Easy Colloquial Thai – Thai Slang Dictionary – Idioms

LivingHour.org is pleased to announce the publication of Learn Thai Language: Generation Next (Slang & Colloquial Talk). This fun and useful bi-lingual book is for all students who are learning the Thai language and wish to better understand and communicate with Thailand’s younger generation. Not a dry Thai textbook or simple dictionary of terms, this is one easy Thai language book that you will enjoy reading and using.

If you are a Thai language student looking for the latest Thai idioms and slang; a tourist looking for a Thai language book that’s not filled with the same old stuff; or an English teacher struggling to understand your Thai students, Learn Thai Language: Generation Next is the easy Thai book for you. More than just giving you new vocabulary, this book provides hundreds of sample sentences to advance your skills in listening, talking, and reading the colloquial language of Thailand.

Click here to view sample pages.

The book is organized to make it easy for you to navigate. The easy Thai vocabulary pages are arranged alphabetically by their transliteration (phonetic spelling). Each Thai entry is followed by an English definition and two English words or phrases that match the Thai. This vocabulary is used in the comic and in the sample sentence below the definition.

The easy Thai translation of the English sample sentence is followed by its transliteration and by a literal word-for-word translation, so that students can better understand the vocabulary used and how the sentence is organized. At the bottom of each page is a transliteration of the Thai used in the comic, followed again by its literal translation. An English word index is included in the back of the book, which can help you locate matching Thai entries.

Unlike other Thai slang resources that focus on curse words and vulgar language which could get you into deep trouble in Thailand, we focus primarily on common “G” rated slang. As a guide, we have rated the Thai as (G) for general inoffensive words, (PG) for slightly stronger language, and (R) for words which should not be used except when with close friends. The English words and phrases are likewise rated.

Learn Thai Language: Generation Next is also an excellent resource for Thai English students who are learning the colloquial language of native English speakers. English language notes included.

Order your copy today from our secure Createspace store, email us the receipt, and we will send you a free copy of our easy Thai mini-ebook: Colloquial Language Expressions.

Buy the Trade Paperback edition from our Bookstore for $9.99*

Buy the PDF eBook version for only $3.99*

Buyers in Thailand. Buy the workbook edition for 225 baht (price includes shipping). Contact us at: living(at)livinghour.org to make arrangements for an ATM money transfer.

*All proceeds from book sales go to The Foundation For Underprivileged Children (Chachoengsao) and the development of lessons and course materials at the Ysaan Institute.

Learning Easy Thai Language: Heart to Heart Talk

The mini-ebook Heart to Heart Talk, the 2nd book in our Easy Thai Top 40™ series, is now for sale. Whether you are an expat or a tourist in Thailand, Heart to Heart Talk will be an essential language resource for making the most out of your stay in the kingdom. Like our Original Thai-English Cognate Dictionary, each easy Thai entry is complimented with a colloquial sample sentence that will help you better communicate with the Thais that you meet during your trip or those who are part of your daily life as an expat.

While there are hundreds of heart (jai) words in the Thai language, only a small percentage of these are commonly used on a daily basis. And if you use one of the uncommon heart words, you may not be understood. In Heart to Heart Talk, we give you the heart talk that every Thai will understand and which covers a broad range of emotions and situations. It is all the heart talk you likely will ever need. The following is an excerpt from the introduction to Heart to Heart Talk and two easy Thai sample entries:

Welcome to Heart to Heart Talk, the 2nd mini-ebook in our Easy Thai Top 40 series. In this edition you will learn the most commonly spoken Thai “heart” (jai) words, along with related sample sentences, so that you can start today having heart to heart talks and easily remember all the vocabulary. Each entry is written both in the Thai script and an easy to understand phonetic spelling in English. The heart talk word is defined both figuratively and literally. This is followed by an easy Thai heart talk sentence, the equivalent sentence in English, and a word for word translation of the Thai into English. With this book you will see exactly how Thai heart talk sentences are formed and quickly begin creating heart to heart talks with your Thai friends, colleagues, wife, husband, or lover.

Why should you learn how to have heart to heart talks in Thailand? Well, because the language we speak is a window into the way we view the world and interact with people. In addition, sometimes a particular language seems especially suited to a certain aspect of culture. For example, the musicality of the Italian language seems tailor made for poetry and opera; the vast multicultural vocabulary of the English language makes it a useful tool for modern science; and the heart talk of the Thai language helps us communicate with others with kindness, understanding, sympathy, patience, and joy. Learning how to use heart talk not only helps you better understand the spirit of the Thai people, it helps you better understand yourself.

SAMPLE

bplìan-jai – เปลี่ยนใจ – v. – to change one’s mind (lit. change heart)
I just changed my mind. That’s all.
ฉัน เปลี่ยนใจ ไม่ มี เหตุผล
Chăn bplìan-jai. Mâi mee hàyt-phŏn.
lit. I changed mind, not have reason

jai-rawn – ใจร้อน – v./adj. – to be hot-tempered (lit. heart hot)
Hold on a sec’. Don’t be a hot head.
แป๊บ นึง นะ อย่า ใจร้อน ไป หน่อย เลย
Bpáep nèung ná. Yàh jai-ráwn bpai nòi leuy.
lit. just a second one (soften), don’t hot head go (soften) (emph.)

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Purchase the PDF eBook version of Thai Heart to Heart Talk for only 99 cents!*

Or pick up the eBook edition for your iPad, Palm Pilot, Kindle, Sony Reader, Nook, iPhone, or other portable device by clicking on the following link:

Buy The Easy Thai Top 40 eBook: Colloquial Thai Heart to Heart Talk

*All proceeds from book sales go to the development of lessons and course materials at the Ysaan Institute.

Learning Easy Thai for Lovers: Flirting & Making Out in Thai

Due to popular demand, the new edition of our Easy Thai Top 40™ series is For Lovers & Friends: How to Flirt in Thai. In this book you’ll quickly learn 40 easy Thai sentences that can be used to flirt with your Thai girlfriend/boyfriend or close friends of the opposite sex. What you won’t find is “dirty talk” (or Thai sex talk) that will get you slapped or perceived as a tourist with bad intentions, just playful talk about the heart. Flirting (or Making Out) in Thai really is no different than flirting in your own native language. To do it successfully (and without potentially offending the other person) just means keeping a smile on your face and an easy laugh.

As with all of the material in our Easy Thai Top 40 series, How to Flirt in Thai focuses on those sentences which you won’t likely find in other Thai phrasebooks, language books, and free online lessons. Each English sentence in How to Flirt in Thai is followed by a colloquial Thai translation in the Thai script; followed by an easy to read phonetic spelling (with tones) in English; followed then by a word for word translation of the Thai in English, so that you know exactly which English word corresponds to the Thai word.

Here are a couple sample entries:

C’mon now. I’m only teasing because I like you.
ใจ เย็น นะ หยอก ก็ เพราะ ชอบ เธอ
Jai yen ná. Yàwk gâw phráw châwp thuh.
lit. heart cool (soften) tease (joiner) because like you

I injured my leg falling in love with you.
ฉัน ขา แพลง เมื่อ ตก หลุม รัก เธอ
Chăn khăh phlaeng mêua dtòk lŭm rák thuh.
lit. I leg wrench when fall hole love you

Keep checking back with us at LivingHour.org for more mini-ebook Thai lessons. The next book up in The Easy Thai Top 40 series will be covering the Isaan language. At LivingHour.org we minimize the time you spend learning Thai and maximize the benefits!

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Purchase the PDF eBook version of How to Flirt in Thai for only 99 cents!*

Or pick up the eBook edition for your iPad, Palm Pilot, Kindle, Sony Reader, Nook, iPhone, or other portable device by clicking on the following link:

Buy The Learn Thai Top 40 eBook: How to Flirt in Thai

*All proceeds from book sales go to the development of lessons and course materials at the Ysaan Institute.

Easy Thai Top 40: How to Speak Thai Like a Parent

Learn how to speak Thai the way Thai parents do in LivingHour.org’s 3rd installment of our Easy Thai Top 40™ series: Family Talk: Speaking to Thai Children. In this edition you’ll find 40 common and easy Thai sentences which parents speak to their children – sentences that cover situations in the living room, bedroom, bathroom, and dining room; upstairs and downstairs; inside the house and outside the home.

These are the kind of sentences left out from other Thai phrasebooks, language books, and online learning lists, which spend most of their time dealing with the needs of tourists and not those of expats with Thai families. At LivingHour.org we are dedicated to fulfilling all those language needs which other Thai language publishers don’t cover, from helping expats and professionals better manage their long term stays in Thailand to assisting tourists get off the beaten track to discover authentic travel experiences in “the real” Thailand.

Each English sentence in Family Talk: Speaking to Thai Children is followed by a colloquial Thai translation in the Thai script; followed by an easy to read phonetic spelling (with tones) in English; followed then by a word for word translation of the Thai in English, so that you know exactly which English word corresponds to the Thai word.

Keep checking back with us at LivingHour.org for more Easy Thai Top 40 and Easy Isaan Top 40 mini-ebooks, as well as forthcoming audio books to accompany the series. At LivingHour.org we minimize the time you spend learning Thai and maximize the benefits!

The following are three sample entries from the book:

Get up! It’s time for school.
ตื่น นอน เถอะ ได้เวลา ไป โรงเรียน แล้ว ตอนนี้
Dtèun nawn thùh. Dâi-way-lah bpai rohng-rian láeo dtawn-née.
lit. wake up sleep (urge), time to go school already now.

Sweetheart, wash your hands. Breakfast is ready.
ลูกรัก ล้าง หมือ ซะ อาหารเช้า เรียบร้อย แล้ว
Lôok-rák* láhng meu sá*. Ah-hăhn cháo rîap-rói láeo.
lit. sweetheart, wash hands (urge), food morning ready already

*The meaning of the particle sá (ซะ) is more than simply adding encouragement to your command or request; it implies that you want something done completely and/or quickly.

Wake up your Mom. Grandma is here.
ปลุก แม่ สิ ยาย มา แล้ว
Bplùk mâe sì. Yai mah láeo.
lit. awaken mom (urge), grandma come already

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Purchase the PDF eBook version of Thai Heart to Heart Talk for only 99 cents!*

Or pick up the eBook edition for your iPad, Palm Pilot, Kindle, Sony Reader, Nook, iPhone, or other portable device by clicking on the following link:

Buy The Learn Thai Top 40 eBook: Family Talk: Speaking to Thai Children

*All proceeds from book sales go to the development of lessons and course materials at the Ysaan Institute.

Learning Easy Thai: Teaching in Thailand

If you are teaching in Thailand and want to quickly add to your working Thai vocabulary, then the Original Thai-English Cognate Dictionary & Learning Tool is an excellent easy Thai book from which to learn. The book and eBook are filled with hundreds of easy Thai-English loanwords, as well as English words that sound similar to the Thai word or a related Thai word.

The colloquial sample sentences are unlike the kind you find in other Thai language books and will get you talking more casually and naturally with your Thai students and Thai colleagues. Here are a few entries from this new Thai dictionary:

dictionary n. – ดิก – dìk
That’s not what it means. Where is the dictionary?
มัน ไม่ ได้ หมายความ ว่า อย่าง นั้น ดิก อยู่ ไหน
Man mâi dâi măi-khwahm wâh yàhng-nán. Dìk yòo năi*?
lit. it not does mean that like that, dictionary be where

*In the Isaan dialect the word săi (ไส) replaces năi (ไหน) in referring to where.

fluke n. – ฟลุก – flùk
You passed? That must have been a fluke.
สอบได้ หรอ มัน ต้อง ฟลุ๊ค แน่ๆ เลย
Sàwp-dâi lăw? Man dtâwng flúk nâe nâe leuy.
lit. pass* (question), it must fluke surely surely (emph.)

*pass (สอบได้) = sàwp (สอบ) test/examine + dâi (ได้) get/ receive

function n. – ฟังก์ชัน – fang-chan
I don’t have any teaching function. I’m just a token farang (Westerner).
ผม ไม่ มี ฟังก์ชัน* การสอน เป็น แค่ ฝรั่ง โชว์
Phŏm mâi mee fang-chan gahn-săwn, bpen khâe fà-ràng cho.
lit. I not have function teaching, am just farang show

*The symbol above the letter ก in ฟังก์ชัน is called mái-than-thá-khâht (ไม้ทัณฑฆาต). It means that the letter below it is not pronounced. It also means that the word has likely been adopted from another language.

lower v. – ลด – lót
Put your hand down.
ลด มือ ลง ซี
Lót meu long* see.
lit. lower hand down (urge)

*When the word long (ลง) is placed before the word for a vehicle, like a car or bus, it means to get out of it, since one steps down when exiting.

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Add 100s of easy Thai words to your working vocabulary in a week’s time with our Original Thai-English Language Cognate Dictionary & Learning Tool.

Buy the PDF eBook version for only $3.99

Buy the Print Book from our Bookstore for $8.99

Or pick up the multi-platform eBook edition for your iPad, Palm Pilot, Sony Reader, Nook, iPhone, or other portable device by clicking on the following link:

Purchase: Thai-English Cognate Dictionary