INTRODUCTION |
Jessi: Top 25 Thai Questions You Need to Know - Lesson 18: "What are you doing?" in Thai. In each lesson of this 25 part series, you'll master a common question for Thai learners, and then learn how to answer like a native speaker. You'll learn how these key phrases work by breaking them down into each component. Then, through repetition and new vocabulary, you'll expand your understanding of the question, its answers, and any variations. |
In this lesson, you'll learn how to respond to the common question "What are you doing?" In Thai, this is... |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá |
Jessi: The first word in the question is... |
Pim: khun |
Jessi: meaning "you" in English. |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) khun |
Jessi: Listen again and repeat. |
Pim: khun |
{Pause} |
Jessi: This pattern of first introducing a word at natural speed, providing the translation, breaking it down, and then giving it again at natural speed will be repeated throughout the series. Try to speak aloud as often as possible. The next word in the question is- |
Pim: gam-lang |
Jessi: meaning "being" |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) gam-lang |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: gam-lang |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Listen to the first two words of the question and repeat. |
Pim: khun gam-lang |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Next is... |
Pim: tham |
Jessi: meaning "do" |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) tham |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: tham |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Listen to the first three words of the question and repeat. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham |
Jessi: And after that... |
Pim: à-rai |
Jessi: meaning "what" |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) à-rai |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: à-rai |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Listen to the first three words of the question and repeat. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham |
Jessi: And after that... |
Pim: yùu |
Jessi: meaning "to be" or auxilary verb indicating progressive tense |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) yùu |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: yùu |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Now, listen to the first four words of the question and repeat. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham yùu |
Jessi: And next is... |
Pim: khá |
Jessi: a polite ending particle for female speakers for questions and requests |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) khá |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: khá |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Now listen to the entire question and repeat. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá |
{pause} |
Jessi: Remember to change the final khá to khráp if you're a male speaker. Now, master the following pattern and responses to the question "What are you doing?" |
Pim: dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang khít yùu khâ |
Jessi: "I'm just thinking." You’ll hear it again, slowly. Repeat the phrase. |
Pim: (Slow) dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang khít yùu khâ |
{pause} |
Jessi: Let's break it down from the beginning. The first word... |
Pim: dì-chǎn |
Jessi: meaning "I" used by females |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) dì-chǎn |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: dì-chǎn |
{Pause} |
Jessi: And next... |
Pim: khâae |
Jessi: meaning "just." |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) khâae |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: khâae |
{Pause} |
Jessi: And next... |
Pim: gam-lang |
Jessi: meaning "being." |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) gam-lang |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: gam-lang |
{Pause} |
Jessi: And after that... |
Pim: khít |
Jessi: which is "to think." |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) khít |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: khít |
{Pause} |
Jessi: And after that... |
Pim: yùu |
Jessi: meaning "to be" or auxilary verb indicating progressive tense |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) yùu |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: yùu |
{Pause} |
Jessi: And after that... |
Pim: khâ |
Jessi: a particle added at the end of the sentence or phrase in order to increase the level of politeness when the speaker is female |
Pim: (Slow, by syllable) khâ |
Jessi: Now repeat. |
Pim: khâ |
{Pause} |
Jessi: Listen to the speaker say "I'm just thinking." and then repeat. |
Pim: dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang khít yùu khâ |
{Pause} |
Jessi: This is how you say "I'm just thinking." if you are a female; if you are a male, simply replace the word dì-chǎn with the word phǒm, meaning "I," and remember to change the final syllable. Now, listen to the entire response as you would say it if you were a male, and repeat. |
Pim: phǒm khâae gam-lang khít yùu khráp |
{Pause} |
Jessi: To expand on the pattern, replace "thinking" with "watching TV." |
Pim: gam-lang duu thii-wii |
Jessi: "watching TV" |
Pim: (slow) gam-lang duu thii-wii (regular) gam-lang duu thii-wii |
Jessi: Listen to the phrase again, this time with "watching TV." |
Pim: dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang duu thii-wii yùu khâ |
Jessi: It’s almost the same, simply replace "thinking" with "watching TV." Say, "I'm just watching TV." |
{pause} |
Pim: dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang duu thii-wii yùu khâ |
Jessi: Remember, this is how to answer the question if you’re a female. If you’re male, use phǒm instead of dì-chǎn, and then change the final syllable. Let's try it with a masculine version. To expand on the pattern, replace "watching TV" with "listening to music." |
Pim: gam-lang fang pheeng |
Jessi: "listening to music" |
Pim: (slow) gam-lang fang pheeng (regular) gam-lang fang pheeng |
Jessi: Listen to the phrase again, this time with "listening to music." |
Pim: phǒm khâae gam-lang fang pheeng yùu khráp |
Jessi: replace "watching TV" and then use male speech. Say, "I'm just listening to music." |
{pause} |
Pim: phǒm khâae gam-lang fang pheeng yùu khráp |
Jessi: To use a different phrase, replace "listening to music" with "writing an e-mail." |
Pim: gam-lang khǐian ii-meeo |
Jessi: "writing an e-mail" |
Pim: (slow) gam-lang khǐian ii-meeo (regular) gam-lang khǐian ii-meeo |
Jessi: Listen to the phrase again, this time with "writing an e-mail." |
Pim: phǒm khâae gam-lang khǐian ii-meeo yùu khráp |
Jessi: Replace the phrase "listening to music" and then use male speech. Say, "I'm just writing an e-mail." |
{pause} |
Pim: phǒm khâae gam-lang khǐian ii-meeo yùu khráp |
Jessi: Ok! Now it's time for a quiz. Imagine you're visiting Thailand and someone asks you what you're doing. You’re thinkingRespond to the question. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá (five seconds) dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang khít yùu khâ |
Jessi: Imagine you're watching TV. What would you say? |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá (five seconds) dì-chǎn khâae gam-lang duu thii-wii yùu khâ |
Jessi: Imagine you're listening to music. This time use male speech and answer the speaker's question. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá (five seconds) phǒm khâae gam-lang fang pheeng yùu khráp |
Jessi: Now imagine you’re writing an e-mail. Use male speech and respond to the question. |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá (five seconds) phǒm khâae gam-lang khǐian ii-meeo yùu khráp |
Jessi: Now, you want to ask someone what they are doing. Ask them the question in female speech. |
(5 seconds) |
Pim: khun gam-lang tham à-rai yùu khá |
{pause} |
Jessi: This is the end of Lesson 18. |
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