Mekong Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 One that always confuses me is 20 - 29 in Spoken Thai 10 = Sip 20 = Yi Sip 30 = Sarm Sip . . 90 = Kao Sip but when into higher numbers 200 = Song Roi 300 = Sarm Roi Etc Does anyone know why 20-29 are different than all the other rules not only does it use Yi as 2 rather than Song but Yi Sip can be shortened to Yip, I do understand what is being said but the for the hell of me cannot figure out why. Nearly a quarter of a century in Thailand and this is on rule I cannot figure out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 Just to confuse you further, 20 in Lao and Northern Thai is sao. e.g. 25 = sao ha! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 Thai numerals When I was a young student, my teacher played a game with the students in the class. We learned Thai numerals with our hands. Check it out if I can do it well:) ... http://learnthaiwithmod.com/2012/08/thai-numerals/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mekong Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 Just to confuse you further, 20 in Lao and Northern Thai is sao. e.g. 25 = sao ha! That explains the slap in the face I got in Udon in the early 90's when she said to me Sao Sao I thought did I want to go with her and her friend not the fact she wanted 2020 Baht Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexi Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 There is an old Thai joke......for someone holding onto a post or handrail ......" Chorp jab sao mai ? ".......which can mean " Do you like touching girls " as well as " Do you like holding onto the rail/post "......presumably " Sao " with a rising tone still means girl in Lao.....its all in the tones I suppose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mekong Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 Dexi this did happen in the early 90's and I had been in Thailand less than 12 months, at that time I had only picked up a few words of "Bar Girl" Thai and was only just getting used to tones and the importance of them. To compound matters what I was learning at the time wasn't Thai at all but Isaan so when I moved from Eastern Seaboard to Bangkok in 1999 I had to reeducate myself to Central Thai. All very confusing for this simple Englishman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 When I moved to Bangkok, Thais would tell me I had a "northern accent". Probably because that is where I'd learned to speak Thai. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexi Posted September 6, 2013 Report Share Posted September 6, 2013 I noticed last time I was up in Chiang Mai the locals spoke differently to what I was used to in Pattaya - I think the ladies say " Bpun " instead of " Chun " ......numerous other differences as well ( can`t remember the details )......Didn`t hear the usual phrases such as " ee yang " or " Bpai sai buksidar " either Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mekong Posted September 6, 2013 Report Share Posted September 6, 2013 Not sure if it is two separate phrases or a difference in regional dialect, as I have admitted I have never professed to have studied or be proficient in Thai, but IMHO the word for Bored in Central Thai is Seng and Very bored / I am getting sick of this is Seng Mak. On the other hand the wife who is from the North West uses Bpua and Bpua Bpua. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted September 6, 2013 Report Share Posted September 6, 2013 Bua is standard Thai. Seng is slang. The North speaks a different language with its own alphabet (now seldom used). Very different from standard Thai, though it is now called a "dialect" for political reasons. (Just as the Northeast speaks "Issan", which is simply Lao written with the Thai alphabet and with some Thai words mixed in.) I speak very little Kham Muang, since my Mrs likes to speak English with me (her university major). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoDlEcWDd4g Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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