What would you say to your Thai friend when you see them in the morning? Good morning in Thai, naturally. What would you say to them as they tell you that they will go to bed? Good night in Thai, right? So, let’s learn how to say good morning and good night in Thai!
It is easy to overlook these small words that you say, but they can prove to be important in these situations. Let’s look at some vocabulary related to different words and greetings in Thai you can use at different times of the day.
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Wishing Someone A Good Morning In Thai
While a simple hello in Thai is more than enough for greeting those you meet, you may want to venture out of your comfort zone and try some new phrases. While it is not very common at all to use time-specific phrases like these compared to a heartfelt สวัสดี (sà wàt dii), it is worth knowing them.
Good Morning
If you’re seeing one of your friends first thing in the morning, you should use สวัสดีตอนเช้า (sà wàt dii dtɔɔn cháao), which means ‘good morning’ in Thai.
Time-Specific Phrases
Imagine this – it has just past midday, and you can see your friend approaching in the distance. You can’t say ‘good morning’ anymore as it is no longer the morning, but it is not nighttime either. What can you use instead? For the times between morning and night, you have a few options available for you to use, it is just a case of selecting the most appropriate one!
Once again, let’s not forget that we can use the basic way to say hello, the trusty old สวัสดี (sà wàt dii) at any time of day. You can use this both as a hello and goodbye too, making it an important phrase to learn. However, if you are looking to get a bit more creative with your greetings, then here are some other, more time-sensitive options you can try.
Good Day
There is no direct translation for saying ‘good day’ in Thai. You could, of course, use good morning in Thai if it is still before midday and so on, but that can be difficult to remember. What if you don’t have a watch on you? Thankfully, there is an equivalent phrase that is used that is understood similarly as good day. That would be โชคดี (chôok dii), which literally means good luck, but it can be used as a parting phrase throughout the whole day.
Good Afternoon
If you are looking to be more specific with your afternoon greetings, then you can use สวัสดีตอนบ่าย (sà wàt dii dtɔɔn bàai) to say good afternoon. This is a more informal way of saying this phrase, but it is much more common to use, especially day-to-day.
Wishing Someone A Good Night In Thai
With the morning out of the way, it is now time to get ready for sleep. In Thai, you would say นอนหลับ (nɔɔn làp) which means to fall asleep. This is where we need to work on saying the opposite phrase to good morning – good night.
There are many different ways to wish someone a good night in Thai. As with other languages, there are plenty of phrases you can use that have the same or similar meaning, offering up some variety. While some are more formal, others can be used with friends and loved ones without sounding out of place.
Good Night
The basic and most formal phrase you can use to wish someone a good night in Thai is ราตรีสวัสดิ์ (raa dtrii sà wàt).
However, this can be considered a bit too formal for most people, so it’s better to say either ฝันดี (fǎn dii) or ฝันหวาน (fǎn wǎan).
The ฝัน (fǎn) part means ‘to dream’, so when you add ดี (dii) which means ‘good’, or หวาน (wǎan) which means ‘sweet’ (yes, like if you were ordering food in Thai), you are wishing that their dreams will be pleasant.
Otherwise, a simple กู๊ดไนท์ (gúut nai) – the English good night but with a Thai accent – will also be understood. The same goes for ‘night night’ and other similar varieties. Choose whatever feels right for the situation and the person you are talking to.
How Do You Say ‘Good Morning’ In Thai?
‘Good Morning’ In Thai can either be said as สวัสดี (sà wàt dii) or สวัสดีตอนเช้า (sà wàt dii dtɔɔn cháao) . The latter having a more formal connotation.
Related Vocabulary To Good Morning In Thai
Phew! That was a lot of greetings. Here’s a table of the things we’ve covered so far, in addition to some phrases you’re bound to hear when conversing in Thai:
For more similar phrases, you can use the Ling app to practice and learn more important vocabulary. Soon enough, you will be able to wish people a good night in Thai in your sleep!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What Does Sawadee Khrup mean?
Sawadee khrup, or สวัสดีครับ (sà wàt dii kráp) is a polite way to say ‘hello’ in Thai. สวัสดี (sà wàt dii) means ‘hello’ and ครับ (kráp) is a masculine politeness article. The feminine alternative is สวัสดีค่ะ (sà wàt dii kâ).
2. What Is A Typical Thai Greeting?
A typical Thai greeting is สวัสดี (sà wàt dii) followed by a politeness article, either ครับ (kráp) or ค่ะ (kâ). Alternatively, you can also say สวัสดีตอนเช้า (sà wàt dii dtɔɔn cháao) if it’s the morning or สวัสดีตอนบ่าย (sà wàt dii dtɔɔn bàai) if it’s the afternoon.
3. What Is Thai Slang For Hello?
Used among friends or close acquaintances, หวัดดี (wàt dii) is a casual way to say ‘hello’ in Thai. You can also shorten this further to ดี (dii) if you’re really close with another person!
Get A Handle On Thai Greeting Phrases
To summarize, there are many different phrases for greeting people at different times of the day. However, Thai people rarely use them in day-to-day life. In reality, to say good morning in Thai, they would just say สวัสดี (sà wàt dii). To say good night in Thai, they would use ฝันดี (fǎn dii). In between, they would either just say hello as usual or โชคดี (chôok dii).
If you’ve ever visited Thailand’s many provinces, you’ll notice that there often is a very relaxed vibe – what you could describe as the Thai sabai-sabai attitude. Sometimes, this means you will lose track of the time. If that is the case, make sure you don’t end up using the wrong phrase, otherwise, you will get some weird looks. The same is true if you are up late partying. Either way, you should now be able to wish someone a good day or night, which is always something pleasant!
One Response
Very good thank you