English is widely spoken in Thailand, and you can certainly find your way around without knowing a word of Thai. However, knowing some Thai, even if it is just a few rudimentary phrases, will help you a big deal when living in this country. For one, you will be looked at more favorably by Thais, and you can negotiate better.

Here are some common Thai phrases every visitor should know.

1. Hello

In Thai, this phrase translates into sawatdee, which is also written as sawatdii or sawasdee. This phrase means hello, goodbye, good morning, or even good day. So this is a ubiquitous word that will serve you well. You can add khap or khrup at the end if you are a male and ka if you are a female to sound more polite.

These articles are generally used in several Thai conversations as a sign of respect, therefore, you should get into the habit of using them whenever you are in a situation where you would normally say something polite such as please.

2. How Are You?

The Thai version of this phrase is Khun sabai di mai?

3. Thank You

To say thank you in Thai, you should say khob khun kha if you are female and khob khun khrap if you are male.

As we have noted above, the kha means the person saying thank you is female, while khrap means that they are male, and it makes the person speaking sound more polite, which is a big deal in Thai.

4. I Am Fine Thanks

For males, the Thai phrase is pom sabai di krap, while for a female, it is chan sabai di ka. The krap and ka are used as previously explained.

On the other hand, pom is how a male says I in Thai, while chan is how a female says I in Thai.

5. Come and Go

In thai, you simply say, ma for come. For go, you say, pai.

6. Food, drink, and eat

For food, you say ahaan, while for eat and drink you say gin and deum respectively.

7. How Much?

In Thai, you say thao rai. This will come in handy when you are negotiating for goods in Thailand, which is almost anytime you have to pay for anything.

8. Very Expensive/Very Cheap

In Thai, very expensive translates into phaaeng maak, while very cheap translates into thuuk maak.

9. I Do Not Understand

This simply translates into mai kow jai.

10. You’re Welcome

In Thai, you say, Yin dee krap or Yin dee ka depending on your gender.

11. Good Luck

In Thai, you say, chock dii.

12. What Is Your Name?

Khun cheu arai?

13. I Am Sorry

pom koh tot for males and chan koh tot for females.

14. I Am Happy

Pom mi kwam suk for males or chan mi kwam suk for females.

15. My Name Is ….

Pom cheu for males and chan cheu for females.

16. Pleased To Meet You

Yin dee tee dai roo jak

17. Stop!

Yut!

18. Happy Birthday

suk san wan gert

19. Excuse Me

kor tot

20. How Do You Say…In Thai?

Paasaa tai…poot waa yaang rai?

Bottom Line

Learning basic Thai phrases is not that hard, and should not take much of your time.

More importantly, these phrases can help you have a more favorable social standing when residing in the country, which is a good idea if you wish to remain there for a while or enjoy its delights to the fullest.

These common phrases should certainly give you an edge in Thailand’s social life.