Are You "tone Deaf"?

[Tim207]

In the topic "Are We In A 'falang Bubble'?" a comment was made that I have been hearing ever since I came to Thailand, "I can't learn Thai because I can't hear the tones." I admit that the tones were a huge stumbling block for me. Everyone emphasizes how important they are and it becomes very intimidating.

The best advice I ever got was from an old expat that had been around since the Vietnam war days. He had a crazy Thai ex-wife, kids, grand kids and worked at a university. He was completely integrated into his Thai life with few ties to his home country. I mentioned how I was having difficulty with getting the tones right and his advice was to stop worrying so much about the tones. People will usually understand what you mean and communication is what you want not perfection. The tones will come with repetition and at some point it will click and become obvious. I took this advice and it got me over the paranoia of saying something wrong and got me speaking Thai.

For those who think they could never hear the tones, I think for the most part you are mistaken. In English we use tones also, just in a different way. For instance, if you heard this conversation could you understand the different meanings?

Laurel: He said "what".

Hardy: He said what?

Laurel: He said "what"!

The meaning is changed by the tone of the word "what". If you can understand the difference by how the sentence is said, congratulations. You have the ability to hear tones. If not, even English comprehension might be difficult at times.

I think people like to make things sound more difficult than they are as an ego boost. I find myself correcting peoples pronunciation at times and although as a whole that may be a good thing, it also can be discouraging to someone who is just starting out and serve as a barrier to them continuing. Don't be scared off by the tones. Communication is the objective.

As I side note, I was also discouraged by the common Thai writing system vowel description of "vowels can be written before, after, above, below, or around the word". This is very misleading and to my thinking serves only as an ego boost to the writer that have learned to decipher this complicated system that can place vowels randomly. I came to learn that ALL Thai vowels have a specific location in relation to the text that they are always written. It isn't random or complicated as the description would imply.

Don't let seeming complication discourage you from learning to communicate. It isn't easy, but it isn't as hard as it may seem.

[pattayadingo]

It also has to depend on the level and quality of your hearing.

Some people cannot sing because they are tone deaf too, though they like to think they can, especially in the bath

Yes, I am tone deaf.

[Bangkokhatter]

I have to admit i do really struggle with the tones, but recently started to learn to read and write and this does help you understand the tones better, but i still struggle to hear different tones when i listen to Thais having a conversation.

[astral]

No not tone deaf.

I can distinguish some of the Thai tones, but not all.

Horse and Dog, OK

Far and Near............

Not all Thais can tell either

A certain amount is done by context.

As a joke I told my sister in law she was beautiful

then told my wife she was ugly..............

Strangely enough my wife preened herself and said Thank you.

[Tim207]

I have to admit i do really struggle with the tones, but recently started to learn to read and write and this does help you understand the tones better, but i still struggle to hear different tones when i listen to Thais having a conversation.

In normal speech many Thais don't enunciate their tones very well. Much like in English, people often don't pronounce things clearly unless you ask them to repeat something that you didn't understand. For me, I have a much harder time understanding men.

[krisb]

OP, we use tone in English to add expression in our language.

Not the same as Thai language. Your example is not the same as Thai.

End of day he who wants to learn Thai will and should be grateful its just Thai which is easy compared to Chinese.

BTW, you used ! and ? on your Laurel and Hardy piece. Without ! and ? it wouldnt have any expression or as you put it, tone, would it.

Or I could say without ! and ? it wouldnt have any expression would it!....kow jai mai?

[Tim207]

OP, we use tone in English to add expression in our language.

Not the same as Thai language. Your example is not the same as Thai.

End of day he who wants to learn Thai will and should be grateful its just Thai which is easy compared to Chinese.

BTW, you used ! and ? on your Laurel and Hardy piece. Without ! and ? it wouldnt have any expression or as you put it, tone, would it.

Or I could say without ! and ? it wouldnt have any expression would it!....kow jai mai?

You are missing the point. The "expression" as you put it is conveyed by changing the tone of the word "what". The punctuation effects the tone of the word "what", which is what changes the meaning of the sentence. True, it does not change the meaning of the word as it does in Thai, but my point was that people who think they can not hear tonal differences might be surprised to learn that they already use them in English.

[Ulysses G.]

The only one that seems that important to me is the rising tone. You have to hear it and use it to speak Thai. Of course, the others are useful too, but usually you can make yourself understood and understand Thai without them because of the context.

[Trembly]

No not tone deaf.

I can distinguish some of the Thai tones, but not all.

Horse and Dog, OK

Far and Near............

Not all Thais can tell either

A certain amount is done by context.

As a joke I told my sister in law she was beautiful

then told my wife she was ugly..............

Strangely enough my wife preened herself and said Thank you.

Maybe they took it as the "suay" (even tone) that means 'damned' or 'damned unlucky'

[BigJohnnyBKK]

For me, I have a much harder time understanding men.

Probably because you've got much less motivation to do so, and they're much less motivated to speak in a way that will help you to understand.

If you were gay you probably wouldn't have that problem.