KEE-AN (เขียน) AHN (อ่าน). These two words are usually followed by an object such as the word NUNGSEU “book” or JOTMAI “letter” even though no actual book or letter would be implied in English.

	AHN NUNGSEU THAI PEN MY อ่านหนังสือไทยเป็นไหม	Can you read Thai?
	PROONG NEE CHUN JA KEE-AN JOTMAI I will write (a letter) tomorrow. พรุ่งนี้ฉันจะเขียนจดหมาย

PAHSAH (ภาษา) “language” is usually placed in front of the name of the language referred to after the word POOT “to speak” but not after AHN or KEE-AN for which we use a concrete noun as mentioned above.

POOT PAHSAH THAI PEN MY พูดภาษาไทยเป็นไหม

Can you speak Thai?

DY (ได้) “to get”. This is exactly the same word as DY “can”. By far the most common meaning is “can” but you will come across the meaning “get”, “attain”, etc. mostly with other words as,

DY OGAHT

ได้โอกาส

To get the chance.

LEN (เล่น) “to play” is also used as an adverb to indicate doing something “for fun or pleasure”.

KUP ROT LEN

ขับรถเล่น

To go for a drive (for pleasure).

DTORNG (ต้อง) “must”, “will have to”, “had to” is used for present, future, and past as follows.

Present.

CHUN DTORNG PY

ฉันต้องไป

I must go.

Future.

Preceded by JA “will” which is often omitted if an adverb of time is used.

	CHUN JA DTORNG PY ฉันจะต้องไป	I must (will have to) go.
	PROONG NEE CHUN (JA) DTORNG PY พรุ่งนี้ฉัน (จะ) ต้องไป	I will have to go tomorrow.

Past.

As for the present, the past time being indicated by the adverb of time.

MEU-A WAHN NEE CHUN DTORNG PY เมื่อวานนี้ฉันต้องไป

I had to go yesterday.

JUMPEN (จำเป็น) “necessary” may be used alone but it is often followed by DTORNG “must” to give it more force.

MY JUMPEN DTORNG PY WUN NEE It is not necessary to go today. ไม่จำเป็นต้องไปวันนี้

In the above sentence the emphasis is on “today” and the implication is that you should go some other day, but if you change the position of the adverb of time and say,

WUN NEE MY JUMPEN DTORNG PY It is not necessary to go today. วันนี้ไม่จำเป็นต้องไป

the implication is that you should go but it is not really necessary.

GOW (เก่า) “old” is used only for things and inanimate objects. It also has the meaning of “former”, “of long standing” and in this sense may refer to people.

	KON KRU-A GOW	คนครัวเก่า	A former cook.
	PEU-AN GOW	เพื่อนเก่า	An old friend.

GAA (แก่) is the word to use when referring to humans, animals, or plants.

RUP (รับ) “to receive” is always used instead of POP “meet” when referring to meeting or receiving someone at an airport, railway station etc. or “picking someone up in a car”.

CHUN JA PY RUP (KOW) TEE DORN MEU-ANG I will go and meet him at Don Meuang. ฉันจะไปรับ (เขา) ที่ดอนเมือง

RUP is one of the words which always takes DY “did” in front of it in the past tense.

MEU-A WAHN NEE CHUN DY RUP JOTMAI I received the letter yesterday. เมื่อวานนี้ฉันได้รับจดหมาย

SOY (ซอย) as an adverb means “to chop up into small pieces” and a noun means a canal or lane dividing or branching off from another one.

DTRORK (ตรอก) means a small narrow alley or lane.

The lanes off suburban roads are usually referred to as SOY and those off city streets as DTRORK.

These two words which appear almost synonymous to us are an integral part of the name of the lane or alley as far as a Thai is concerned and it is useless to refer to a SOY as a DTRORK or vice versa; you will not be understood.

Generated by Lyndon Hill on Thu Jul 20 18:40:32 BST 2006.

Copyright remains with the original authors.