What do kráp and kâ mean?
They are polite particles: short words with no meaning of their own that make a sentence polite. On its own, either one also means "yes", or "I'm listening". A man answering the phone or a question can just say kráp.
- ครับ
- ค่ะ
You will see them spelled many ways in English, such as khrap, krub, krab, kha and ka; they are the same words. In everyday speech many men drop the r and say káp.
When do you say kráp or kâ?
You say kráp or kâ with strangers, in shops and restaurants, at work and with anyone older than you, and Mooteach adds the right one to every phrase so the habit forms on its own.
Add the particle to almost every sentence, greetings and thanks included, once at the end rather than after every phrase. When in doubt, keep it in; nobody minds politeness.
Does the particle depend on who I'm talking to?
No, only on you. A man says kráp to a woman, and a woman says kâ to a man. It follows the gender you identify with, so trans women use kâ and trans men kráp.
Why do women say both kâ and ká?
Women use kâ, with a falling tone, at the end of statements and replies, and ká, with a high tone, at the end of questions. The two are spelled differently in Thai, too. Women also say ká after a name when calling someone. "How are you?" from a woman ends in ká:
- สบายดีไหมครับ
- สบายดีไหมคะ
When is it okay to drop kráp and kâ?
With close friends, family your own age and younger, and in quick casual chat you can leave them out. Dropping them with a stranger or someone older sounds abrupt, so start with them and follow what the other person does. Among friends and with children you will also hear softer endings, such as จ้าjâa.
What are the essential polite phrases in Thai?
Each one ends in kráp from a man and kâ from a woman.
- สวัสดีครับ
- สวัสดีค่ะ
- ขอบคุณครับ
- ขอบคุณค่ะ
- เจอกันครับ
- เจอกันค่ะ
ขอโทษkǒr tôhtmeans "sorry" or "excuse me", and takes the particle like any other sentence.
What does ná mean at the end of a sentence?
นะnásoftens a request or a suggestion, a little like "okay?" in English, and often comes just before the polite particle. After ná, a woman says ká rather than kâ: ná ká, and a man ná kráp.
Is there an app that teaches kráp and kâ?
Yes, there is an app that teaches kráp and kâ: Mooteach, which plays every phrase in a male and a female voice and adds kráp or kâ to match the setting you choose, so you always practice the form you will use.
See how Mooteach compares with other Thai apps.
