Most effective way to learn thai semi-fluently?

[P4K]

I'm a 21 year old guy currently planning on possibly living in thailand for a few years so I want to learn thai as fast and effectively as I can. II want to get to the point where I can understand everything and be able to speak a bit also. Im canadian so Im guessing that the prononciation will be one of the harder things to learn. So yeah should I get a personal thai tutor or can I just learn this stuff on the internet?

Also excuse me if there was already a thread dedicated to similar topics.

[AyG]

You can only learn the language if you get feedback on your grammar and pronunciation, the feedback being from someone who knows what they're talking about, not a boyfriend or girlfriend or some other acquaintance. So no, you can't learn this stuff on the Internet. If you try you'll pick up bad habits which will be hard to correct later.

As for "understand everything", that's going to take several years of study.

[chiang mai]

Tip number one:

Buy a long haired, dark eyed dictionary.

[SlyAnimal]

Generally speaking, if you want to learn Thai you want to attend classes where you can get feedback on your pronunciation etc, and you want to spend a lot of time around Thai people, as listen to them. Not just listen, but REALLY LISTEN, particularly as when you say something a little bit wrong, but they can understand you, they'll often repeat the words back to you, when they do this you need to listen and try to say it exactly how they said it next time, even taking on a bit of an "accent' soto speak, as that's what you need to do if you want to speak well. The reason why you need to do this, is that in addition to the tones, Thai has a kinda "Rhythm" to it when people speak, and if you aren't speaking with that rhythm, then it kinda confuses people, as they usually don't listen that carefully to begin with, and so miss what you're saying if you don't say it with that rhythm + tone + the vocabulary which they sorta expect.

If learning from Thai people in person isn't possible, then you can still learn a lot online, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you'll be understood, or that you'll understand people speaking, unless you practice listening/speaking, and at a conversational speed too, not the super slow drawn out words that you might hear from sound recordings etc of words. As they say the words slowly so that you can hear all of the sounds, but if you want to speak properly, you need to say them at a conversational speed, otherwise people will have trouble understanding.

Hopefully, being Canadian, you have a mostly neutral accent, which will help a lot, there are so many people who try to speak Thai but have really strong accents that makes it very difficult for Thai people.

Also being quite young, you'll be able to simply learn a lot easier than most of the older expats can, as it's simply easier when you're younger. Most of the guys I know who came here when they were under 30 can all speak to a decent level, even if they never actually went to a language school etc to learn. Although most of those people are also teachers in Isaan, if you're planning on living in somewhere like Bangkok, try to socialise with Thai people as much as you can, as you need to immerse yourself in the language, otherwise it's like trying to learn the language while still being in Canada lol (In Bangkok, or any of the main "Farang" areas, you can get by very easily without knowing any Thai, which is why so many people never bother learning).

Also check out learnthaistyle.com, and see if they have any tutors in Canada near you, they have a lot of resources available online (for a fee) and they have tutors in a lot of the major cities who might be able to help tutor you (Or tutor you via skype if they don't live nearby, although in person is best). I can't vouch for all of their tutors, but I previously used one of their tutors in Bangkok, and found her to be very professional & an excellent teacher.

[ezzra]

chiang mai, on 17 Nov 2015 - 18:15, said:

Tip number one:

Buy a long haired, dark eyed dictionary.

With that kind of dictionary he will only learn words associated with money, food and baan...

[Dibbler]

Find someone to communicate with in Thai language, on a daily basis, for the next few months while you take lessons at the same time. Perhaps a long-haired dictionary is what is needed. Bear in mind that Proficiency in Thai language may take several years of concentrated effort. In the end it's worth learning if you plan on living and working here.

[fang37]

An affectionate bed mate?

[Emster23]

My first Thai gf (not met at bar or anyplace like that) spoke no English. I had phrase book and decent small dictionary. She learned English and I learned Thai. Also stay away from farang hang outs. Survival is good motivator.

[sendintheclowns]

Tip number one:

Buy a long haired, dark eyed dictionary.

The only problem being, you may learn a bit of Thai, but you will start speaking Thinglish soon, and dropping at least one 'nought' ' when talking numbers.

[carter1882]

Pronunciation, pronunciation, pronuciation! Learning to read and write is essential to this. A wide range of models is available to hear the correct tones, around 62 million at the last count though the feedback that each may offer varies... Try to find someone who knows English but is unwilling to speak it much or let their own vested interest interfere with your learning to too great a degree. Some formal learning in the first few months in conjunction with lots of casual and varied practice is the key. It can be done but needs focus and dedication. I came to Thailand in 1985 with money to invest in my learning and a deep seated desire to learn. By 1990 I was teaching Thai and from 1998 I learnt my entire living from it. Good luck and do PM me if you have specific questions.

[TheKnave]

"Hongnam yu thii nai, eh?"

[asdecas]

Why do you wish to learn only semi-fluent Thai? Go the whole hog.

Edited November 18, 2015 by asdecas

[csabo]

Use rapid Thai and you will begin reading in 20 minutes. Video below. When you learn a languages alphabet first you learn to speak faster and more accurately and every menu and billboard becomes part of your classroom. Every time my gf and I have to wait somewhere, train station, restaurant etc, I read everything I see to her and she gives me feedback. Remember when you learned Canadian er um I mean English?

Use the iOS apps from its4thai or their web based version for vocabulary building and tone training. Buy the subscription it's very affordable monthly an worth it. I used theses two methods along with several others to teach myself. Tried tutors and the ones I tried were awful. Also helps to have a Thai friend interested in helping to answer questions along the way.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AQEux3Fo1Oc

[brewsterbudgen]

Why do you wish to learn only semi-fluent Thai?

Unless one plans to live here permanently, being completely fluent is quite unnecessary. I've been here 10 years and semi-fluency is still out of reach for me. Luckily it's easy to survive on very basic Thai!

[StevieDee]

If you are going to be based in Bangkok I can recommend the Rak Thai language school, Ploen Chit. 1 course is 3 hours a day, 5 days a week for 4 weeks. Do 2 courses at about 6,000 Baht per course and you will be OK. Hope this helps as I have done it and found it perfect for what I needed.

[saminoz]

1. Learn Thai fluently

2. Forget half of what you learnt.

[freebyrd]

Tip number one:

Buy a long haired, dark eyed dictionary.

This 'tip' is rather dated but it might work.

Back in '94, I went to a school and did a 60 hour course. By the time i was halfway though, I was teaching them more English than they were teaching me Thai. So, I would go to a bar in Cowboy at night, ask for a less attractive girl who couldn't speak English, speak to her in Thai for an hour or so and give her some money for her time. I was working in BKK and needed to speak Thai to my staff.

I was mindful that some of the Thai I was learning wasn't appropriate in a hotel environment. Luckily I had a Thai assistant, a man, who I could run things by before using certain expressions with the general populace.

On the flip side, one of my female staff asked me one day, in English: Boss khaa, have you got a talking dic? I consulted an old BKK hand before I got myself in troube with that one!

[bobthomas]

Use rapid Thai and you will begin reading in 20 minutes. Video below. When you learn a languages alphabet first you learn to speak faster and more accurately and every menu and billboard becomes part of your classroom. Every time my gf and I have to wait somewhere, train station, restaurant etc, I read everything I see to her and she gives me feedback. Remember when you learned Canadian er um I mean English?

Use the iOS apps from its4thai or their web based version for vocabulary building and tone training. Buy the subscription it's very affordable monthly an worth it. I used theses two methods along with several others to teach myself. Tried tutors and the ones I tried were awful. Also helps to have a Thai friend interested in helping to answer questions along the way.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AQEux3Fo1Oc

Yes! Learn the Thai alphabet.

b

[mike324]

Spend 4-6 months at a langauge school such as ULS or AAA. Learn to read and write and start reading newspapers and books. Surround youself with Thai friends, you will be fluent in no time.

[Minnehaha]

the best way to get a level of fluency and do it quickly is to combine motivation, organization, and location. Make a decision to do it, get a book / program / whatever, and organize your calendar for 2 -3 months of full on, every day effort. Lastly, do it in Thailand. It is best if you do it somewhere central but honestly anywhere could work. But in order to have a good system you probably want to be near a city - Chiang mai may be best. Or Chiang Rai. Even if the local Kum Muang is different, it is closer to Thai than Lao, which you will get a lot of in Isaan.

Immerse yourself. Get in with a Thai family. Kids are great. If you can be a football coach or do something functional for them (probably after you get a low level of fluency first) you can enjoy the ultimate situation. I did somethign like this years ago. It worked well. Kids are great because after they like you and get comfortable they will just talk to you like you should understand. And laugh when you make a mistake. They will do something 90% of adult Thais are incapable of understanding. They will 'soft correct' your Thai naturally. That is when you mispronounce a word or use the wrong word or phrase they repeat the correct one asking you if that is what you meant. This way you get to repeat it. They teach you without knowing they are doing it. You learn a lot if you are aware of this dynamic and can develop it.

Lastly, I suggest choosing a band or bands and get some CD of their music and learn songs. You will learn spoken phrases, if they are current you can learn current slang, and you will also improve pronunciation. Furthermore learning songs makes it easier to remember things. You also will learn the odd phrase to bust out to see peoples reactions.

Living in a Thai environment you will buy things and meet people, get haircut, and whatever interacting with Thais who do not speak English. This is why I recommend living and doing this outside Bkk or any major city. You do not want any Thais who speak English. It will only hurt your efforts.

Last trick: around the house get stacks of post it notes and put the word for an item in English script of the Thai word and post it on the item. In my house I had hundreds of them posted on everything all around the place. Later I switched them to the Thai script when I could write. You will learn words while brushing your teeth.

Oh. One more.

Learn the alphabet after you can speak a bit. Once you an read this will launch your Thai skills into the stratosphere as you can see the different spelling for words that sound similar or even almost the same. When this happened to me it was like an Acid trip. The world was revealed.

THEN.... learn to type Thai. Once you know the alphabet learn to type in Thai. There are programs on CDs and you can get a keyboard easy. This will support all of the above and will be helpful overall.

[piusmann]

Try www.highspeedthai.com

It works for me and i am ovet 60 years old

You should pick it ip quickly

[FT10toLOS]

here's a good start;

http://www.thai-language.com/fsi

​

[sawadee1947]

I just started learning at YMCA school. Tried before by internet "highspeed thai". Not very successful to be honest. The school's teacher will show you different tones and vowels.

I would highly recommend to take personal lessons.

[timmyp]

Go to a proper Thai school. If you don't like your school, then pick another school.

Anyone I know who claims to have learned from girlfriends has a very low level of Thai, although they will impress others who know no Thai. If you just want to be able to small talk about a limited range of topics and learn strategies, and to have people who are speaking to you dumb down the content of what they say because they think it's the only way you'll understand, then take the gf route.

If you learn properly, you will have a much more rewarding experience. It is a long process. You don't have to kill yourself studying, but you do have to study and review. Just put in the time, and you will make progress.

[mydee]

I have tried some of the methods mentioned here. I married a well educated Bangkok Thai so that helps, although our default language at home is English. The advantage of having a relationship or friendship with someone who is educated is that they are able to discuss a broad range of topics and more likely to correct you. Secondly as we live in Bangkok we speak the "official Thai" central Thai dialect, which is generally understood throughout the Kingdom. It is obviously a little more difficult to pick up the "official Thai" from the regional dialects.

I started learning Thai overseas using the same methods taught to Thai school children that is primary school text books,which were supplemented with Thai tone diagrams. I doubt that this will be a method available to you and it is fairly tedious and a little ridiculous for adults.

I now attend weekly classes at a Thai language school in Bangkok. and supplement this with the internet Thai lessons. My advise on studying at a Thai language school is to study on a one to one basis with a teacher you can relate to if possible.

Also as soon as possible start learning the Thai alphabet as soon as possible. Firstly the letters of the Thai alphabet govern the tones of the language. You must master them to be even half fluent. I found that being in a class with 10 other people of differing nationalities was hopeless beyond an absolutely basic level. We had an Australian, an Austrian, American,Japanese, Chinese students all trying to pronounce the same word with different results. As soon as I was able to get a suitable teacher teaching from the Thai alphabet my Thai improved dramatically.

I also use one of the online language courses Thai Pod as a supplement which I find very helpful. The package provide lessons which include grammar and sentence structure as well as vocabulary.

The only other advice is to talk to as many Thais as possible in different situations and try to avoid the farang ghettos. University students are often eager to pick up English and you certainly will pick up Thai from them

Good luck remember learning a language is a marathon not a sprint, so set yourself little goals and check your progress every few months. You will be surprised how far you have progressed.

[maderaroja]

I tried to speak Thai, even with classes and feedback. Real Thai people could not understand me. I now speak only English.

[louse1953]

You will only be living here for a couple of years if you have an Education visa.If you plan on touring the country a fair bit, you need to be aware of the new visa situation in Thailand.

[MaeJoMTB]

An affectionate bed mate?

I've always found Thai girls have a vested interest in ensuring their mark never speaks Thai well.

But I have known a couple of guys that spent more than a year in Thai prison, they speak Thai really well.

I guess a 'middle' position would be to become a foreign missionary, met a couple of Mormons that learnt Thai really well.

[kinmaew]

Here is what I did. Go to Asia books and get some learning books like Benajwan Poomson Becker they are excellent. Learn the script, just a letter a day, write it down, then once you know the alphabet and vowels, just learn 2 words a day. This served me well. Cant believe its 15 years since I did this but I still remember all of this as I learnt it myself. Then go out and try it out on the locals, you will be surprised when you actually understand what they are saying and vice versa its fun trust me, the girls bloody love it!!

[fred Kubasa]

Only really need 2 words which all Thais understand 1). Toilet, and the

famous, 2 ). 500 Baht ?