Shangri LinguaHow to say “ask” in Thai
ถาม
/tʰǎːm/
ถาม means to ask.
Pronunciation and usage
Tone: rising
The word for answering is ตอบ (dtòp). Together they make ถามตอบ (tǎam dtòp), “questions and answers”.
Reading the romanization: the mark over a vowel shows its tone. bp and dt are a p and a t with no puff of air, while plain p, t and k have the puff. The IPA shows the exact sounds, and Learn the IPA explains how to read it.
Examples
- ขอถามหน่อยได้ไหม
kǒr tǎam nòi dâi mái?/kʰɔ̌ː tʰǎːm nɔ̀ːj dâːj máj/
May I ask something?
How it’s spelled
Thai is written in a fixed order, which isn’t always the order you hear. Here’s each letter of ถาม in the order you’d write it.
- ถ
“t” starts the word.
tho thung, from ถุง (sack)High class
An arch with a small loop inside the foot of the left leg. Compare ภ, whose loop is outside.
- า
The vowel “long a”. Written after the consonant.
sara aa
A hook over the top and a straight drop down.
- ม
“m” ends the word.
mo ma, from ม้า (horse)Low class
A loop at the top left, a second loop at the bottom left, and a W-shaped base. Compare น.
Why the tone is rising
- It starts with ถ, which is high class.
- There’s no tone mark, so the kind of syllable decides.
- It ends in “m”, a sound you can hold, so the syllable is live.
- High class and live gives a rising tone.
New to consonant classes and live or dead syllables? See how Thai tones work.
Learn to write it
The Shangri Lingua app teaches ถาม in its Thai writing course. You write the word one letter at a time, with your finger or Apple Pencil, and the app checks each letter and gives you more help if you get stuck. Get it on the App Store.
More language
Browse all Thai vocabulary.