Sabai Dee Mai

[scott6566]

why is it that everyone in thailand i speak too says sabai dee mai for

how are you, and the thai language book i have at home says

sabai dee rueh.

Can anyone help with this.

[konangrit]

Either is correct, but sabai dee mai? is more commonly used. You may also hear the abbreviated slang version: " 'bai dee mai? ". Which is more popular among the younger generation.

[Johpa]

why is it that everyone in thailand i speak too says sabai dee mai for

how are you, and the thai language book i have at home says

sabai dee rueh.

Can anyone help with this.

Who is everyone? Living in the rural areas I do hear it on occasion but it is not the most commonly heard greeting. It is far more common to be greeted with “kin khao laew ruu yang” (have you eaten yet?) or “ca pai nai” or “pai nai maa” (where are you going/coming from?). Of course I much prefer to hear the more localized village greeting with the interogative “oo sii” ( not Thai here) inviting me in for a drink.

As for the difference between between ending the sabaii dii phrase with the interogative "mai" or the interogative particle "leu/reu" I would think "mai" is considered a wee bit more formal. One would normally expect to hear "sabaii dii mai khrap" but never "sabaii dii leu khrap." So I think you may be getting a slightly more formal greeting. If the Thai speakers are still addressing themselves as "phom" or "dichan" and you as "khun," then you are still being treated a bit with kid gloves out of either respect or with the thought of simplifying the Thai a bit as many Thais correctly perceive that the Thai particle system, all those small short words at the end of a sentence such as "khrap/kha," are poorly understood and rarely used correctly by Farangs.

[snowleopard]

why is it that everyone in thailand i speak too says sabai dee mai for

how are you, and the thai language book i have at home says

sabai dee rueh.

Can anyone help with this.

This is my concept of "sabai dee"!

I make a distinction on how I use the two expressions with "sabai dee" and I'm probably not so far off the target because I usually get positive feedback from the natives!

I use the "sabai dee mai" in similar fashion to the English question "How are you?";and,"How you doing?"

However;if somebody looks contented,I'd smile and ask,"sabai dee reu" which would mean something like,"You're doing fine,aren't you?"!

Reversely,if somebody looks discontented,I could instead show some compassion and tentatively ask that person,"sabai dee reu",which is more like,"You aren't doing so well,are you"!

Sometimes the use of the two expressions overlap!

Cheers.

Snowleopard.

[scott6566]

thanks for the reply everyone.

your explaination makes most sense to me snowleopard thanks for your input.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

thanks for the reply everyone.

your explaination makes most sense to me snowleopard thanks for your input.

Snowleopard did explain it well. Thanks SL

[snowleopard]

thanks for the reply everyone.

your explaination makes most sense to me snowleopard thanks for your input.

Snowleopard did explain it well. Thanks SL

(ขอบคุณครับ คุณหมอ) korb kuhn krahp,kuhn Moh=Thank you Doctor!

(สบายใจมากๆ) Sabai-jai mahk mahk=I'm very happy!

Cheers.

Snowleopard

[Edward B]

I use the "sabai dee mai" in similar fashion to the English question "How are you?";and,"How you doing?"

However;if somebody looks contented,I'd smile and ask,"sabai dee reu" which would mean something like,"You're doing fine,aren't you?"!

Reversely,if somebody looks discontented,I could instead show some compassion and tentatively ask that person,"sabai dee reu",which is more like,"You aren't doing so well,are you"!

Sometimes the use of the two expressions overlap!

Cheers.

Snowleopard.

Something doesn't gel here...

Friend looks contented: "Sabai dee rheu"? = "You're well (, aren't you)" ?

I would agree with that one.

Friend looks discontented: "Sabai dee rheu"? = "You're not well (, are you)" ?

I don't think that's quite correct.

I would say: "Mai sabai rheu"? = "You're not well (, are you)"?

ไม่สบายหรือ

Please reply if I've made a mistake or you disagree with me Leopard...

[john b good]

I suggest that "sabai dii rheu" is not quite complete but should in fact be "sabai dii rheu plao"

My understanding is that rheu or reu is the same as "or" in English and the plao is like "not" and you are asking are you well or not.

Sabai has other meanings such as comfortable so if you ask someone if they are "sabai" you could be asking if they are comfortable.

[Edward B]

the 'plao' is quite often omitted.

[snowleopard]

I use the "sabai dee mai" in similar fashion to the English question "How are you?";and,"How you doing?"

However;if somebody looks contented,I'd smile and ask,"sabai dee reu" which would mean something like,"You're doing fine,aren't you?"!

Reversely,if somebody looks discontented,I could instead show some compassion and tentatively ask that person,"sabai dee reu",which is more like,"You aren't doing so well,are you"!

Sometimes the use of the two expressions overlap!

Cheers.

Snowleopard.

Something doesn't gel here...

Friend looks contented: "Sabai dee rheu"? = "You're well (, aren't you)" ?

I would agree with that one.

Friend looks discontented: "Sabai dee rheu"? = "You're not well (, are you)" ?

I don't think that's quite correct.

I would say: "Mai sabai rheu"? = "You're not well (, are you)"?

ไม่สบายหรือ

Please reply if I've made a mistake or you disagree with me Leopard...

I would say: "Mai sabai rheu"?   =   "You're not well (, are you)"?

ไม่สบายหรือ

Please reply if I've made a mistake or you disagree with me Leopard...

I don't disagree at all but I reply anyway!

Both are correct;and,I use the expression ไม่สบายหรือ as well!

It's more direct and committed I'd say!

Cheers.

Snowleopard.

[snowleopard]

I suggest that "sabai dii rheu" is not quite complete but should in fact be "sabai dii rheu plao"

My understanding is that rheu or reu is the same as "or" in English and the plao is like "not" and you are asking are you well or not.

Sabai has other meanings such as comfortable so if you ask someone if they are "sabai" you could be asking if they are comfortable.

.

I suggest that "sabai dii rheu" is not quite complete but should in fact be "sabai dii rheu plao"

the 'plao' is quite often omitted.

You can use these three similar expressions...

1.สบายดีหรือ (sabai dee reu)

2.สบายดีหรือเปล่า (sabai dee reu plaow)

3.สบายดีหรือไม่ (sabai dee reu mai)

I personally think that number one is a bit different from the other two and should be used in a slightly different context;eventhough,they are often used interchangeably by people colloquially!

I feel that with สบายดีหรือเปล่า (sabai dee reu plaow) and สบายดีหรือไม่ (sabai dee reu mai) you pin the person down more strongly for him to choose either yes or no as an answer re his "sabai" status.

The expression "สบายดีหรือเปล่า" (sabai dee reu plaow) is more commonly used than the "สบายดีหรือไม่" (sabai dee reu mai).

The only real difference I've noticed between the two is that some Thais consider สบายดีหรือไม่ (sabai dee reu mai) politer than the other one but I'm not exactly sure.

Language is a dynamic thing so it's changing continuously!

I would mostly use the ไม่สบายหรือ (mai sabai reu) if somebody is sick or really looks so!

สบายดีหรือยัง (sabai dee reu yang) is another expression that is often heard!

Cheers.

Snowleopard.

[Johpa]

Going back to the definiitve source, the trusty Haas dictionary, the word is used in two different syntactical ways: as a simply conjunction meaning "or" and as a particle. Most dialects of English do not use particles that much, the best known in North America is the Canadian "eh" at the end of a sentence.

So here it is courtesy fo Ms. Mary Haas et al:

" 2) Interrogative particle used in yes-or-no question. 3) Is that so? (expressing surprise as what was said). 4) Well, well Is that so? (mildly teasing response to a child's comment or request). ...., usages 3 and 4...are normally only empolyed among intimates"

And then it goes on to note various "colloquial" pronunciations of the word when used either as a particle or conjunction.

My Thai professor, one of the 5 assistants noted on the title page of the Haas dictionary, thought that the Thai particle system was the most difficult grammatical aspect of Thai to teach in a classroom setting as the proper usage depended to such an extent on social contexts.