ศาลาชุมนุม

[hhrh]

Hello!

I know I'm asking for a lot, but I really just can not get my head around how these words are used, how they change the word of what ever else they do! It's so confusing, I'm a really 'slow' person, and I need things explaining to me simply, this is probably why I don't understand, please could someone help me? Explain how they are used and how? Aaaah!

The words I'd like to know about are ...

ที่
ให้
อย่าง
ไป
มา

It would be widely appreciated.

Thank you! Harry.

[Toffeeman]

Yes I can understand the confusion with these words. They are probably some of the most used words in Thai and have multiple meanings.
I thought about trying to give an explanation of one of the words but really I cant do any better than the T-L online dictionary here.

Eg. if you type in อย่าง you will get 4 definitions of the word and then lots of examples of how it is used. I have found this sort of information indespensible when trying to understand all the different ways that these words are used.

[pensive]

OK, I'll give it a go.

ที่ means "place", but you will most often see it making relative clauses. There is a bit of sublety in this but you can mostly replace it with "who", "that" or "which". วันที่ดี - "day that is good".

อย่าง means "kind (of thing)" but you can often translate it as "like". วันอย่างนี้ - "day like this".

The other three are verbs. It is important to decide if they are the main verb in a sentence.

ให้ means "give" as the main verb. If it is not the only verb in the sentence then try to translate it with "let". In some case "make" will fit the meaning. Often, though, "let" will do the trick. But if it is a case of someone doing something for someone, then translate it with "for".

As the main verb, ไป means "go" but if there is another verb it probably means "too", as in "too much". It can also indicate that the direction of the action is away from the speaker. เดินไป - "walk away (from me)."

มา as a main verb means "come" but if there is another verb it might be making the past tense or indicating that the direction of the action is toward the speaker. เข้ามา - "come in (towards me)."

To understand them properly, though, you have to get some experience in the language.

[hhrh]

OK, I'll give it a go.

ที่ means "place", but you will most often see it making relative clauses. There is a bit of sublety in this but you can mostly replace it with "who", "that" or "which". วันที่ดี - "day that is good".

อย่าง means "kind (of thing)" but you can often translate it as "like". วันอย่างนี้ - "day like this".

The other three are verbs. It is important to decide if they are the main verb in a sentence.

ให้ means "give" as the main verb. If it is not the only verb in the sentence then try to translate it with "let". In some case "make" will fit the meaning. Often, though, "let" will do the trick. But if it is a case of someone doing something for someone, then translate it with "for".

As the main verb, ไป means "go" but if there is another verb it probably means "too", as in "too much". It can also indicate that the direction of the action is away from the speaker. เดินไป - "walk away (from me)."

มา as a main verb means "come" but if there is another verb it might be making the past tense or indicating that the direction of the action is toward the speaker. เข้ามา - "come in (towards me)."

To understand them properly, though, you have to get some experience in the language.

I know about these means already, but I mean about how they change the words. For example why มา is used to make the word perfect present tense (I don't know if it is or, I just took a stab) I've looked them all up on the dictionary, none of it makes sense to me! Haha

[David and Bui]

I know about these means already, but I mean about how they change the words. For example why มา is used to make the word perfect present tense (I don't know if it is or, I just took a stab) I've looked them all up on the dictionary, none of it makes sense to me! Haha

Interesting perspective, Hhrh: " why มา is used to make the word perfect present tense?"

The word "มา" is not a suffix in the sense that "suffix" is used in European or other languages. มา has a contextual meaning in a sentence, but does not change the meaning of a particular word. Take the following sample sentence from this dictionary:

ฉันไม่ได้พบเขามานานแล้ว
"I haven’t seen him for a long time."

Here the word มา is a grammar term indicating that the verb action occurred in the past and is continuing into the present. But, the Thai term "มา" has other grammar usages as well:

1b. มา maː [aspect marker indicating past or present perfect tense (continuity from the past)]
1c. มา maː [directional auxiliary inticating "approach" or "toward the object"]
2b. มา maː [a word or particle that complements the verb ไป (to go) or ถึง (to arrive)]
2c. มา maː [a word used with a verb to emphasize it]
2d. มา maː [qualifying conjunction used with a single verb or a pair of verbs to show the intention/purpose of the verb]

Just accept the multiple usage of some Thai "words" and understand that context is the key to understanding.

Best of luck in your studies.