คง ไม่
“คง ไม่” (кхонг май) — hardly; unlikely in Thai. Adverb, level B1, topic — basic words. Literally "probably not": the particle is one of supposition; it sounds like the familiar "of" but is written otherwise and with another tone. "Hardly will he come" is exactly these two words. In a live sentence: “เขา คง ไม่ มา วัน นี้” — He will hardly come today. Written with the characters ค, ง, ไ, ม, ่.
In short
| Written in Thai | คง ไม่ |
| Read in Latin letters | кхонг май |
| Translation | hardly; unlikely |
| Part of speech | adverb |
| Level | B1 |
Why it looks that way
Literally "probably not": the particle is one of supposition; it sounds like the familiar "of" but is written otherwise and with another tone. "Hardly will he come" is exactly these two words
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- เขา คง ไม่ มา วัน นี้кхао кхонг май ма ван нийHe will hardly come today
Nearby words: basic words
Yes, no, good, bad, very. The small change of a language — and no sentence assembles without it.
- ใช่чайyesThe answer to a "...isn't it?" question. It sounds exactly like the word for tea — the easiest memory hook there is. It does not attach to verbs: to "going?" Thai answers "going"
- ไม่ ใช่май чайnoLiterally "not so". It negates nouns and facts; verbs are negated differently — a plain mai in front of the word. In casual speech people also answer plao
- สบายดีсабайдиfineLiterally "comfortable". The standard full answer about yourself: sabai di khrap khopkhun — fine, thank you
- ไม่ค่อย สบายмайкхой сабайnot so wellLiterally "not quite well". Thai avoids a flat "bad" about oneself and softens it; about illness the same move: mai sabai means "I am ill"
- เยี่ยม มากйиам макgreatA stronger answer to "how are you?" than sabai di: literally "on great form". Mak is the same "very" as in "thank you very much"
- ได้ ไหม?дай май?may I?; is it possible?Literally "can or not?". It attaches to any request at the end: kho nam dai mai — "water, may I?". The answer is dai (may) or mai dai (may not)
- และлэandA bookish link that live speech often drops: "coffee tea" without "and" sounds fine. In a list Thai more often puts a pause than the word
- แต่тэbutThe colloquial "but", standing between phrases. A second "but", tae wa, is longer and even more colloquial; the difference is tempo, not meaning
- กิโลкилоkilo; kilogramThe short form of "kilogram". Half a kilo is khrueng kilo, and "one and a half" is the other way round — kilo khrueng: the half jumps to the end
- ครึ่งкхрынгhalfA half; it stands in front: khrueng kilo — half a kilo, khrueng chua mong — half an hour
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “basic words”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “hardly; unlikely” in Thai?
Literally "probably not": the particle is one of supposition; it sounds like the familiar "of" but is written otherwise and with another tone. "Hardly will he come" is exactly these two words
- How do you say “and” in Thai?
A bookish link that live speech often drops: "coffee tea" without "and" sounds fine. In a list Thai more often puts a pause than the word
- How do you say “fine” in Thai?
Literally "comfortable". The standard full answer about yourself: sabai di khrap khopkhun — fine, thank you
- How do you say “half” in Thai?
A half; it stands in front: khrueng kilo — half a kilo, khrueng chua mong — half an hour
- How do you say “may I?; is it possible?” in Thai?
Literally "can or not?". It attaches to any request at the end: kho nam dai mai — "water, may I?". The answer is dai (may) or mai dai (may not)
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “hardly; unlikely” in Thai?
«คง ไม่», read “кхонг май”. In a live sentence: “เขา คง ไม่ มา วัน นี้” — He will hardly come today. Adverb, level B1, from the set “basic words”; written with the characters ค, ง, ไ, ม, ่.
How is “คง ไม่” written in Latin letters?
кхонг май. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Literally "probably not": the particle is one of supposition; it sounds like the familiar "of" but is written otherwise and with another tone. "Hardly will he come" is exactly these two words. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.