How do I read Thai romanization?
You read Thai romanization like English, watching the tone mark on each syllable, the length of each vowel and a few consonant spellings, and Mooteach writes every word this way.
Every word on this page has audio, so play it and compare what you hear with what you read.
How are the tones written?
The tones are written as a mark on each syllable's vowel, with no mark for the mid tone.
If a vowel is written with two letters, the mark goes on the first.
- มา
- ไก่
- ไม่
- ม้า
- หมา
The tone is part of the word, so maa, máa and mǎa are three different words. Thai tones covers how to hear them and how Thai spelling gives them.
How do I know if a vowel is long or short?
You know a vowel is long when its letter is doubled, as in aa or ii.
The pairs are a and aa, i and ii, u and uu, e and ee, ue and uue. A long o is written oh. Length changes the word, so hold a long vowel for longer:
- นะ
- น้า
- ยำ
- ยาม
- สด
- โสด
Six vowels, ae, or, er, ia, uea and ua, are written the same way whether they are short or long, so for those the audio, or the Thai spelling, tells you the length. Thai vowels plays every short and long pair.
What do g, dt and bp mean?
G, dt and bp mean the k, t and p sounds said without a puff of air, as in "skip".
Thai has two kinds of k, t and p: one with a puff of air, like the k in "kit", and one without, like the k in "skip". Our romanization writes the ones without the puff as g, dt and bp, and the ones with it as k, t and p. Each pair below differs only in that puff.
- ไก่
- ไข่
- เป็ด
- เผ็ด
- ตำ
- ทำ
Is the r in or and er pronounced?
No, the r in or and er is not pronounced: it is part of the vowel.
For example, kǒr, "may I have", and jer, "to meet". The h in oh is part of the vowel in the same way.
- ขอ
- เจอ
What do the hyphens and spaces mean?
The hyphens join the syllables of one word and the spaces separate words.
A hyphen joins the syllables of one word, as in sà-wàt-dii, "hello". A space separates words, so sà-nǎam bin, "airport", is two words.
- สวัสดี
- สนามบิน
Why do Thai words have different spellings in English?
Thai words have different spellings in English because Thai has no single way of writing them in Latin letters, which is why Mooteach uses one consistent romanization that marks every tone.
Books, apps, menus and signs each spell them their own way. Road signs and place names follow an official style that marks neither tones nor vowel length, and writes the k, t and p with a puff of air as kh, th and ph. That is why Phuket starts with a p sound, not an f, and why the th in pad thai is a t, not the th of "think".
- ภูเก็ต
- ผัดไทย
- ต้มยำกุ้ง
None of these spellings is wrong; they follow different rules. Pick one system, learn it well, and check what you read against the audio.
When should I turn romanization off?
You should turn romanization off once you know the consonants and the common vowels, and in Mooteach that is one switch, Show romanization.
Romanization lets you speak before you can read, but it is a bridge, not the destination. Once you know the consonants and the common vowels, turn it off and read the Thai first, glancing at the romanization only when you are stuck. The sooner you read Thai script, the less you depend on any spelling in Latin letters.
Is there an app that uses this romanization?
Yes, there is an app that uses this romanization: Mooteach, which writes every word in it, with its tone marks, plays it in a male and a female voice, and lets you switch it off with Show romanization when you are ready to read.
See how Mooteach compares with other Thai apps.
