the past. That can be confusing. Therefore, we also have included the section How the language works in order to put you on the right track directly at the very beginning.

Many people have friends living in Thailand who have started to learn Thai by themselves or in one of the language schools. Quite a few of them have, however, given up because they have felt that the Thai language is too complicated and difficult. Now, tell your friends that to learn to speak Thai fluently is easy; you will soon see how!

This book is designed in such a way that it can be used by beginners and by those who already have some knowledge about the Thai language. We would recommend that you first read the book quickly in order to gain some overall knowledge about the Thai language. After that you can read the book many more times and go deeper into it by concentrating on those sections and points which are important to you.

How to use this book

Each chapter includes Sample sentences spoken by native speakers (Section A). In the Vocabulary (Section B), we usually repeat words again and again so that they sink into your subconscious without much effort on you part.

In the How the language works (Section C), we explain how the words are put together; it can be called syntax, grammar, word order or the structure of the language. It only means that every language has a unique way to put words together in the sentence.

In the New sounds (Section D), we go through each Thai sound so that you will be able to speak Thai fluently and confidently while communicating with Thai people. We would advise you to place much effort on getting sounds correct directly from the beginning.

The Simple advice (Section E) is meant to give you clear guidance so you will be able to make intelligent decisions on how to proceed with your Thai studies. You may wish to read this section first in order to gain an overall understanding of the Thai language. This is quite important for learning Thai.

Lastly, in the Take it further (Section F), we point out possibilities on how to deepen your understanding about the Thai language and how to proceed with your studies. We have also designed a completely new book Dhyan Manik: Understanding the Thai Language and Grammar – Take It Further (ISBN 978-952-6651-46-0) as a supplement to this book. You may also wish to use it alongside with this book in order to facilitate your studies. It can be used with any other Thai learning book as well.

We use a direct method which is easy to comprehend. There is no need to let anything hinder you. When speaking, you don’t need to know the complex Thai writing system. However, we also write every sentence in Thai script. You are well advised to ignore that part in the beginning. Later on, if you wish, you may review the Thai script. But in the beginning, it is better to concentrate only on the pronunciation and understanding of the Thai language.

It is quite important to understand the overall complexity of the Thai language. We will guide you through it step by step and introduce the most important features of the Thai language. We recommend that you start listening to audio recordings directly from the beginning. There is no need to understand everything. Just get used to Thai sounds.

We believe that each person has her/his own way to handle information and approach the learning process. So, be creative!

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Chapter 1

Simple expressions

coming and going

yùu thîi-nôon

อยู่ ที่ โน่น

It is over there.

A. Sentences

1 pai năi – ไป ไหน

go where – Where are you going to?

2 pai năi maa – ไป ไหน มา

go where come – Where have you been?

3 tɔ̂ng pai lɛ́ɛu – ต้อง ไป แล้ว

must go already – I must go now.

4 kháu maa lɛ́ɛu – เขา มา แล้ว

he come already – He has already come.

5 kháu pai lɛ́ɛu – เขา ไป แล้ว

he go already – He has gone already.

6 kháu pai năi – เขา ไป ไหน

he go where – Where did he go?

7 yùu thîi-năi – อยู่ ที่ ไหน

stay place-where – Where are you?

8 yùu thîi-nîi – อยู่ ที่ นี่

stay place-this – I am here.

9 yùu thîi-nân – อยู่ ที่ นั่น

stay place-that – It is there.

10 yùu thîi-nôon – อยู่ ที่ โน่น

stay place-that – It is over there.

Common expressions

kham thîi ʧái bɔ̀i-bɔ̀i – คำ ที่ ใช้ บ่อยๆ

B. Vocabulary