Thai uses one greeting for every hour of the day, and the last word of a polite sentence shows whether a man or a woman is speaking. The readings on this page use the Paiboon system, which marks the five Thai tones on the vowel. Every greeting was checked against Wiktionary and the Wikivoyage Thai phrasebook.
| Thai | English | Style | Where you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| sà-wàt-dii kráp | Hello, said by a man | Polite | Any time of day, with anyone you meet |
| sà-wàt-dii kâ | Hello, said by a woman | Polite | Any time of day, with anyone you meet |
| sà-wàt-dii | Hello, or goodbye | Casual | Friends and people your age |
| แล้วเจอกันใหม่ครับlɛ́ɛo jəə gan mài kráp | See you again, said by a man | Polite | Parting from someone you expect to see again |
| แล้วเจอกันใหม่ค่ะlɛ́ɛo jəə gan mài kâ | See you again, said by a woman | Polite | Parting from someone you expect to see again |
| laa gɔ̀ɔn | Goodbye | Neutral | Only the person who is leaving says it, and it can sound final |
| บ๊ายบายbáai-baai | Bye-bye | Casual | Friends, and in text messages |
Thai does not need separate hellos for morning and evening. (sà-wàt-dii) fits every hour. You can add ตอนเช้า (dtɔɔn cháao), "in the morning", to make สวัสดีตอนเช้า, but nobody needs it.
The last word of a polite Thai sentence depends on who is speaking, not on who is listening.
| Particle | Who says it | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| (kráp) | A man | Statements and questions |
| (kâ) | A woman | Statements and answers, such as hello, thank you and yes |
| (ká) | A woman | Questions, and when she calls for someone or softens a request with นะคะ |
A woman who asks สบายดีไหมคะ (sà-baai dii mǎi ká) uses , and the same woman answers with . A man uses for both.
| Thai | English | Style | Where you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| สบายดีไหมครับsà-baai dii mǎi kráp | How are you? Asked by a man | Polite | Anyone, after hello |
| สบายดีไหมคะsà-baai dii mǎi ká | How are you? Asked by a woman | Polite | Anyone, after hello |
| สบายดีครับsà-baai dii kráp | I am fine. Said by a man | Polite | The usual answer |
| สบายดีค่ะsà-baai dii kâ | I am fine. Said by a woman | Polite | The usual answer |
| sà-baai dii | Fine | Casual | Friends |
สบาย (sà-baai) means "comfortable, well" and ดี (dii) means "good". (mǎi) turns the sentence into a yes-or-no question.
| Thai | English | Style | Where you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| ขอบคุณครับkɔ̀ɔp-kun kráp | Thank you. Said by a man | Polite | Shops, restaurants, anyone who helps you |
| ขอบคุณค่ะkɔ̀ɔp-kun kâ | Thank you. Said by a woman | Polite | Shops, restaurants, anyone who helps you |
| ไม่เป็นไรครับmâi bpen rai kráp | You're welcome, or never mind. Said by a man | Polite | After a thank you or a small mistake |
| ไม่เป็นไรค่ะmâi bpen rai kâ | You're welcome, or never mind. Said by a woman | Polite | After a thank you or a small mistake |
Add (mâak), "very much", for a bigger thank you, as in ขอบคุณมากครับ. (kɔ̀ɔp-kun) is the everyday thank you, with or after it. It is less formal than ขอบพระคุณ (kɔ̀ɔp-prá-kun) and more formal than ขอบใจ (kɔ̀ɔp-jai). Wiktionary notes that and ขอบใจ are meant for people of equal or lower status, so use ขอบพระคุณ with a teacher or an older relative.
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| A woman ends a greeting with the man's particle, or a man with the woman's. | Match your own gender: men say ครับ, women say ค่ะ and คะ. Your listener's gender does not matter. |
| A woman writes ขอบคุณคะ. | Use ค่ะ in a statement and คะ in a question: ขอบคุณค่ะ, but สบายดีไหมคะ. |
| Saying ลาก่อน to a friend you will see tomorrow. | Only the person who leaves says ลาก่อน, and it can sound final. For an everyday goodbye, the Wikivoyage phrasebook lists สวัสดี with ครับ or ค่ะ, and แล้วเจอกันใหม่ means "see you again". |
Hear these phrases inside a conversation in our guide, Basic Thai Greetings and Daily Chat. To read the words letter by letter, start with the Thai alphabet course, or read the best way to learn Thai for a full plan.
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Can a Man Say ค่ะ?
No. Wiktionary labels (kráp) as men's speech, and (kâ) as a particle once used by noblemen and now often used by women. A man ends a polite sentence with .
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