ด้วย: the Thai instrumental — everything you do it with follows ด้วย
Thai changes nothing here. The tool keeps its shape, and duai, "by means of", stands in front of it. I cut with a knife — tat duai mit; I write with a pen — khian duai pakka. For example: “หั่น ผัก ด้วย มีด คม” — Cut the vegetables with a sharp knife. A rule from the Thai course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Thai changes nothing here. The tool keeps its shape, and duai, "by means of", stands in front of it. I cut with a knife — tat duai mit; I write with a pen — khian duai pakka.
All tools work this way. mat duai chueak — tie with a rope; yok duai raeng — lift with force. jai duai ngoen sot — pay in cash. The means of transport is the same word: pai duai rot fai — go by train.
The same word has two more uses. It gives the manner: duai tua eng — by oneself. And it shares a feeling: di jai duay — rejoice together. The position tells them apart: after a verb — the instrument; after a feeling — the companionship.
Table
| Done with | Word | Reading | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| a knife | ด้วย มีด | duai mit | ตัด ด้วย มีด — cut with a knife |
| glue | ด้วย กาว | duai gao | ติด ด้วย กาว — stick with glue |
| a rope | ด้วย เชือก | duai chueak | มัด ด้วย เชือก — tie with a rope |
| the hands | ด้วย มือ | duai mue | ทำ ด้วย มือ — do by hand |
| force | ด้วย แรง | duai raeng | ยก ด้วย แรง — lift with force |
| cash | ด้วย เงิน สด | duai ngoen sot | จ่าย ด้วย เงิน สด — pay in cash |
By example
- หั่น ผัก ด้วย มีด คมхан пхак дыай мит кхомCut the vegetables with a sharp knife
- ขัน สกรู ด้วย ไข ควงкхан сакруу дыай кхай кхуангScrew the screw with a screwdriver
- จ่าย ด้วย เงิน สด ได้ ไหมджай дыай нгын сат даай майCan I pay in cash?
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
ด้วย: how does it work in Thai?
Thai changes nothing here. The tool keeps its shape, and duai, "by means of", stands in front of it. I cut with a knife — tat duai mit; I write with a pen — khian duai pakka.
What does it look like in a Thai example sentence?
“หั่น ผัก ด้วย มีด คม” (хан пхак дыай мит кхом) — Cut the vegetables with a sharp knife. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.