กว่า and ที่ สุด: comparison and the top without a single ending
"Better", "faster", "dearer" — in Thai these are simply the quality word plus kwa: di kwa "better" (literally "good than"); paeng kwa — "dearer". What is compared with, goes after: paeng kwa muea wan — "dearer than yesterday". For example: “ร้าน นี้ ถูก กว่า” — This shop is cheaper. A rule from the Thai course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
"Better", "faster", "dearer" — in Thai these are simply the quality word plus kwa: di kwa "better" (literally "good than"); paeng kwa — "dearer". What is compared with, goes after: paeng kwa muea wan — "dearer than yesterday".
The top is thi sut — "the most": di thi sut — "best of all"; reo thi sut — "fastest of all". And "as fast as possible" is doi reo thi sut: the preposition doi plus the top. One and the same construction covers both "best of all" and "as fast as possible".
There are no irregular forms at all. You never learn "good — better — best" as three different words. One quality word, kwa for comparison, thi sut for the top — and the whole table of degrees is in your pocket.
Table
| Word | Comparative | Superlative | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| ดี — good | ดี กว่า | ดี ที่ สุด | di — di kwa — di thi sut |
| เร็ว — fast | เร็ว กว่า | เร็ว ที่ สุด | reo — reo kwa — reo thi sut |
| แพง — expensive | แพง กว่า | แพง ที่ สุด | paeng — paeng kwa — paeng thi sut |
| ถูก — cheap | ถูก กว่า | ถูก ที่ สุด | thuuk — thuuk kwa — thuuk thi sut |
| ยาว — long | ยาว กว่า | ยาว ที่ สุด | yao — yao kwa — yao thi sut |
| สูง — high | สูง กว่า | สูง ที่ สุด | suung — suung kwa — suung thi sut |
By example
- ร้าน นี้ ถูก กว่าран ний тхук квааThis shop is cheaper
- ดี ที่ สุด คือ ถาม หมอ ก่อนди ти сут кхы тхаам мо конBest of all — ask the doctor first
- ช่วย ส่ง งาน โดย เร็ว ที่ สุดчуай сонг нган дои рэо ти сутHand over the work as fast as possible
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
comparison and the top without a single ending: how does it work in Thai?
"Better", "faster", "dearer" — in Thai these are simply the quality word plus kwa: di kwa "better" (literally "good than"); paeng kwa — "dearer". What is compared with, goes after: paeng kwa muea wan — "dearer than yesterday".
What does it look like in a Thai example sentence?
“ร้าน นี้ ถูก กว่า” (ран ний тхук кваа) — This shop is cheaper. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.