Learning Thai language for beginners is challenging as much as learning other second and third languages as learning a new language and seeing the result require time and effort. Thai may sound complicated when you think about 44 Thai alphabets and 21 vowels at first but that may not be a smooth start for beginners.
In this article, I will talk and guide you on how to: learning Thai language for beginners, efficiently and happily! Let's see what tips and tricks are there for you to use and try out on a journey of learning Thai language for beginners.
Start with learn to speak Thai
For learning Thai language for beginners, as a native Thai and a Thai teacher for foreigners, I recommend that you start to learn to speak Thai first.
Listening and speaking is a base of learning language and just simply easier to start with.
After you get familiar with listening and how to speak Thai more, you can start on writing and reading and then go deeper on learning Thai.
Skip the pile of alphabets and vowels for now. Learn Thai words by trying to listen first, repeat by saying it out or even write it down in romanizations to help you memorise it better. Let it sink in your familiarity and expand your list of useful vocabularies slowly. After that you will be able to create simple sentences by yourself without worrying about how to write them in Thai alphabets.
Get the Thai intonations right
First thing you should know before learn to speak Thai is Thai intonations.
There are 5 intonations in Thai language: middle, low, falling, high and rising. Thai intonations are really important as different tones can lead to different meanings. But don’t worry as practising listening and speaking will make you more familiar with it.
For learning Thai language for beginners, getting the intonations right will build a strong base by helping you learn to speak Thai more correctly and understand easier when listening to natives speaking in Thai. Aim to get the Thai intonations right if you want to speak more like a local.
Learn the most common used vocabularies in Thai
The best way to pick up the language quickly and efficiently when learning Thai language for beginners is by aiming to learn the most commonly used vocabularies first.
Instead of learning many vocabularies but cannot remember well in the end as they are rarely used, searching for the most 150 - 300 words that are commonly used in Thai. Learn how to say them correctly and also learn how to build simple sentences from them.
Use flashcards as a tool to remember vocabularies in Thai
When you learn new words in Thai, write it down on flash cards in English or your native language one side and Thai one side. When you have time, use it to help you remember the meanings of words by looking at English and guess on how to say it in Thai.
Even draw a picture on it if you can, as pictures have extra power to help you memorise them better. Being a bit on the creative side can make learning Thai more fun and interesting.
Recording voice over how to pronounce Thai words with meaning and review them often
As Thai intonations are difficult for learning Thai language for beginners, you may want to listen to a voice over of Thai vocabularies in English and Thai to help get familiar with them better.
The more you listen, the better you will remember them.
You can simply build it by yourself, asking for help from Thai friends, family members or even using a Thai dictionary online when it comes to Thai sounds.
Last but not least, learning Thai language for beginners will work out if you pick up the techniques that work for you most, adapt using it and put time and effort into practising it.
One of the most important things when learning a language is taking the theory into practice.
Try speaking it out with a native whenever you can. Note down new vocabularies you learn and don’t be shy to practise it often and learn through mistakes.
If you are looking for someone to assist you with learning Thai language for beginners , I am here to help. We will start to learn to speak Thai, get the Thai intonations right, aim on at least the most used 150 Thai words and how to say sentences from them, remember Thai vocabularies through flashcards, getting videos/voice overs from the class to review the content yourself.
I offer you Thai class online via Zoom so, you can learn Thai online from anywhere and anytime you prefer!
if you are interested, feel free to reach out to me and get a free trial class. For more details about the course, please take a look here: https://bit.ly/LearningThailanguageforbeginner
Looking forward to teach you!
Kru Tree