Expressions by Thai people that raise my blood pressure:

[SoiBiker]

1 hour ago, rott said:

In a local eating house I ordered Pat Khapow Moo as I had done numerous times before. The lady said to a colleague next to her "Khowshai Pad Khapow, mai khowshai Moo" I had obviously used the wrong tone. As they only make it with moo or gai I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to get my drift. Plenty of context there.

 

But perhaps they were tired of my apparent mispronunciation and teaching me a lesson. 

 

Also irritating is having ordered a latte lon I am then asked if I want it hot or cold.

 

I have also learned the hard way that getting a motorsy to the local Fairyland shopping mall I have to specify "Ferrylirn".

 

The latter is an example of how helpful some knowledge of Thai can be in unexpected ways. Once you understand the rules of which sounds are used in Thai and how they are modified by their position in a word, you can anticipate the ways in which Thai speakers will pronounce (and hear) words spelt with the English alphabet. Which is why it also sometimes helps to ask to be taken to 'Centran' rather than Central.

[rott]

Yes, illustrates the strange method of English (translated by Thai) spelling of Thai pronunciation. Long ago I was buying Anticil from a pharmacy, "not have" was the response. I pointed to a display of them behind her and was told "You want Anticin why you not speak Anticin??"

[xerostar]

While chatting online many Thai ladies confuse the words "tired" and  "tried".

e.g.  "I tried, I go sleep now"

I've tried  to point out the difference but it goes over their heads.

In fact I've found many girls don't bother to read my messages, so later on in the conversation I have to repeat myself ..

[joeyg]

On 1/22/2017 at 11:03 AM, 01322521959 said:

It won't. But sounds like great fun!

Sent from my i-mobile_i-STYLE_219 using Thaivisa Connect mobile app
 

Sorry.  Gotta agree to disagree on this one.  Can't see any merit to humiliating a lazy, incompetent, probably ignorant person.  For me just better to walk away.  I do that in most situations these days.  Not all but most.

[johng]

Yes, illustrates the strange method of English (translated by Thai) spelling of Thai pronunciation. Long ago I was buying Anticil from a pharmacy, "not have" was the response. I pointed to a display of them behind her and was told "You want Anticin why you not speak Anticin??"

I encountered similar yesterday asking if the chemist had any aspirin
blank look ? ?
"yar gea bort hau"
ohhh "ass -par -in" no hab out of stock

[dick dasterdly]

On 1/22/2017 at 10:24 AM, Ace of Pop said:

Blowin them Bloody Whistles and no one knows who its directed at sept one clown with black windows

I was at Makro a couple of days ago and, I kid you not, a Western guy was helping his friend reverse his car out of a parking space using loud (verbal) whistles as well as hand signals !

[dick dasterdly]

4 hours ago, johng said:

 

I encountered similar yesterday asking if the chemist had any aspirin
blank look ? ?
"yar gea bort hau"
ohhh "ass -par -in" no hab out of stock

 

The way things are pronounced by foreigners makes a lot of difference as to whether or not they are understood in all (?) languages.  I've felt embarrassed far too often when (whilst in England) a foreigner asked me something, and it took several attempts before I understood - only to realise it was purely emphasis on the wrong syllables that made it incomprehensible to me at first .  Which is why I sympathise entirely with Thais trying to deal with my mangled attempts at speaking Thai!

 

In my experience pharmacists that can't understand what the customer is requesting,  ask them to write down the name of the medication as they can read English.  They then look it up in their 'book'.

[SoiBiker]

1 hour ago, dick dasterdly said:

 

Edited January 23, 2017 by SoiBiker

[JaySonic]

On 22/01/2017 at 3:21 PM, rott said:

In a local eating house I ordered Pat Khapow Moo as I had done numerous times before. The lady said to a colleague next to her "Khowshai Pad Khapow, mai khowshai Moo" I had obviously used the wrong tone. As they only make it with moo or gai 

Can you explain this in English please? I think I recognise a few things.. 

 

Kowshai = understand?

Moo = pork? 

Gai = fish or maybe chicken? 

Mai = you ? 

 

Im listening to a couple of CDs lately but its doing my head in. I really admire falangs that have got the language down pat

[nisakiman]

12 hours ago, rott said:

Yes, illustrates the strange method of English (translated by Thai) spelling of Thai pronunciation. Long ago I was buying Anticil from a pharmacy, "not have" was the response. I pointed to a display of them behind her and was told "You want Anticin why you not speak Anticin??"

 

It's something I find strange, too. My wife speaks good English, and can touch type in English at great speed with mostly correct spelling and grammar, but still when we go to Central, as SB says above, it's 'Cen tan'.

 

The one I find most difficult to get my head round is one of her friends has the nickname which she writes as 'Ple', but pronounces as 'Poon'. What?

 

When I say that the spelling should be pronounced 'Play', she says no, Ple is pronounced 'Poon'.

 

I don't get it at all.

[grollies]

Allai wah & jop loi - NFI 

[nuakmuaynina]

'I no sure'

 

when they are sure they just don't want to tell you

[grollies]

11 minutes ago, nuakmuaynina said:

'I no sure'

 

when they are sure they just don't want to tell you

Allai wah - OMG! Disbelief - impolite 

Edited January 24, 2017 by grollies

[Naam]

On 1/17/2017 at 3:59 PM, xerostar said:

Any additions to this list anybody ?  

Explanatory anecdotes welcome ..

Kasikorn Bank

Question: why "can not"?

Answer: can not because no can do!

[Oorinara]

Mai loo muang khan - I don't know either.

Often from those who are supposed to know or at least supposed to pretend to know. Such as airline counter, hotel reception, restaurant table, regarding their own service or product availability.


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[Naam]

On 1/19/2017 at 8:12 PM, SoiBiker said:

The Thai alphabet seems daunting at first, but its really not so hard once you spend a little time with it. I'd thoroughly recommend it to anyone - it opens up a whole new world when you can read all those squiggles around you...

 

Even just being able to decipher road signs and food menus is worth the effort alone. 

whatever i see when i leave my home is quite interesting and "new world enough". besides... our Thai driver is literate and our cook does not write menus 

[SoiBiker]

3 minutes ago, Naam said:

whatever i see when i leave my home is quite interesting and "new world enough". besides... our Thai driver is literate and our cook does not write menus 

Ignorance is bliss, eh?

[bannork]

Gentlemen, all your problems with Central.... Anticil and any other English words ending in l being pronounced Centren ...  Anticin with a final n sound in Thai would be resolved once you know that every Thai word with the letter ล  (l), whilst pronounced l at the beginning of a word, it is pronounced n  if at the end of the word

thus (foot)ball is born. It can even disappear oil may become oi

 

 

[1FinickyOne]

12 minutes ago, bannork said:

Gentlemen, all your problems with Central.... Anticil and any other English words ending in l being pronounced Centren ...  Anticin with a final n sound in Thai would be resolved once you know that every Thai word with the letter ล  (l), whilst pronounced l at the beginning of a word, it is pronounced n  if at the end of the word

thus (foot)ball is born. It can even disappear oil may become oi

 

 

Yes, this is totally correct, tylenol is tylenon and if you say tylenol, they will not understand, but if you write it. Spot on.

 

And just as Westerners have trouble hearing some of their sounds, they also have trouble hearing the ends of words especially with an "S" sound... which is why you get mickey mou - not mouse, hou, not house... 

[SoiBiker]

That's kind of the point I was making halfway up the page there. 

 

Still, thanks professor. 

[bannork]

2 minutes ago, SoiBiker said:

That's kind of the point I was making halfway up the page there. 

 

Still, thanks professor. 

They need detail SB.

[SoiBiker]

23 minutes ago, bannork said:

They need detail SB.

That's why they should go and learn some Thai. 

[Naam]

3 hours ago, SoiBiker said:

Ignorance is bliss, eh?

i have priorities what information i absorb and process. reading street signs and menus do not belong to my priorities.

[Naam]

3 hours ago, Oorinara said:

Mai loo muang khan - I don't know either.

a phrase i picked up 40 years ago that hit the nail on its head is "mai roo rong roi!" a Farang using that with rrrrolling rrrrs gets a roaring laughter from Thais  

[SoiBiker]

59 minutes ago, Naam said:

i have priorities what information i absorb and process. reading street signs and menus do not belong to my priorities.

or reading anything apart from whats available in the farang ghettos I guess. 

[Naam]

6 hours ago, SoiBiker said:

or reading anything apart from whats available in the farang ghettos I guess. 

i wouldn't call a small moo baan with 40 single-family homes a ghetto especially when the occupancy ratio Thai/Farang is ~50:50. plus there's nothing to read besides house numbers.

[dick dasterdly]

15 hours ago, SoiBiker said:

That's why they should go and learn some Thai. 

Whilst I agree that it would be great if all expats could learn Thai, its not that easy when 1) you don't live with a Thai and 2) you're tone deaf....

[marko kok prong]

It is not so much any expression,but the yelling at each other that gets me,it seems they either whisper or yell,the tv has to close to full volume too it seems,and of course the endless talk about food,have you eaten,when are you eating,what are you eating,is it good,then the inevitable im laeo.

[dick dasterdly]

46 minutes ago, marko kok prong said:

It is not so much any expression,but the yelling at each other that gets me,it seems they either whisper or yell,the tv has to close to full volume too it seems,and of course the endless talk about food,have you eaten,when are you eating,what are you eating,is it good,then the inevitable im laeo.

When I first came here I moved in with a relative for a while whilst looking for a house.  Eating breakfast on the patio one morning my brother started SHOUTING to his wife 'Are you enjoying your breakfast?  Would you like more coffee etc. etc.'.

 

When I asked why he was shouting, he responded that he was emulating the Thais across the road - who shouted about everything, rather than just talking to each other.  And he was right .

 

To be fair though, its only a few who feel the need to shout all the time.

[SoiBiker]

5 hours ago, dick dasterdly said:

Whilst I agree that it would be great if all expats could learn Thai, its not that easy when 1) you don't live with a Thai and 2) you're tone deaf....

I don't live with a Thai...