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Lesson 1 · 14 phrases
Sounds & Tones
The foundation of spoken Thai
Thai is a tonal language with 5 tones: mid, low, falling, high and rising. The same syllable spoken with a different tone becomes a completely different word — 'maa' can mean come, horse or dog. Listen to each example, then imitate the melody exactly. Master the tones first and every later lesson becomes far easier.
มา
maa (mid)
To come
Mid tone — flat and level, like humming one steady note.
หมา
mǎa (rising)
Dog
Rising tone — starts low and rises like a question.
ม้า
máa (high)
Horse
High tone — pitched up and slightly tense.
ไม้
mái (falling)
Wood
Falling tone — starts high and drops sharply.
ไหม
mǎi (rising)
Silk / question word
Same rising melody as 'dog'.
ไม่
mâi (falling)
Not / No
Falling tone — the negation word you'll use constantly.
เสือ
sʉ̌a (rising)
Tiger
เสื่อ
sʉ̀a (low)
Mat
Low tone — pitched below your normal speaking level.
เสื้อ
sʉ̂a (falling)
Shirt
Three near-identical words separated only by tone.
กลัว
klua
To be afraid
Practice the consonant cluster 'kl' as one smooth sound.
ครับ
khráp
Polite particle (male)
Men add this to the end of sentences to sound polite.
ค่ะ
khâ
Polite particle (female, statement)
คะ
khá
Polite particle (female, question)
Women use high-tone 'khá' when asking a question.
ง
ngɔɔ
The 'ng' sound
Thai words can start with 'ng' — like the end of 'sing'.
How to get the most from this course
Listen first
Tap the speaker and hear the phrase spoken in Thai before reading the English.
Repeat aloud
Mimic the tones. Thai is tonal — the same syllable can mean different things.
Use it daily
Pick five phrases a day and use them in real conversations to lock them in.