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Point II : Train Time

In Thailand, the time on railroad schedules is given in terms of the twenty-four interval rather than the twelve hour interval. This does away with confusion between A.M. and P.M.

Examples:

สองนาฬิกาแล้ว

sɔ̆ɔŋ naalíkaa lɛ́ɛw

It's two (A.M.)

สิบสี่นาฬิกาแล้ว

sìpsìi naalíkaa lɛ́ɛw

It's two (P.M.)

Whenever the time is given in terms of the twenty-four hour interval, the word naalíkaa is used to mean "o'clock." The word mooŋ, which is also means "o'clock," is used in giving the time in terms of shorter intervals of time, but not in terms of the twenty-four hour interval.

Point III : Primary and secondary verbs

Examples:

1) pay (ไป )

khun khəəy pay hŭahĭn măy

คุณเคย ไป หัวหินไหม

Did you ever go to Huahin?

khun phɔˆɔ phaa raw pay hŭahĭn thúk pii

คุณพ่อพาเรา ไป หัวหินทุกปี

Dad took us (took us going') to Huahin every year.

2) maa (มา)

rótfay càʔ maa mʉˆaray

รถไฟจะ มา เมื่อไหร่

When will the train come?

mʉˆa waanníi khun phɔˆɔ phaa raw maa thiˆiniˆi

เมื่อวานนี้ คุณพ่อพาเรา มา ที่นี่

Dad brought us ('took us coming') here yesterday.

3) khʉˆn (ขึ้น )

náam khʉˆn

น้ำขึ้น

The water is rising.

tʉ̀ʉn khʉˆn

ตื่นขึ้น

Wake up!

4) loŋ (ลง)

náam loŋ

น้ำลง

The water is receding.

nàŋ loŋ thèet

นั่งลงเถิด

Sit down!

Each set of examples shown above illustrates the same verb in different positions. When the verb being illustrates is the first or only verb in the phrase it has one meaning, but when it follows another verb it frequently has a different meaning. For example, khʉˆn in main position means 'recede' or 'descend', but in secondary position it means 'down.' It is important to note that when a verb is found in secondary position, it adds something to the meaning of the main verb.

To make it easy to refer to the different kinds of meanings which Thai verbs may have, verbs in main position are called PRIMARY VERBS and verbs in secondary position are referred to as SECONDARY VERBS.

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Point IV : The Word sĭa

Examples:

khăw pay sĭa càak thiˆiniˆi naan lɛ́ɛw

He went away from here a long time ago

เขาไปจากที่นี่ เสียนานแล้ว

láaŋ naˆa sĭa thə̀ət

Wash up! (or) Get washed!

ล้างหน้าเสียเถิด

mɛ̆ɛ, khɔɔy sĭa naan.

Gosh, I've been waiting a long time.

แหม คอยเสียนาน

nʉ́k waˆa, càʔ maˆy maa sĭa lɛ́ɛw

I thought you weren't coming. (Paraphrase: I thought it had already come to pass that you would not come.)

นึกว่าไม่มาเสียแล้ว

nʉ́k waˆa, càʔ maa maˆy than sĭa lɛ́ɛw

I thought I'd missed it. (Paraphrase: I thought it had already come to pass that I had missed it.)

นึกว่าจะมาไม่ทันเสียแล้ว

In the examples above, sĭa is a secondary verb and can sometimes be translated 'away,' as in the first example, or 'up,' as in the second example, but at other times, there is no single English word which will cover its meaning, as in the last three examples. However, the basic idea back of sĭa is that the activity referred to by the main verb is thought of as completed or accomplished. Sometimes the activity has not yet taken place, as in the second example, but it is thought of as a completed unit. It is for this reason that sĭa is called a completive word.

Point V : The word waˆa

Examples:

khun phuˆut waˆa ʔàray

คุณพูดว่าอะไร

What did you say?

phŏm maˆy khít waˆa, phŏn càʔ tòk

ผมไม่คิดว่าฝนจะตก

I didn't think (that) it will rain.

khăw thăam waˆa, mii hɔˆŋ waˆaŋ maˆy

เขาถามว่ามีห้องว่างไหม

He asked whether there were any vacant rooms

khăw thăam waˆa, hooten yùu thiˆinăy

เขาถามว่าโฮเตล อยู่ที่ไหน

He asked where the hotel is.

phŏm yaŋ may rúu waˆa, cáʔ chɔˆɔp rʉˆy maˆy

ผมยังไม่รู้ว่า จะชอบหรือไม่

I still don't know whether I'll like it or not.

phŏm bɔ̀ɔk khun pràsìt waˆa, càʔ pay phóp khăw sìp mooŋ

ผมบอกคุณประสิทธิ์ ว่าจะไปพบเขาสิบโมง

I told pràsìt (that) I'd meet him at ten.

phŏm klua waˆa, khun phăn càʔ maa cháa

ผมกลัวว่าคุณผัน จะมาช้า

I'm afraid (that) phăn will be ('come') late.

Verbs of saying, thinking, asking, telling, knowing, and the like, are followed by the secondary verb waˆa (which means literally 'saying') to show that whatever follows waˆa is the thing that was said, thought, asked, etc. Sometimes that which follows is a single word (as in the first example above), and sometimes it is a clause (i.e., a sentence which is part of another sentence), as in the rest of the examples.

Sometimes waˆa can be translated in English by 'that' (as in examples 2, 6, and 7), sometimes by 'whether' (as in examples 3 and 5), but generally it remains untranslated ( as in examples 1 and 4 and also examples 2, 6, and 7, where 'that' can be omitted).

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Point VI: The words nʉ́k and khít

Examples:

nʉ́k waˆa, càʔ maˆy maa sĭa lɛ́ɛw

I thought you weren't coming

นึกว่าจะไม่มีเสียแล้ว

khun khít waˆa, fŏn cáʔ tòk măy

Do you think it'll rain?

คุณคิดว่าฝนจะตกไหม

thaˆa khun phák thiˆiniˆi tháŋ ʔaathít, raw càʔ khít raakhaa phísèet haˆy

If you stay here all week, we'll figure a special price for you.

ถ้าคุณพักที่นี่ทั้งอาทิตย์ เราจะคิดราคาพิเศษให้

The words nʉ́k and khít are similar in meaning, but while nʉ́k means simply 'to think', khít means not only 'to think' but 'to figure', as well. Sometimes the two words are used interchangeably, but when the meaning is 'to figure', as in the third example above, only khít may be used.

Point VII: The words rɛˆɛk and thiˆinʉ́ŋ

Examples:

niˆi pen khráŋ rɛˆɛk

This is the first time or the initial time.

นี่เป็นครั้งแรก

chán thiˆinʉ́ŋ phɛɛŋ kəən pay

First class is too expensive.

ชั้นที่หนึ่ง แพงเกินไป

Though the words rɛˆɛk and thiˆinʉ́ŋ appear to be very similar in meaning, we find that thiˆinʉ́ŋ is used for 'first' when one is referring to things which occur in a fixed or predetermined quantity. Thus railroads have three classes, thiˆinʉ́ŋ 'first', thiˆisɔ̆ɔŋ 'second', and thiˆisăam 'third', and in a sequence like this rɛˆɛk is never substituted for thiˆinʉ́ŋ. In contrast to this rɛˆɛk means 'initial' as well as 'first' and is used when referring to things whose quantity is unknown or unimportant. Hence in the first example above the number of times the event referred to will take place is unknown and the only important factor at the time the statement is made is that this is the 'first' or 'initial' time that it has occurred.

Point VIII: The use of khun with terms for relatives

Examples:

khun phɔˆɔ phaa raw pay hŭahĭn

คุณพ่อพาเราไปหัวหิน

Dad took us to Hahin.

The word khun, which you have previously learned to use as a title with people's names, is also used as a title with terms for relatives, as in khun phɔˆɔ 'father, dad'. Some of the similar examples you will meet are:

khun mɛˆɛ	คุณแม่	Mother
khun phiˆi	คุณพี่	Brother or Sister

Note that khun is used with terms for relatives when the relative referred to is older than the speaker.

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Point IX: The word thaˆn

Examples:

khun phɔˆɔ phaa raw pay hŭahĭn thúk pii.

weelaa nán thaˆn mii baˆan thiˆinaˆn

คุณพ่อพาเราไปหัวหิน เวลานั้น ท่าน มีบ้านที่นั่น

Dad took us to Hahin every year. At that time, he had a house there.

The word thaˆn is commonly used as a pronoun meaning 'he, she, they' when one is speaking of one's elders. Note that in the example given here, thaˆn refers to the speaker's father.

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Point X: Omission of pronouns

Examples:

khɔɔy sĭa naan

Translation:

[I]'ve been waiting a long time.

Alternative translation:

Been waiting a long time

คอยเสียนาน

nʉ́k waˆa, càʔ maˆy maa sĭa lɛ́ɛw

Translation:

[I] thought [you] weren't coming

Alternative translation:

Thought [you] weren't coming.

นึกว่าจะไม่มา เสียแล้ว

thammay cháa nák láʔ khráp

Translation:

How's come [you]'re so late?

Alternative translation:

Why so late?

ทำไมช้านักนะครับ

In the examples above the bracketed words in bold face type are pronouns expressed in English but not in Thai. You will notice that the sense in Thai is quite clear without the pronoun. We sometimes go in for the omission of pronouns in English, too, as is shown in the third column above. However, pronoun omissions in general are much more common in Thai than in English

Point XI: Some abbreviations

A. Using khrʉˆaŋ in place of khrʉˆaŋyon

Examples:

phŏm hăa rótthɛ́ksiˆi maˆy daˆy, phɔɔ daˆy khan nʉ̀ŋ kɔˆʔ baŋʔəən kèet khrʉˆaŋ sĭa khʉˆn taam thaaŋ

ผมหารถแท็กซี่ไม่ได้ พอได้คันหนึ่งก็บังเอิญเกิดเครื่องเสียขึ้นตามทาง

I had trouble finding a taxi, [and] as soon as I got one the motor broke down along the way.

Here khrʉˆaŋ may be used for short in place of khrʉˆaŋyon 'motor', because it is clear from the context that an automobile motor is referred to. Unless the context is quite clear on the point, however, it is necessary to use the full form of the word, namely, khrʉˆaŋyon.

B. Using rót in place of rótfay, rótraaŋ, or rótyon

Example:

phŏm cáʔ sʉ́y ʔaahăan pay kin nay rót

ผมจะซื้ออาหาร ไปกินในรถ

I'll buy some food to eat on the train.

phŏm cáʔ pay khɔɔy rót thiˆi sìyɛˆɛk

ผมจะไปคอยรถที่สี่แยก

I'll go wait for the car (i.e., street car) at the corner.

phŏm yàak càʔ sʉ́y rót mày.

ผมอยากจะซื้อรถใหม่

I'd like to buy a new car (i.e., automobile).

The word rót 'car' may be used for short in place of rótfay 'train', rótraaŋ 'streetcar', or rótyon 'automobile' wherever it is clear from the context what kind of 'car' is being referred to.

Point XII: Making new words with kaan

Examples:

Without kaan-

Meaning

With kaan-

Meaning

thiˆaw

to wander

kaanthiˆaw

wandering or going around

('the wandering activity')

dəən

to walk

kaandəən

walking

('the walking activity')

yiˆam

to visit

kaanyiˆam

visiting

sʉ́y khɔ̆ɔŋ

to shop

kaansʉ́y khɔ̆ɔŋ

shopping

dəən thaaŋ

to travel

kaandəən thaaŋ

travelling or travel

The word kaan- is put in front of verbs to turn them into nouns having the meaning 'the such-and-such activity'. Since kaan- means 'activity' it must be used only with verbs which refer to carrying on some kind of activity. Consequently, kaan- would not be used with the verb hĭw because 'to be hungry' is not an activity.

Note that while kaan- may be translated by English '-ing', the reverse is not true. In other words, there are a great many English words ending in '-ing' which cannot be translated by kaan-.

The hyphen placed after kaan- is to show that the word is not used by itself, that it must always be combined with other words.

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Point XIII: The use of khráŋ

Examples:

khun khìi rótfay khráŋ rɛˆɛk mʉˆaray

คุณขี่รถไฟ ครั้งแรกเมื่อไหร่

What did you first ('for the first time') ride [on] a train?

khăw khìi rótfay khráŋ diaw

เขาขี่รถไฟครั้งเดียว

He's ridden on a train only once ('a single time').

khun mák càʔ pay nay mʉaŋ ʔaathít láʔ kìi khráŋ

คุณมักจะไปในเมืองอาทิตย์ละกี่ครั้ง

How many times a week do you usually go to town?

ʔaathít láʔ khráŋ (or) ʔaathít láʔ khráŋ nʉ̀ŋ

อาทิตย์ละครั้ง (หรือ) อาทิตย์ละครั้งหนึ่ง

Once ('one time') a week.

ʔaathít láʔ sɔ̆ɔŋ khráŋ

อาทิตย์ละสองครั้ง

Twice ('two times') a week.

ʔaathít láʔ săam khráŋ

อาทิตย์ละสามครั้ง

Three times a week.

The word khráŋ is used to mean 'time' when one is talking about the number of times an event of activity takes place. Note that khráŋ is a classifier and the things you have already learned about other classifiers also apply to it.

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Point XIV: Some classifiers

From this point on only those classifiers which require some special comment will be discussed in this section. The fact that the classifier for a given noun is not discussed is no excuse for not knowing the proper classifier for that noun. The classifiers discussed below are the only ones requiring comment in this unit.

a. bay, which you have already had in several different uses, is also the classifier for tŭa 'ticket.'

b. kràbuan or khàbuan is used as the classifier for trains and processions; it is therefore the classifier for rótfay 'train.'

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Point XV: Some compounds

nákrian 'student, pupil' (lit., 'one skilled in studying'), from nák- 'one skilled in' + rian 'to study.' The word nák- is used only in compounds.

nákthɔˆŋthiˆaw 'tourist' (lit., 'one skilled in touring'), from nák- + thɔˆŋthiˆaw 'to tour.'

rótsàbiaŋ 'dining-car', from rót 'car' + sàbiaŋ 'food supplies.'

thiˆinaˆŋ 'seat, place to sit', from thiˆi 'place' + naˆŋ 'to sit.'

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Point XVI: Some special phrases

kəə̀t....khʉˆn 'to happen, occur', lit., 'to originate up'.

maa maˆy than 'to miss (e.g., 'a train, streetcar')', lit. 'to come not in time.'

pay maˆy than 'to miss (e.g., 'a train, streetcar')', lit. 'to go not in time.'

tàak ʔaakàat 'to go for an outing', lit. 'to expose (oneself) to the air.' compare the English expression 'to go for an airing.'

than weelaa 'to be on time.'

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