Learn about exchanging foreign currency
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Hello and welcome to Thai Survival Phrases brought to you by ThaiPod101.com. This course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to Thailand. You’ll be surprised at how far a little Thai will go. |
| Now, before we jump in, remember to stop by ThaiPod101.com. There, you will find the accompanying PDF and additional info in the post. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Exchanging money in Thailand is quite convenient. One can exchange money at the airports, banks, hotels, or even in the shopping mall, or withdraw money from the ATM. Rates applied when withdrawing money from an ATM are likely to be the best; however, when using an ATM, it is advisable to make one large withdrawal as you may be charged by both the local bank and the one in your home. So the first things first, let's find a location that will exchange money. |
| In Thai, "Is there an ATM nearby?" is thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi. |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi |
| Let’s break it down by syllable: thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi |
| Now, let’s hear it once again, thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi. |
| Don't forget to be polite by adding khá and khráp at the end of the phrase. |
| Therefore, women say thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khá. |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khá |
| And men say thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khráp. |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khráp |
| The first word, thǎaeo níi means "this area" or "nearby," followed by mii which means "have." The next word, dtûu-ee-thii-em, means "ATM machine" which is borrowed from the English language. The next word, mǎi, indicates that this phrase is a question while khá and khráp are added to make this phrase sound polite. We have "nearby" "have" "ATM" "question" or in Thai, thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi. Adding together, this phrase means "Is there any ATM nearby?" |
| Now to ask for a bank, we just replace the word for ATM with the bank and the phrase works just fine. "Is there a bank nearby?" is thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khá. |
| thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khá |
| And thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khráp. |
| thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khráp |
| The only thing that changes is the thing you are looking for. In this case it's thá-naa-khaan which means "bank." |
| Let’s break down the word and hear it one more time: thá-naa-khaan. |
| thá-naa-khaan |
| For times, when there is neither a bank or an ATM nearby, you can ask "Is there any place to exchange currency nearby?" by replacing the word "ATM" with thîi lâaek ngoen which means "place to exchange currency." |
| Let’s break down this word and hear it one more time: thîi lâaek ngoen. |
| thîi lâaek ngoen |
| Exchanging currency is pretty straightforward. You need to fill out the forms and then present the amount you want to exchange. One extremely useful phrase is, "Smaller denominations please," as it is usually beneficial to have smaller amounts of currency on you for paying for the bus fee, taxi fee, etc. |
| In Thai, "Can I have smaller denomination please?" is khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi. |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi |
| Let’s break it down by syllable: khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi. |
| Now, let’s hear it once again, khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi. |
| Of course, you would want to sound polite when asking this question. |
| Therefore, women say khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá. |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| And men say khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp. |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| The first word, khǎaw means "ask for," followed by baaeng yâwy which means "small banknotes." The next word dâai mǎi means "please" as requesting for something. Khá and khráp are added to make this phrase more polite. |
| Altogether, this phrase is equivalent to the English phrase "Can I have smaller denominations please?" |
| Finally, you can also use the phrase "Can I exchange for a smaller denomination please?" to indicate that you would like a smaller amount of the currency. You can say that with the phrase khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi but add the word lâaek which means "exchange." Therefore, to say "Can I exchange for a smaller denomination please?" in Thai is khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá. |
| khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| And khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp. |
| khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| You can use this phrase anywhere anytime you need to get smaller banknotes or coins for your next adventure in Thailand. |
| Now, exchanging currency in Thailand is no longer a difficult mission. These phrases, although not short, are pretty much similar with each other, so I hope it is easier for you to remember. |
Outro |
| Okay, to close out today's lesson, we'd like for you to practice what you just learned. I'll provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible of saying it aloud. You will have a few seconds before I give you the answer, so chôok-dii khâ, that means "good luck" in Thai. |
| Remember, khâ is for women and khráp is for men. |
| Ok, here we go! |
| “Is there any ATM nearby?” (for women) - thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khá |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khá |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khá |
| “Is there any ATM nearby?” (for men) - thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khráp |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khráp |
| thǎaeo níi mii dtûu-ee-thii-em mǎi khráp |
| “Is there any bank nearby?” (for women) - thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khá |
| thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khá |
| thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khá |
| “Is there any bank nearby?” (for men) - thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khráp |
| thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khráp |
| thǎaeo níi mii thá-naa-khaan mǎi khráp |
| “Is there any place to exchange currency nearby?” (for women) - thǎaeo níi mii thîi lâaek ngoen mǎi khá |
| thǎaeo níi mii thîi lâaek ngoen mǎi khá |
| thǎaeo níi mii thîi lâaek ngoen mǎi khá |
| “Is there any place to exchange currency nearby?” (for men) - thǎaeo níi mii thîi lâaek ngoen mǎi khráp |
| thǎaeo níi mii thîi lâaek ngoen mǎi khráp |
| thǎaeo níi mii thîi lâaek ngoen mǎi khráp |
| “Can I have smaller denominations please?” (for women) - khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| “Can I have smaller denominations please?” (for men) - khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| khǎaw baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| “Can I exchange for a smaller denomination please?” (for women) - khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khá |
| “Can I exchange for a smaller denomination please?” (for men) - khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| khǎaw lâaek baaeng yâwy dâai mǎi khráp |
| All right. That’s going to do it for today. Remember to stop by ThaiPod101.com and pick up the accompanying PDF. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. |
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