ครึ่ง

Half

Level 2

ครึ่ง means 'half'. Compare ส้มครึ่งลูก ('half an orange'), สองกิโลครึ่ง ('two and a half kilos'), and แปดโมงครึ่ง ('8:30'). The full expression determines the quantity or clock time.

How It Works

Half and an Added Half
ครึ่ง (khrûeng) means 'half'. Compare these quantity patterns; they describe different amounts.

1. Half of One Unit
ส้มครึ่งลูก means 'half an orange'. The noun ส้ม comes first, then ครึ่ง, then the classifier ลูก. In ขอน้ำส้มครึ่งแก้วครับ, แก้ว names the glass-sized portion: 'May I have half a glass of orange juice, please?' A named measurement unit can also follow ครึ่ง: ครึ่งชั่วโมง is 'half an hour'.

2. Whole Units Plus Half
In สองกิโลครึ่ง, ครึ่ง follows สองกิโล: 'two and a half kilos'. In เอาแอปเปิ้ลสองลูกครึ่ง, the order is noun + number + classifier + ครึ่ง: 'I'll take two and a half apples'. ชั่วโมงครึ่ง means 'an hour and a half'; compare it with ครึ่งชั่วโมง ('half an hour'). These examples use units or classifiers to make the quantity clear. They do not mean every use of ครึ่ง needs an overt classifier.

3. Clock Time and Duration
For telling the time, แปดโมงครึ่ง means 8:30: thirty minutes past eight. In หนังเริ่มตอนหกโมงครึ่ง, the movie starts at 6:30; the sentence does not explicitly identify morning or evening. This is clock time, not a duration of six and a half hours. ชั่วโมง counts hours of duration, as in ชั่วโมงครึ่ง ('an hour and a half').

4. Half of Something Already Mentioned
In เขากินพิซซ่าไปครึ่งหนึ่งแล้ว, ครึ่งหนึ่ง means one half of the pizza already mentioned. ครึ่งนึง is a conversational spelling of ครึ่งหนึ่ง. When the object or unit is already understood, a shorter quantity expression may rely on that context. When asking for a specific portion without an agreed unit, name it: ขอน้ำครึ่งแก้ว asks for half a glass of water, while ขอน้ำครึ่งขวด asks for half a bottle.

Examples (5)

  1. ขอน้ำส้มครึ่งแก้วครับ

    May I have half a glass of orange juice, please?

    Word by Word: Request orange-juice half glass [polite]

    Here, 'half' (ครึ่ง) comes before the classifier 'glass' (แก้ว) because it is half of one single unit.

  2. หนังเริ่มตอนหกโมงครึ่ง

    The movie starts at half-past six (6:30).

    Word by Word: Movie start time six o'clock half

    In telling time, หกโมงครึ่ง means 6:30, thirty minutes past six. It is clock time, not a duration of six and a half hours; this sentence does not explicitly say morning or evening.

  3. เขากินพิซซ่าไปครึ่งหนึ่งแล้ว

    He already ate half of the pizza.

    Word by Word: He eat pizza go half-one already

    Using 'ครึ่งหนึ่ง' (half of one) functions as a noun phrase meaning 'one half' of the object mentioned.

  4. รอประมาณชั่วโมงครึ่งนะ

    Wait for about an hour and a half, okay?

    Word by Word: Wait about hour half [particle]

    When expressing 'one and a half,' the word 'half' follows the unit/classifier.

  5. เอาแอปเปิ้ลสองลูกครึ่ง

    I'll take two and a half apples.

    Word by Word: Take apple two [classifier] half

    This follows the standard counting order with 'half' added at the very end.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out ลูก when the requested form is the full noun-and-classifier phrase 'half an apple'.

    ครึ่งแอปเปิ้ล
    แอปเปิ้ลครึ่งลูก

    For this full classifier phrase, use แอปเปิ้ลครึ่งลูก: apple + half + ลูก. ครึ่งแอปเปิ้ล does not provide that requested noun-and-classifier pattern. This exercise compares the specified full form; it does not label every shorter, contextual quantity expression ungrammatical.

  • Not naming the container when requesting a specific half-container portion without an agreed unit.

    ขอน้ำครึ่ง
    ขอน้ำครึ่งแก้ว / ขอน้ำครึ่งขวด

    When no container or unit has been agreed, ขอน้ำครึ่ง alone does not specify whether you want half a glass or half a bottle. Use ขอน้ำครึ่งแก้ว or ขอน้ำครึ่งขวด to state that intended portion. A shorter request can rely on an already understood unit; this is a missing-context comparison, not a universal ban on omission.

How It Connects

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

ครึ่งLevel 2Half

Learn This First

To use 'ครึ่ง' (half) correctly, you need to understand how Thai handles counting and classifiers. In Thai, 'ครึ่ง' usually follows the unit it is halving (e.g., 'half an hour'), or follows the classifier when used with a whole number (e.g., 'one and a half hours'). Therefore, a solid grasp of the Noun + Number + Classifier structure and how certain nouns act as their own classifiers is necessary.

Words in This Pattern

ครึ่งครึ่ง