Verb + เสร็จ

Finished Doing

Level 2

Use Verb + เสร็จ (sèt) to say you have 'finished' or 'completed' a specific task. It focuses on the end of the process or effort.

How It Works

The word เสร็จ (low tone) acts as a resultative complement. It tells us the result of the action is 'completion.'

1. Word Order
In Thai, เสร็จ follows the verb. If there is an object, the object usually comes before เสร็จ:

  • [Verb] + [Object] + เสร็จ + (แล้ว)
  • Example: กินข้าวเสร็จแล้ว (Finished eating rice)

2. Usage with Different Verbs
Use it for an activity that can be presented as finished, such as the eating, homework, working, cooking and reading activities below. A feeling or state does not automatically provide an activity to finish; choose a phrase that expresses the intended meaning rather than adding this completion word mechanically.

3. Nuance vs. Other 'Finish' Words
These words highlight different meanings. The intended activity and context matter:

  • เสร็จ (sèt): Finishing an activity or task.
  • จบ (jòp): Reaching the end, as in reading a book through. This is a useful contrast with finishing the activity of reading; it is not a ban on the other word with books or movies.
  • หมด (mòt): All or used up, including an exhausted supply. It can also express that all of a set is affected, so its use is not limited to physical resources.
  • เลิก (lêuk): Stopping, also used when school is over. This gloss does not make scheduled events an exclusive category.

Examples (5)

  1. ทำการบ้านเสร็จแล้ว

    I have finished my homework.

    Word by Word: do work house finish already

    Here the activity is doing homework. The object comes before the completion word, followed by the marker for the completed situation.

  2. กินข้าวเสร็จแล้วค่อยไป

    Finish eating first, then we can go.

    Word by Word: eat rice finish already then go

    The intended instruction places finishing the meal before going: eat first, then go.

  3. เขายังทำงานไม่เสร็จ

    He hasn't finished working yet.

    Word by Word: he yet do work not finish

    To say 'not finished,' place ไม่ before 'sèt'.

  4. อาหารถ้าทำเสร็จแล้วบอกด้วยนะ

    If the food is ready, please tell me.

    Word by Word: food if do finish already tell also soft-particle

    In this cooking context, the speaker asks to be told when preparation is finished; the intended English describes the food as ready.

  5. อ่านหนังสือเล่มนี้เสร็จหรือยัง

    Have you finished reading this book yet?

    Word by Word: read book volume this finish or yet

    This asks whether reading this book is finished. The completion word focuses on the reading activity; context determines how much reading was intended. To make reading through to the end explicit, the endpoint word can be used.

Common Mistakes

  • Placing the object after 'sèt'.

    กินเสร็จข้าวแล้ว
    กินข้าวเสร็จแล้ว

    In Thai, the resultative complement 'sèt' usually comes after the object of the sentence.

  • Omitting the tone mark in แล้ว.

    ดูหนังจบแลว
    ดูหนังจบแล้ว

    Write แล้ว with the ้ tone mark over ล. The spelling ดูหนังจบแลว leaves out that mark. The correct sentence ดูหนังจบแล้ว means 'I have finished watching the movie.' ดูหนังเสร็จแล้ว can describe finishing the watching activity; it is not the spelling error in this exercise.

  • Using 'sèt' to mean 'out of something'.

    เงินเสร็จแล้ว
    เงินหมดแล้ว

    In this card, เงินหมดแล้ว means that the money is used up or gone. The word mòt expresses depletion here, while เสร็จ describes finishing an activity. เงินเสร็จแล้ว does not convey the intended 'out of money' meaning.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Verb + เสร็จLevel 2Finished Doing

Learn This First

To understand 'Verb + เสร็จ', you need to be comfortable with basic Thai sentence structure and how multiple verbs can be placed in a row (serial verbs) to add meaning. It is also helpful to understand the completion marker 'แล้ว' as these two patterns are often used together to signal finished actions.

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Words in This Pattern

เสร็จเสร็จ