ศาลาชุมนุม

[ajw1982]

Hi,

Firstly, this website is amazing. Been using it for a while but just noticed the forum. I've been casually learning Thai for a couple of years and after a recent trip to Thailand realised I could speak much more than I thought... so time to get serious!

One big issue I have is with the past tense. I'm OK explaining things in the future (e.g. using "ja") but was hoping for some explanation on past tense (have got some grammar books recommended in this forum on order... but I'm impatient!

Forgive the attempts at transliteration but I don't yet have a thai keyboard... I understand that you don't change the word / verb but would use an adverb (or can say yesterday, last year etc.), so...

Example 1:

To say: "I miss you" - would be "Pom kit tung khun krap"

But, how would I say" I missed you" - would it be "Pom kit tung khun maa krap"

Example 2:

To say: "I'm eating lunch" - would be "Pom gin ahan tiang"

And, to say, "I ate lunch already" would be "Pom gin ahan tian leeo"

Am I on the right lines?

Thanks,
Alex

[Tgeezer]

Hi,

Firstly, this website is amazing. Been using it for a while but just noticed the forum. I've been casually learning Thai for a couple of years and after a recent trip to Thailand realised I could speak much more than I thought... so time to get serious!

One big issue I have is with the past tense. I'm OK explaining things in the future (e.g. using "ja") but was hoping for some explanation on past tense (have got some grammar books recommended in this forum on order... but I'm impatient!

Forgive the attempts at transliteration but I don't yet have a thai keyboard... I understand that you don't change the word / verb but would use an adverb (or can say yesterday, last year etc.), so...

Example 1:

To say: "I miss you" - would be "Pom kit tung khun krap"

But, how would I say" I missed you" - would it be "Pom kit tung khun maa krap"

Example 2:

To say: "I'm eating lunch" - would be "Pom gin ahan tiang"

And, to say, "I ate lunch already" would be "Pom gin ahan tian leeo"

Am I on the right lines?

Thanks,
Alex

I don't think anyone would bother with 'missed' because the context tells all, for instance if you have been apart and meet the utterance of คิดถึง says it all. You could say ได้คิดถึง 'in the past I miss(ed) you' .
คิดถึงมา 'I miss(ed) you before we have now met ' .
As you can see ' before we have now met' is obvious from the context.
I think that กินแล้ว is ok.

[Rick Bradford]

"I'm eating lunch" - would be "Pom gin ahan tiang"

I think that you would more often hear ผมกินข้าวอยู่ (Pom gin khao yuu) for this (the 'yuu' part giving the sense of 'currently, at the moment').

A very common exchange is:

A: กินข้าวหรือยัง (Gin khao reu yang?) Have you eaten yet?
B: กินแล้ว (Gin laeo) I have eaten already

In fact, it is such a common exchange that it is used (in areas outside Bangkok) as a general greeting (kind of "How's it going?", rather than as a specific request about having eaten food.

[Nan]

I don't think anyone would bother with 'missed' because the context tells all, for instance if you have been apart and meet the utterance of คิดถึง says it all. You could say ได้คิดถึง 'in the past I miss(ed) you' .
คิดถึงมา 'I miss(ed) you before we have now met ' .
As you can see ' before we have now met' is obvious from the context.
I think that กินแล้ว is ok.

I don't think ได้คิดถึง and คิดถึงมา can be used in this case.

Normally, in spoken Thai, we only say คิดถึง for miss or missed, but context will tell the rest.

For example:

ตอนที่คุณไม่ได้อยู่ที่นี่ ฉันคิดถึงคุณมากเลย - When you were not here, I missed you a lot.

Example 2:

To say: "I'm eating lunch" - would be "Pom gin ahan tiang"

And, to say, "I ate lunch already" would be "Pom gin ahan tian leeo"

I'm eating lunch. ผมกินข้าวเที่ยงอยู่, ผมทานอาหารเที่ยงอยู่, ผมกินอาหารเที่ยงอยู่, ผมทานข้าวเที่ยงอยู่. Don't forget the word "อยู่" if you mean to say '"I'm eating lunch (at this moment)."

I ate lunch already. - ผมกินข้าว(อาหาร)เที่ยงแล้ว, ผมทานข้าว(อาหาร)เที่ยงแล้ว, ผมกินข้าว(อาหาร)เที่ยงเรียบร้อยแล้ว, ผมทานข้าว(อาหาร)เที่ยงเรียบร้อยแล้ว or, for shorten version ทานแล้วครับ, กินแล้วครับ.