Thai Sayings and Phrases Wanted

[NaiGreg]

I heard this used for the first time today.

I like it alot

ปล่อยไก่ bloy gai

I am guessing the ปล่อย part of it comes from ปลดปล่อย to be free (released)

and ไก่ as we know is chicken.

cheers ITR

This was one of the first idioms I learned from my wife. It can be used in an embarrassing situation where you perhaps have caused some havoc ... as when your frantic chickens get out of the cage on a crowded bus ... something like that.

[yoot]

I'm wondering if Yoot or someone could help with these-

ธรรมาภิบาล- could this translate as cronyism, helping your friends get business?

โรงตี๊ยม- a Chinese teashop?

ความหน่อมเเน้ม- girlish sweet and tender, no sense of toughness?

ธรรมาภิบาล is used equivalently to the English term ' Good Government'

It's from ธรรม( good principle)+ อภิบาล(superintend, manage)

โรงตี๊ยม - tavern, inn. เตี๊ยม is from Teochew dialect means store, shop or hotel. โรงตี๊ยม is used as a loan word in Thai.

หน่อมเเน้ม - is a term to describe people who don't look tough.

[TaraLotus]

Hi there,

I would like to ask how to say a few things in Thai. I don't read Thai script so if you could reply with the englisized version (ie. sawatdeeka!) I would appreciate it

We are adopting a child from Thailand and when we go to meet our child we would like to be able to communicate with them (!):

Are you sleepy?

Are you hungry?

Are you thirsty?

It's time to go to sleep.

We love you. I love you.

Do you need to wee? (sorry, I know it's icky but it's practical!)

Everything will be ok.

Are you scared?

What would you like?

We are pretty right with most other things. It's the simple things like this that I can't find the informal, everyday versions for.

Many thanks in advance

TLotus

Edited April 14, 2007 by TaraLotus

[CSS]

Hi there,

I would like to ask how to say a few things in Thai. I don't read Thai script so if you could reply with the englisized version (ie. sawatdeeka!) I would appreciate it

We are adopting a child from Thailand and when we go to meet our child we would like to be able to communicate with them (!):

Are you sleepy?

Are you hungry?

Are you thirsty?

It's time to go to sleep.

We love you. I love you.

Do you need to wee? (sorry, I know it's icky but it's practical!)

Everything will be ok.

Are you scared?

What would you like?

We are pretty right with most other things. It's the simple things like this that I can't find the informal, everyday versions for.

Many thanks in advance

TLotus

I apologize for my transliterations. I never learned a transliteration scheme, opting to go right to thai script, so I'll simply do my best spelling the thai words using Colorado sounding spoken English transliterations.

Are you sleepy? - Nguang (falling) nawn (mid) mai (rising/high)?

Are you hungry? - Hew (rising) mai(rising/high)?

Are you thirsty? - Hew (rising) nam (high) mai (rising/high)?

It's time to go to sleep. - wehla (mid) bai (mid) nawn (mid) leh-ow (high) nah (high)

We love you. I love you. - raow (mid) rak (high) luk (falling) nah (high)

Do you need to wee? (sorry, I know it's icky but it's practical!) - buod(low) chee (low) mai (rising/high)?

Everything will be ok. - A direct translation might be "tuk yang ja aak dee nah" but I don't think I'd say that, you could also say "mai ben rai nah" but I think there is a better way to translate this that I'm not thinking of it now.

Are you scared? - glua (mid) mai (rising/high)

What would you like? - Dtong-gan (mid) ahrai (mid) nah (high)

I hope you can read the above to some benefit but you really need to hear Thai to be able to speak it correctly and in a way that a native speaker will understand you. Therefore I encourage you to seek out a someone who speaks Thai, find a Thai teacher, and have them help you say the above phrases correctly. I know that when I was in the beginning stages of learning Thai I couldn't read from a transliteration in a way that Thais would understand me without having heard it said first.

[scousemouse]

Hi there,

I would like to ask how to say a few things in Thai. I don't read Thai script so if you could reply with the englisized version (ie. sawatdeeka!) I would appreciate it

We are adopting a child from Thailand and when we go to meet our child we would like to be able to communicate with them (!):

Are you sleepy?

Are you hungry?

Are you thirsty?

It's time to go to sleep.

We love you. I love you.

Do you need to wee? (sorry, I know it's icky but it's practical!)

Everything will be ok.

Are you scared?

What would you like?

We are pretty right with most other things. It's the simple things like this that I can't find the informal, everyday versions for.

Many thanks in advance

TLotus

sawadee cap TaraLotus , all the best with your adoption ( i'm a teacher in thailand and wouldnt swap thai kids for anyone !! ).

Right then , an idiom I want to say

" dar yai gwar tong "

it means " your eyes are bigger than your belly ". I found at first , as with many english idioms , that the translation is not understood but once when taught in laymans terms is . Have fun with this one.

[meadish_sweetball]

Hi scousemouse, cheers for participating. I've never heard 'dtaa yai kwaa thawng' before, however 'bpaak yai gwaa thawng' (having a mouth larger than ones belly) meaning 'to want to eat more than one has the capacity for' is known.

[luckyfarang]

I heard this used for the first time today.

I like it alot

ปล่อยไก่ bloy gai

I am guessing the ปล่อย part of it comes from ปลดปล่อย to be free (released)

and ไก่ as we know is chicken.

I asked what the meaning was and I was told it's when เเสดงความโง่ออกมา

so Its like "an act of stupity or madness"

I think the English saying is "an act of stupidty" but I am not 100% what the English equivilent is.

Maybe a Thai or someone who knows could explain how ปล่อยไก่ can be used when someone เเสดงความโง่ออกมา

cheers ITR

ปล่อยไก่ - - - I would translate this as: to make a fool of oneself

[CSS]

Hi scousemouse, cheers for participating. I've never heard 'dtaa yai kwaa thawng' before, however 'bpaak yai gwaa thawng' (having a mouth larger than ones belly) meaning 'to want to eat more than one has the capacity for' is known.

If I read scousemouse correctly, 'dtaa yai kwaa thawng' ตาใหญ่กว่าท้อง is her translation of an English idiom, "Your eyes are bigger than your stomach," meaning exactly what you thought it did, "to want to eat more than one has the capacity for."

Thanks for providing the Thai equivalent.

It seems in many instances where there is a similar Thai idiom for and English idioms that uses parts of the face, the Thai version uses mouth in the place of whatever facial feature the English version used. For example, "to speak face to face," I believe is คุยกันปากต่อปาก and sharp-tongue is ปากตะไกร

I just put ปาก into thai-language.com and ปาก is used for an impressive amount of expressions in a wide range of areas. It's a good word to play around with it seems.

[scousemouse]

Hi scousemouse, cheers for participating. I've never heard 'dtaa yai kwaa thawng' before, however 'bpaak yai gwaa thawng' (having a mouth larger than ones belly) meaning 'to want to eat more than one has the capacity for' is known.

I dont think anybody should have heard 'dtaa yai kwaa thawng' before. Every now and then I like to translate an english idiom in to thai , explain the meaning and see if it sticks.

[JanJane]

Couldn't help bringing down the tone of the forum by adding a few of my favourite phrases....

gam kee dee gwar gam dtot = a handful of shit is better than a handful of fart! Sorry, I'm too lazy to work out the spelling in Thai. In other words, it's better to have something than nothing.

hen chang kee, kee darm chang = see an elephant shit and try to shit like an elephant! In other words, trying to keep up with the Jones's.

yeeup kee gai, mai foo = tread on chicken shit and it doesn't spread. In other words, a person who does this is considered so useless that they can't even tread in shit properly.

[Luukhin]

Hi, does anyone know the equivalent expression of ลักหลับ in English?

[daizeez]

what a great thread! i've hardly been on this site since i moved here (2 years ago)! ...but i think i'll have to start lurking around this section more often.

i saw someone post this on the first page...

'Poo ying sooay dtair mai homm ( beautiful lady , but doesn't smell too good)

This is very insulting means good looking but VERY bad.'

i heard this phrase as...

สวยแต่รูบจูบไม่หอม-sooay dtay roop joop may hawm

[mangkorn]

what a great thread! i've hardly been on this site since i moved here (2 years ago)! ...but i think i'll have to start lurking around this section more often.

i saw someone post this on the first page...

'Poo ying sooay dtair mai homm ( beautiful lady , but doesn't smell too good)

This is very insulting means good looking but VERY bad.'

i heard this phrase as...

สวยà¹à¸•à¹ˆà¸£à¸¹à¸šà¸ˆà¸¹à¸šà¹„ม่หอม-sooay dtay roop joop may hawm

สวยà¹à¸•à¹ˆà¸£à¸¹à¸šà¸ˆà¸¹à¸šà¹„ม่หอม is the proper idiom. Note the rhyming scheme of the middle words (albeit falling tone-low tone) which makes the phrase melodic in a very Thai way.

[mangkorn]

Hi, does anyone know the equivalent expression of ลัà¸à¸«à¸¥à¸±à¸š in English?

That's an interesting one. I've never heard it. It contains two verbs: "to steal, to carry off," and "to sleep."

Could it be to steal some sleep, like a taking catnap at work? Hmm...

[yoot]

Hi, does anyone know the equivalent expression of ลัà¸à¸«à¸¥à¸±à¸š in English?

That's an interesting one. I've never heard it. It contains two verbs: "to steal, to carry off," and "to sleep."

Could it be to steal some sleep, like a taking catnap at work? Hmm...

ลักหลับ means to have sexual intercourse with a sleeping woman.

[mangkorn]

Hi, does anyone know the equivalent expression of ลัà¸à¸«à¸¥à¸±à¸š in English?

That's an interesting one. I've never heard it. It contains two verbs: "to steal, to carry off," and "to sleep."

Could it be to steal some sleep, like a taking catnap at work? Hmm...

ลัà¸à¸«à¸¥à¸±à¸š means to have sexual intercourse with a sleeping woman.

Khun Yoot always comes through with the proper translation. Thanks.

[bannork]

I read a good one in the paper todayมีชนักติดหลัง a harpoon\spear stuck in one's back, meaning the person has a tainted past, did something wrong in the past.

[mangkorn]

I read a good one in the paper todayมีชนัà¸à¸•à¸´à¸”หลัง a harpoon\spear stuck in one's back, meaning the person has a tainted past, did something wrong in the past.

I thought the word was: ฉมวà¸

Alternative spellings/pronunciations?

[bannork]

I can't read what you've written as I presume you've sent it from outside Thailand , was it มีชนักปักหลัง ? I saw that in a dictionary but what I read in the newspaper was what I wrote, ie ติดหลัง

I saw กั๊ก meaning to keep quiet, not reveal, tight -lipped. I was wondering if it was borrowed from the English'gag' or 'gagged ' as the sound is similar.

[kratindaeng]

กำขี้ ดีกว่ากำตด = Gam Kii Dee gwah Gam Dtod, which means "Have shit is better than fart" which is turn means, it is better to have something rather than nothing....

(ABOVE: Courtesy of the lovely Kratindaeng Girl)

KD

[meadish_sweetball]

To this previous one can be added, that กำ means 'hold/squeeze in your fist' - so 'It is better to hold shit than to hold a fart (in your fist)'... shit is at least substantial whereas the fart is just wind.

[yoot]

I read a good one in the paper todayมีชนัà¸à¸•à¸´à¸”หลัง a harpoon\spear stuck in one's back, meaning the person has a tainted past, did something wrong in the past.

I thought the word was: ฉมวà¸

Alternative spellings/pronunciations?

ชนัก is the correct word of this saying. It means the same as ฉมวก in English but I think it's a little bit different in shape.

[fabianfred]

There's the idiom' to fall between 2 stools', but that refers to trying to please both sides and ending up pleasing neither.

this reminds me of the anecdote when Winston Churchill was learning to fly... and coming in to land one day both he and the instructor thought the other was in control.... after landing the instructor said something about '..falling between two stools'... and Winston said " more like stalling between two fools..."

[fabianfred]

here are a few I've known for a while....

dern lai kwai... my wife uses this when i walk too fast

the one about where the girl cuts his thing off and throws it to the ducks I remember as ..... Tat liang ped

yaak thi may kheey ... tair kkeey leaw my yaak ....its difficult if you've never done it... but once you've some experience its not hard

sompharn/jawawat kin kai wat..... the abbot eats the temple chickens.... taking advantage of your position ( in a wrong way) (such as a teacher seducing one of his students)

pair pen pra. chanat pen marn.... to give in is to be like a monk, to want to win is like a devil.... this seems to have a Buddhist context... we are supposed to try and destroy our ego, so the one who gives in to others is doing that whilst the one who wants to win and will push himself forward by any means is just increasing his ego

puuying naakliad pen puuying mai ai... puuchai naaklua pen puuchai thii mai krengjai .......... a woman without shame is ugly and a man unconcerned about others is scary

(from a thai song) mong thamai?.. mai rak leaw mong tamai? why are you staring at me if you don't love me?

how are you today? Khoy yang cheua..... meaning I'm getting better/well (after an illness)

[mangkorn]

These should apply to all language students:

เข้าเมืองคาหลิ่วต้องหลิ่วตาตาม

ฟนทั่งให้เป็นเข็ม

[bannork]

One for Yoot if he's around- หลายคน ก็ถึงกับอึ้งกิมกี่....I understand อึ้ง as speechless, dumbstruck but what doesกิมกี่ mean?

Cheers,

Bannork.

[yoot]

One for Yoot if he's around- หลายคน ก็ถึงกับอึ้งกิมกี่....I understand อึ้ง as speechless, dumbstruck but what doesกิมกี่ mean?

Cheers,

Bannork.

K'bannork, อึ้งกิมกี่ is a name of a company. But since the name has the word 'อึ้ง' in it, so, people just use it for humorous saying. There is no meaning for กิมกี่ in this saying. It's a Chinese name, 'อึ้ง' is a Chinese surname in taechew dialect.

[mangkorn]

Perhaps Yoot or BambinA can confirm this one?

ถูกฝานมาแล้ว

A teacher I once had told me this is a Thai phrase meaning: "I've been ripped off before," or "Won't get fooled again," etc.

As one practical example, it could apply to the idea taking a tuk-tuk in กรุงเทพฯ - which always rip off farangs, compared to what they charge for Thais. (In spite of the fact that ripping off a customer is very rude and impoliteม to my way of thinking, I understand that this phrase shouldn't be said to the drivers; rather, it would be said to a third person when explaining why not to take a tuk-tuk, or to go back to any other place where you've been screwed before.)

Edited June 9, 2007 by mangkorn

[KBTexas]

Thais use the phraseอกหักดีกว่ารักไม่เป็น mostly in the meaning of

"It is better to have loved and lost then to have never loved."

Ok, so I am totally a newbie, to this board and to the Thai language. But from reading this board, I get a feeling this is going to be fun, if a little frightening! (What kind of language has phrases about feeding a mans parts to a duck as an idiom?)

Forgive me if this is answered later in the forum, but I am only on page 18 of 32, and registered to ask. Could someone please give me the antithesis of this? e.g. "Love takes up where knowledge leaves off." (though it could be argued that Thomas did not mean it in this way) Or any Thai idoms about finding a perfect love?

Thank you. I will now go back to being the good newbie, sitting in the corner, quietly reading this forum.

(and no I am not a cowboy!)

KB

Edited June 9, 2007 by KBTexas

[yoot]

Perhaps Yoot or BambinA can confirm this one?

ถูกฝานมาแล้ว

A teacher I once had told me this is a Thai phrase meaning: "I've been ripped off before," or "Won't get fooled again," etc.

As one practical example, it could apply to the idea taking a tuk-tuk in กรุงเทพฯ - which always rip off farangs, compared to what they charge for Thais. (In spite of the fact that ripping off a customer is very rude and impoliteม to my way of thinking, I understand that this phrase shouldn't be said to the drivers; rather, it would be said to a third person when explaining why not to take a tuk-tuk, or to go back to any other place where you've been screwed before.)

The correct word is "ฟัน" - “to pick up a sharp object and to chop down with it” But in this case it means being ripped off.

อย่าไปนั่งรถตุ๊ก ตุ๊กเชียวนะ ผมถูกฟันมาแล้ว - don't even try to take a tuk tuk, I have been ripped off before.

ร้านอาหารร้านนี้ ราคาที่ตั้งไว้นี่กะฟันลูกค้าหัวแบะเลยนะนี่ -This restuarant set the price of foods as if they intend to rob their customers.

ฟันหัวแบะ - the head was choped and spread open. It's just a saying to mean being ripped off seriously.