Learn Thai Verb to be “เป็น, อยู่” /bpen, yùu/
Hello guys,
I wrote a blog about the verb ‘to have’ previously and now it is time to learn about the Thai Verb To Be!
The good news is the Thai language’s grammar is not very complicated. There is no such thing as a different form of the verb for different subjects like ïs, am, are in English, yeah! In the Thai language, we rather have a specific word for the specific meaning of the verb to be. Let me illustrate.
The verb to be is classed into 2 types that Thais use commonly.
[1] verb to be + adj. or n. (human) = “bpen” (เป็น)
“bpen” means to be something.
For example : I am Thai = Chán bpen kon tai (ฉันเป็นคนไทย) (for female speaker)
He is American = Kǎo bpen kon a-mee-ri-ga (เขาเป็นคนอเมริกา)
Anne is a doctor = Anne bpen mͻ̌ͻ (แอนเป็นหมอ)
Prae is a teacher = Prae bpen kruu (แพรเป็นครู)
*RULE : You can leave out “bpen” when it is followed by adj.
For example : She is pretty = Ter ná-rák (เธอน่ารัก) (we don’t say Ter bpen ná-rák )
[2] verb to be +places = yùu (อยู่)
“yùu” means to be somewhere.
For example: My son is at school = lûuk chaai kǒng chán yùu tîi roong-rian (ลูกชายของฉันอยู่ที่โรงเรียน)
I am at home = pǒm yùu tîi bâan (ผมอยู่ที่บ้าน)
We are here. = rao yùu tîi-nîi (เราอยู่ที่นี่)
She is in the bathroom = káo yùu nai hͻ̂ͻng-náam (เธออยู่ในห้องน้ำ)
So there are only 2 conjugations to remember for Verb to Be. All you need to remember is which type it is.
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As always enjoy!
Prae
Thai Language Teacher
