Hello folks,

In a mail I have to send in Thai, I need to refer to these cheap, mostly single-room housing for rent that are common in Thailand.

I usually hear them referred as "hong teow" but I don't know how to write the "teow" part.

Probably not the same word as in "song teow" where it refers to the benches at the back of the pick-up taxis.

Anyone can help?

Thanks in advance.

ห้องเดี่ยว

Thanks so much but are you sure? This is for "single room" and I'm pretty sure that I could hear the difference between (phonetically) "dieow" and "teow". And that's the latter I hear when people use it.

IT can be that you thinking about the word

ห้องเช่า common word for single rom apartment, rented.

ให้เช่า - for rent

Edited April 25, 201610 yr by Sattphalat

Thanks so much but are you sure? This is for "single room" and I'm pretty sure that I could hear the difference between (phonetically) "dieow" and "teow". And that's the latter I hear when people use it.

Google the word and you'll see

Thanks so much but are you sure? This is for "single room" and I'm pretty sure that I could hear the difference between (phonetically) "dieow" and "teow". And that's the latter I hear when people use it.

Google the word and you'll see

Not sure at all but I used Google translate for "Apartment" and that was just the English word written in Thai. The synonyms listed included "Single Room" which seemed to be what you wanted.

"Probably not the same word as in "song teow" where it refers to the benches at the back of the pick-up taxis."

It very well could be the same word. แถว doesn't mean "bench", it means "line" or "row". So ห้องแถว could be what you're looking for. Do a picture search in google to verify.

Thanks so much but are you sure? This is for "single room" and I'm pretty sure that I could hear the difference between (phonetically) "dieow" and "teow". And that's the latter I hear when people use it.

Yes, it's right. The ต sounds like a "t" to most people. And "dieow" means single or alone, depending on the context.

OK, got the answer from a Thai friend. It's actually ห้องแถว with the same exact word as used for the pick-up taxis because "teow" here doesn't mean "bench" as I thought but "row", "line". These housings are usually aligned in a long building, townhouse-style so that's where the name comes from.

Thanks for your inputs anyway.

ห้องแถว

Like this? Typical "dormitory" for singles (students, migrant workers).

Edited April 26, 201610 yr by KhunBENQ

Yes, exactly this.

it's far from being for this kind of people only. Many complete Thai families living in such housing around where I usually am.

• room (ห้อง is also the classifier for rooms.)

ห้อง เดี่ยว
hôngdìeow

• solo ; alone
• [to be] alone ; single ; sole

• ห้องเช่า [ ห้อง เช่า ]
• hông châo
• [ Noun ]
  • rented room

• This is an approximate indication of how common a word ห้องเช่า is in Thai.

Edited May 8, 201610 yr by puukao