Verbs in Thai

115 words on the topic

• ขอ

  кхо

  I want; I will take

  The main word of ordering: literally "I ask". "I want coffee" in Thai is kho kafae khrap, and that is politer than a flat "I want". It does not conjugate: I and you say the same kho
• ชอบ

  чоп

  to like; to love

  "Love" in the sense of "like" — about food, music and people. Love for a person Thai says with another word (rak), and the two cannot be mixed up
• ไป

  пай

  to go

  One verb for on foot, by bus and by plane. At the end of a phrase it also means "to be off": pai kon — "I am off". It changes for neither person nor time
• กิน

  кин

  to eat

  The neutral "eat". Politer is than; about animals kin is used without embarrassment. The Thai greeting formula is "let's go eat rice": pai kin khao
• ดื่ม

  дыым

  to drink

  A long syllable with a dead end — the p is not released. About alcohol Thai speaks with the same word: duem bia — "drink beer"
• อ่าน

  ан

  to read

  The tone falls. The book is nangsue, and "read a book" is a pair that always lives together
• พูด

  пхуыт

  to speak

  A low-class ph with a puff of air. "To speak Thai" is assembled through "language": phut phasaa thai — literally "speak language Thai"
• ทำ งาน

  тхам нган

  to work

  Literally "do work": the two words always go as a pair, and the verb here is exactly "do". The same turn answers "what do you do for a living?"
• ต้อง

  тонг

  must; to have to

  Literally "it is required": after it the verb goes unchanged, as in "one must go". No person shows on it either — "must" is one word for everybody
• อยู่

  ю

  to live; to be located

  "Live", "be located" and "stay put": one word for everything where "to be somewhere" is needed. Yu thinai? is "where do you live?" and "where are you?" at once
• มี

  ми

  to have

  Literally "there is, there are": "I have time" in Thai is mi wela. The negation is mai mi — "there is not" — and it knows no person either
• ผม มี

  пхом ми

  I have

  Literally "I have". The English "I have" is conveyed directly, and the pronoun here is the male one; a woman says dichan mi
• เรียน

  риан

  to study; to learn

  One verb for teaching and learning: rian phasaa thai is both "I learn Thai" and "I study Thai". "To teach someone" is said with another word, with the prefix "give"
• เลือก

  лыак

  to choose; to select

  To choose attentively, sorting through. "I will choose myself" Thai says with a single eng at the end of the phrase
• เรียน หนังสือ

  риан нангсы

  to study (from books)

  Literally "learn the book": familiar words in a pair. To teach someone is another verb, with the prefix "give"
• จำ

  джам

  to memorize; to remember

  To memorize and to remember: jam mai dai — "I cannot recall" — is a frequent phrase. Memory is the same word in a frame
• เห็น

  хэн

  to see

  Literally "land in the eye". The negation is mai hen, and "see you" Thai says through the familiar joe gan
• ได้ ยิน

  дай йин

  to hear

  Literally "get into the ear": dai is "to get", yin is hearing. "To ask" is a different word — do not mix them by ear
• นอน

  нон

  to sleep; to lie down

  "Sleep", "lie", and "stop for the night": the bedroom is "sleep room", assembled from this word
• ถือ

  тхыэ

  to carry

  To carry in the hands, to hold. To transport is a separate verb: there a vehicle works, not the hands
• วาง

  ваанг

  to put; to place

  Both "stand up" and "lay down" — Thai does not mind whether upright or flat. It argues by ear with wang, "free": here the tone decides everything
• หัก

  хак

  to break (in two)

  About what snaps: a branch, bread, a bone. Machines are not hak but phang — they break down rather than snap
• สร้าง

  санг

  to build

  To build a house and "build" relations — one verb. The name of the construction site grows from it too
• ต้ม

  том

  to boil; to simmer; to heat

  To boil, to stew, to reheat — about food and water on the stove. Thai keeps no separate "reheat": the soup is tom and that is that
• เก็บ ของ

  кеп кхонг

  to pack; to gather things

  Literally "gather things" — for a trip and for cleaning alike. One verb gathers both the suitcase and the order in the room
• อาบ น้ำ

  аап нам

  to bathe; to take a shower

  Literally "wash oneself with water": aap is to wash oneself. Thai bathes in the sea and in the shower with one verb
• ว่าย น้ำ

  ваай нам

  to swim

  Literally "move in the water": waai is to move cutting the water. One who cannot swim may still bathe — but not swim
• ตาก แดด

  так дэт

  to sunbathe

  Literally "dry in the sun": tak is to dry, like laundry. Thai sunbathes the way it dries clothes — and that is no joke
• ตก ปลา

  ток пла

  to fish

  Tok is both to fall and to fish with a tackle: "waterfall" is "falling water", and this is fishing. One word holds both senses
• รด น้ำ

  рот нам

  to water; to pour on

  Literally "pour water": rot is to pour from above, to sprinkle. By ear it argues with "car" — the tone and the context decide
• ใส่

  сай

  to put on; to insert

  The verb "to put inside": put on a shirt, add salt, insert a card — all of it sai. Thai puts on clothes the way it puts things in a bag
• ลอง

  лонг

  to try on

  To try in general: try on, taste, attempt. By ear it argues with "descend" — only the tone tells them apart
• หัว เราะ

  хуа рэ

  to laugh

  Literally "the head laughs": hua is the head, a familiar word. A Thai joke tickles the head, not the belly
• ร้อง ไห้

  ронг хай

  to cry; to weep

  Literally "cry out weeping": rong is to cry out, to make a voice, hai is to weep. Weeping in Thai is a voice, and that is honest
• กลัว

  клуа

  to fear; to be afraid

  To fear, to dread: one word without changes. "Afraid of what?" — the question folds out of two words
• แปลก ใจ

  плэк чай

  to be surprised

  Literally "strange to the heart": plaek is strange, foreign — the familiar word from "stranger". Surprise in Thai is strangeness that got into the heart
• หวัง

  хуанг

  to hope

  By ear a twin of "worry": only the shortness of the vowel and the tone tell them apart. Hope and anxiety live side by side in Thai
• ทะเลาะ ว่า

  тхалао ваа

  to argue; to bicker

  The first part is to quarrel loudly, the second is to scold at someone. A living word from the family kitchen
• รับ ประกัน

  рап пракон

  to promise

  Literally "accept the guarantee": prakoen is a guarantee, the same word as in insurance. To promise in Thai is nearly to vouch
• ทะเลาะ กัน

  тхалао кан

  to quarrel (with each other)

  Kan is "each other": the same word as in "let's go together". One always quarrels kan — in pairs, face to face
• กอด

  кот

  to hug

  A short word with a voiceless final t. To hug and the hug are one word — like much in Thai
• ทำ อาหาร

  тхам ахан

  to cook

  Literally "make food": both words are old acquaintances. Thai does not split "cook" and "boil" — it simply makes food
• ล้าง

  лаанг

  to wash

  To wash with water in general: dishes, hands, a car. Hands are laang mue, and that mue is the one from the gloves
• ตุ๋น

  тун

  to simmer; to stew

  To simmer on a low fire. The familiar tom is both "to heat" and "to boil": in live speech Thais say it more often
• ทอด

  тхот

  to fry; to deep-fry

  To fry in oil, to deep-fry: banana fritters and batter-fried chicken are all thot. By ear near the word "fault" — the tone decides
• อบ

  оп

  to bake

  To bake in the oven: bread, cookies, fish in foil. One short syllable: op
• หั่น

  хан

  to cut up; to slice

  To cut into pieces: bread, onion, fruit. The initial h gives an aspirated sound
• ชิม

  чим

  to taste; to try (food)

  To taste: to sample soup, sauce, fruit. The familiar word is "to try" in general, and this one is exactly with the tongue
• สั่ง

  санг

  to order

  To order food and to give commands at once: one word for the waiter and for the dog. At a restaurant: "order food"
• โทร

  тор

  to call (by phone)

  The first syllable of "telephone", broken off into a verb. Whom you call is suggested by ha, "to": tho ha mae — call Mom
• โหลด

  лот

  to download; to load

  From the English load. By ear the same word as "reduce" from the discounts — the spelling and the context tell them apart
• ส่ง

  сонг

  to send

  A mid tone, a verb for all occasions: one sends a message, a photo and a parcel alike. By ear it returns in the post lesson
• รับ

  рап

  to receive; to get

  The same rap as in "answer the phone": to accept — a line, a parcel, a guest. Thai does not split "accept" and "receive"
• ตอบ

  топ

  to reply

  A short verb: to reply to a message, a letter and a question — one word. The request "do reply" adds the softener
• เปิด ไฟ

  пёт фай

  to switch on; to turn on

  Literally "open the fire": Thai "switches on" with the same word it opens a door — the light, the TV and the air conditioner alike
• ปิด ไฟ

  пит фай

  to switch off; to turn off

  The pair of "switch on": the same word as "closed" in the shop window. Leaving the house, Thais say exactly "turn off the fire"
• ซ่อม

  соом

  to fix; to repair

  The same som as in "repair": verb and noun are twins here. The repairman is called with the word chaang
• เปลี่ยน

  плиан

  to replace; to change

  The same plian as in "change planes": to replace, to swap and to alter — one verb. The word changes no form
• ชนะ

  чана

  to win

  A mid tone, a word both bookish and alive: to win a match, an argument, an election — all of it this word. It takes no forms
• พ่าย แพ้

  пхаай пхэ

  to lose (the game)

  The bookish pair "yield-lose": live speech says simply "lose", but that word we already gave to allergy — hence the full form here
• วิ่ง

  винг

  to run

  A falling tone, a living word: people run and motors run. The morning run in the park is an ordinary thing in Bangkok
• กระ โดด

  кра тот

  to jump

  The first syllable with a "kra-" lead-in, the tone falls on the second. Jumping into water and over a skipping rope — the same verb
• นั่ง

  нанг

  to sit

  A falling tone. By ear almost "that" — the final ng tells them apart; "to sit in transport" is the same word
• ยืน

  мын

  to stand

  A mid tone, the first sound is "m". A relative of the word "stretch": a standing person is stretched out
• นอน ราบ

  нон раап

  to lie (down)

  Literally "lie flat": the sleep word already means "sleep"; here it is exactly to lie down and lie
• ยก

  йок

  to lift; to raise

  One syllable, a mid tone: lifting a box and lifting an arm — one word. In the gym the weight is "lifted" with it too
• ปา

  паа

  to throw

  A mid tone, short: throw a ball, a pebble, a note. By ear near "forest" — the tone differs
• จับ

  джап

  to catch; to hold

  To catch and to hold — one verb: with it one catches a ball, and the police are asked to "catch the thief"
• ตก

  ток

  to fall

  The same tok as in fishing and in the startle: a drop falls, the rain falls, the phone falls — one verb
• ร้อง เพลง

  ронг пхлэнг

  to sing

  Literally "make a voice of song": the same rong as in "cry" — rong means to voice in general: sing, weep
• เต้น

  тэн

  to dance

  A falling tone, one syllable. Dancing to music and dancing for joy are alike; the folk dance will be its own lesson later
• เล่น

  лен

  to play

  To play something is simply this word plus what: "play game", "play football". Thai demands no prepositions here
• วาด

  ваат

  to draw

  A falling tone, one syllable: drawing with a pen and drawing on a tablet — one word. A picture here will be "ruup"
• ถ่าย รูป

  тхаай рууп

  to take a photo

  Literally "transfer onto a picture": the first word is "to shoot" — the one in "take a copy". "Take a photo of me" is the request of the first trip
• เดิน เล่น

  дён лен

  to stroll; to go for a walk

  Literally "walk play": a walk with no aim. Assembled from "on foot" and "play" of this lesson and the past
• พัก ผ่อน

  пхак пхён

  to relax; to rest

  Literally "rest-relax": the same phak as in lodging and vacation. After work Thais say exactly this
• แต่ง งาน

  тэнг нгаан

  to marry

  The same words as in "wedding", only reversed: the verb "to marry" Thai does not split by sex
• เชิญ

  чён

  to invite

  Both "to invite" and the polite "please": "please sit" is said with it. One of the politest words of the language
• สวด มนต์

  суат мон

  to pray

  Literally "read the incantation": prayer in Thai is reading aloud. Grandmothers do it every morning
• อด อาหาร

  от ахан

  to fast

  Literally "abstain from food": monks do not eat after noon, Muslims fast in Ramadan — one word for both
• อวย พร

  уай пон

  to congratulate; to bless

  Literally "give a blessing": so one congratulates on a holiday and on a birthday. The same pair as in the greeting card
• กวาด พื้น

  кват пхын

  to sweep the floor

  Literally "sweep the floor": the same sweep as in housecleaning, and a new friend — the floor. The floor in a Thai house is washed every day
• ซัก

  сак

  to wash (clothes)

  The same wash as in "wash clothes" of the past wave, now with one word: "wash a shirt"
• รีด

  рит

  to iron

  One syllable, a mid tone: one irons only laundry; a cat is stroked with another word. Thais iron almost everything, even jeans
• ช่วย

  чуай

  to help

  The same word as "help!" from the first lessons: in a request it stands before the verb. The softener is "a little"
• ขอ ร้อง

  кхо ронг

  to beg; to beseech

  Literally "ask aloud": the polite "I beg", when the matter is important. The plain "give me" you know from day one
• อนุ ญาต

  ану йаат

  to permit; to allow

  Bookish and exact: to permit. A relative of the "relative" word; the signs say "with permission"
• ห้าม

  хаам

  forbidden; to forbid

  "Not allowed, forbidden": it stands on signs by every pool and entrance. The grammar of the past wave spoke about it — now the word is yours
• ลอก

  лоок

  to copy (off someone)

  One syllable, a long "oo": both "copy off the neighbor" and "copy a picture". About copying they say it with a reproach; about duplicating — calmly
• แก้

  гэ

  to fix; to correct

  One syllable, a falling tone: one fixes a mistake, a task and a tied knot alike. By ear near "unpack" — the tone tells them apart
• ประ หยัด

  пра йат

  to economize; to save (resources)

  To economize is to spare: water, light and money alike. On the hotel signs you saw this word about the towels
• ใช้ จ่าย

  чай джай

  to spend (money)

  Literally "use-pay": a neutral spending, without reproach. Money is spent the way strength is spent
• เก็บ เงิน

  кеп нгын

  to save up (money)

  Literally "gather money": the same gather as in "gather things". One saves up for something — the goal is said separately
• ทำ ประ กัน

  тхам пра кан

  to insure

  Literally "make insurance": the same make as in "work". One can insure a car, health and a phone
• จาม

  джам

  to sneeze

  Onomatopoeia, like the English "achoo". One syllable, a mid tone; seasonal allergy in Bangkok starts with it
• ป่วย

  пуай

  to fall ill

  One syllable: to fall ill in general, not with a cold specifically. "Do not fall ill" is said with this word and the ban particle
• หาย

  хаай

  to recover; to get well

  One syllable: both "to recover" and "to be lost, vanish" — the pain and the illness equally "vanish". "To breathe" is "release the heart", the same first syllable
• ตกลง

  токлонг

  agreed; settled

  Literally "agreed": two familiar roots — "fall" and "descend", both about the argument ending. A full-stop word in any talk
• ลา ออก

  лаа оок

  to resign; to quit

  Literally "ask leave outward": one leaves a job the way one leaves a room. One writes the application oneself — "the sheet of leaving"
• ไล่ ออก

  лай оок

  to fire; to lay off

  Literally "chase outward": to chase, as geese from the yard. The difference from "resign" is exactly in who does the asking outward
• เข้า อยู่

  кхао ю

  to move in

  Literally "enter and live": two familiar verbs. The move-in date in the contract is "the day of entering-living"
• ย้าย ออก

  йаай оок

  to move out

  Literally "move outward": the pair of "move in". Before moving out the condo is shown to the landlord — a check
• ย้าย บ้าน

  йаай бан

  to move house; to relocate

  Literally "relocate the house": it is the house that moves, not the person — that is how Thai sees it. Moving to another city is said with the same verb
• ใส่ กล่อง

  сай клонг

  to pack (into boxes)

  Literally "put into the box": the familiar box makes the verb. Packing in Thai is always about boxes
• แกะ กล่อง

  гэ клонг

  to unpack

  Literally "peel the box": the first word is to unwrap, to peel. By ear near "fix" — the tone tells them apart
• จัด บ้าน

  джат бан

  to set up (a home); to arrange the house

  Literally "arrange the house": the first word is to put in order. To set up means to put everything in its place — and it is literal
• ชิน

  чин

  to get used (to a place)

  One syllable: one gets used to a house, a city and a person alike. Thais would add "little by little" — step by step
• ปรับ ปรุง บ้าน

  пра прунг бан

  to renovate; to do renovations

  Literally "tune-renew the house": a big renovation, not fixing a tap. Both roots are "to tune" and "to improve"
• เป็น

  пен

  to be (someone)

  The link stands where English puts "is": "mom is a teacher" — mae pen khru. About place Thai says otherwise — yuu, "to be located"
• ดู

  ду

  to look; to watch

  You met du as "to seem" — du muean; to look on purpose is the same verb, while "to see" — hen — is a separate word
• บิน

  бин

  to fly

  Both "fly" and "flock" — one bin: a bird over the house and a plane in the sky. The syllable is live, it stretches
• ใช้

  чай

  to use

  You met chai as "to apply"; Thai does not split one-off from constant — the same chai means "to use, to make use of"
• สามารถ

  самарат

  to be able

  You met samarat as "to manage"; one-off and general ability Thai does not split — the same word, and the answer likes dai: "I can swim" is samarat wai nam dai
• พบ

  пхоп

  to meet

  Joe you know as "to run into" — meetings are said with it too; phop is to meet, a notch more official: in letters and news. The final b reads as p
• แตะ

  тэ

  to touch

  Jap, "to catch", you know; a light touch is thae: this is what the signs "do not touch" say. It sounds like thae, "genuine", only short

How it sounds in a sentence

A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.

• ผม ขอ กาแฟ ครับ

  пхом кхо кафэ кхрап

  I will take coffee (a man says it)
• ผม ชอบ กาแฟ

  пхом чоп кафэ

  I love coffee
• ไป ร้าน กาแฟ

  пай ран кафэ

  I am going to the coffeehouse
• ไป กิน ข้าว

  пай кин кхао

  I am going to eat (literally: go eat rice)
• ดื่ม น้ำ

  дыым нам

  To drink water
• อ่าน หนังสือ

  ан нангсы

  To read a book

What is worth knowing about these words

ขอ (кхо) — I want; I will take. The main word of ordering: literally "I ask". "I want coffee" in Thai is kho kafae khrap, and that is politer than a flat "I want". It does not conjugate: I and you say the same kho.

ชอบ (чоп) — to like; to love. "Love" in the sense of "like" — about food, music and people. Love for a person Thai says with another word (rak), and the two cannot be mixed up.

ไป (пай) — to go. One verb for on foot, by bus and by plane. At the end of a phrase it also means "to be off": pai kon — "I am off". It changes for neither person nor time.

กิน (кин) — to eat. The neutral "eat". Politer is than; about animals kin is used without embarrassment. The Thai greeting formula is "let's go eat rice": pai kin khao.

Test yourself

Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than recognizing a familiar word — and therefore more useful.

How to learn the set instead of just reading it

I want, I can, I am going, I know. The verb holds a sentence together: a few of the most frequent ones cover more everyday talk than a long list of nouns.

A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.

• Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many times
  Adesope, 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.
• Study spread over days wins not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many times
  Mawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.

Next

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• Numbers and counting57 words
• Food and drink177 words
• At a café and a restaurant9 words
• Shopping and money83 words
• Why a word list doesn't sticka note