In Thai

[maxcherry]

I am scared

[RamdomChances]

Pom/Chan gua.

Gua is scared but is one of those words that is quite difficult to transliterate into english and if you say it wrong you coud be saying "I am salt"

Pom- I male

Chan- I female

although the different ways of saying "I" could have a thread for themselfs

[meadish_sweetball]

Yep. Ramdom's rendition is how most people pronounce it.

To speak schoolbook Thai, you should add an "l" too

glua [mid tone]

ผม ฉัน กลัว

Commonly, people will say "Scary!" instead, which is

น่ากลัว 'naa glua' (first syllable falling tone, second syllable mid tone).

You can also avoid using a pronoun and just say "กลัว" glua. The message comes through anyway.

[maxcherry]

Yep. Ramdom's rendition is how most people pronounce it.

To speak schoolbook Thai, you should add an "l" too

glua [mid tone]

ผม ฉัน กลัว

Commonly, people will say "Scary!" instead, which is

น่ากลัว 'naa glua'  (first syllable falling tone, second syllable mid tone).

You can also avoid using a pronoun and just say "กลัว" glua. The message comes through anyway.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks - and I love your Tag

[RDN]

ผม กลัว...pŏm glua..... I am scared

ผม เกลือ...pŏm gleua.... I am salt

ผม กล้วย...pŏm glûay.... I am bananas

[bina]

rdn, the banana problem will then rear its ... head (kwaiy-- we all know what that is ?)), or buffalo (kwai), or I (issaan: koy).... i try to say 'salt' as if i'm imitating a growl: grrrua....

so ill stick to just saying: banana

[BambinA]

rdn, the banana problem will then rear its ... head (kwaiy-- we all know what that is ?)), or buffalo (kwai), or I (issaan: koy).... i try to say 'salt' as if i'm imitating a growl: grrrua....

so ill stick to  just saying:  banana

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

or I (issaan: koy)....

Bambi

[meadish_sweetball]

rdn, the banana problem will then rear its ... head (kwaiy-- we all know what that is ?)), or buffalo (kwai), or I (issaan: koy).... i try to say 'salt' as if i'm imitating a growl: grrrua....

so ill stick to  just saying:  banana

I don't know what the distinction is in Lao, but in Central Thai, the difference between *ehrrrm* and buffalo is well defined by how you stress the vowel sounds. In *ehrrrm* you stress the 'oo' (second sound of the word), like in banana - 'glOO-ai', and in buffalo you stress the 'aa' (third sound of the word) khwAAi - it is very clear from the Thai spelling too. No problem distinguishing one from the other.

As for Isaan/Lao "I" - khoi, I guess you should be fine as long as you don't purse your lips on the second sound but keep it at the same place as American English 'aw' in 'law'.

It was fun ordering 'sai ua' sausage in Luang Prabang with my GF. She wasn't aware of the buffalo/*ehrrrm* sound likeness in Lao, and when the shop assistant with a straight face asked her if she wanted pork sausage or buffalo sausage GF was in shock, I had to cover for her.