Three Most Important Words.

[Sean Moran]

In pasa Thai, almost every tourist learns how to say hello: Sawat dee, kap/kaa. (kap and kaa are gender-related)

Thank you is quite simple, although there is a colloquial version:

Khop khun, kap/kaa. (formal)
Khop jai. (informal)

The one important phrase that is oft forgotten is:

Khor tut, kap/kaa ...

... which means sorry.

Never hear that much from people anywhere anyway thesedays, do ya?

Still, if you think yourself a gentleman, then those are the three most important words to memorise:

1. Khor
2. Tut
3. Kap

and tut rhymes with foot.

[luangtom]

I have to disagree......mai phen rai.....these are the three most important words in the Thai language that a farang must know. No matter what happens, whether your guests are late, the taxi did not show or the house burns down, you are going to hear "mai phen rai".......these are the three most important words in the Thai language for farangs.

[Another-Day]

How about these 3 words....... Airport is closed !!!!!

[punter]

How about these:
1) Mi ow - I don't want any

2) Mi me stang - I don't have any money

3) Noo noo Plah plah - ( snake snake fish fish) it doesn't matter in the gretater scheme of things.

sorry about the spelling if grossly incorrect.

[Luuk-kreung]

I agree that Sawat-dee krap/kaa, Khop khun krap/kaa, and Khaw toht krap/kaa are the three most important expressions in Thai for anyone who's new to the language.

However, that last one (Khaw toht) does not rhyme with foot. It's hard to transliterate it: it's more like "tote", the final "t" being a near-silent glottal stop, not an aspirated "t", just as in English we often will say "wrote" with a glottal stop on the final "t".

Mai pen rai has several meanings in Thai, besides "it's ok" / "no big deal", it can also mean "you're welcome":

A: Khop khun krap!
B: Mai pen rai kaa!

I also want to point out that the gender particle for men, krap, when pronounced correctly, contains a rolled "r" (similar to the Italian "r"). Thais only drop the "r" when speaking fast and/or colloquially. So, to be the perfect gentleman, roll your "r" and say krap!

Choke-dee krap! (Good luck)

Chang Liu
Toronto

[sulasno]

anyone heard of "jai yen yen" ?

[dww33]

I do believe that "Jai Yen Yen" someone is telling you, you have a cold heart.

[sulasno]

I suppose you could be right

[anna]

To dww33,

"Jai Yen Yen" is a colloquail word or phrase meaning take things slowly not rushing into making a decision or conlusion, or take time to think things through, if I understand it correctly as a Thai person. You just translated it word for word as in Jai = heart, Yen = cold, therefore cold heart as a result.

[sulasno]

and I suppose jai ron maak means very hot heart