Word Study

• Point 1. Special expressions for can and can't  

In English our words can and can't cover a wide variety of notions that are carefully distinguished in Thai. You have already become familiar with some of these distinctions (Unit 14, Section B.1, Point 4), and the examples quoted immediately above illustarte still another distinction. The literal translations show what this distinction is while the English equivalents show the normal way of saying the same thing in English.

Point2. The words su&ay and phrO@?

Note carefully that su&ay is used only of things which can be seen, while phrO@? is used of things which can be heard. You will need to make a special effort to remember this due to the fact that in English we use the word 'pretty' of both sights and sounds.

Point 3. The use of naa with units of time

Memorize these phrases and contrast them with the ones made with kn (e.g., ma aathit kn 'last week') which you have already memorized.

Point 4. More about the use of waa

The word mo$t meaning 'to be all, to be used up, to be exhausted (in supply)' is usually employed as a secondary verb, as in the examples above. However, it is also occasionally used alone, particularly in certain set expressions, such as:

The important thing to remember about all the examples quoted here is that while mo$t is a verb in Thai it is usually not translated as such in English, because of the different modes of expression employed in the two languages.

Point 5. The use of co$p

The word co$p meaning 'to be ended' is, like mo$t in the preceding point, genearlly used as a secondary verb, as in the examples given. The important things to remember about the use of this word are:
(1) It is generally best translated 'to finish' in idiomatic English, but it means 'to finish' only in the sense of 'to come to the end.'
(2) If it is used with another verb it is secondary to that verb and therefore comes after it. In English, on the other hand, the word 'finish' precedes the verb with which it is used. 

Point 6. The distinction between co$p and se$t.

The examples above neatly illustrate the distinction between co$p and se$t, both of which are frequently translated 'finish' in English. Memorize the examples and their meanings.

Point 7. Making new words with na@k.

The word na@k means 'person' but it is never used by itself. Its only function is in the formation of certain agentive nouns from verbs (compare the words made with khon, discussed in Unit 16, Section B.1, Point 9). As a general rule na@k denotes one who is expert or specially trained in doing a certain thing, as may be noticed in most of the examples above.

Many agentive nouns made with na@k have alternative shortened forms. Note the following examples:

Point 8. The use of ta^N with number-words

The word cha^aN, like na@k discussed under the previous point, is never used by itself. Its function is to form agentive nouns from verbs, as illustrated above. It cannot be used interchangeably with na@k , however, because agentive nouns formed with cha^aN generally refer to craftsmen while a large number of those made with na@k refer to artists or highly skilled persons.

One more point to be observed about cha^aN is that khon may sometimes alternate with it; for example, cha^aN sa@kpha^a and khonsa@kpha^a both mean 'launderer' and may be used interchangeably. However, while it is possible to replace cha^aN with khon, the reverse is not true. The reason for this is that there are many agentives made with khon which od not refer to craftsmen.

Point 9. Making new words with rooN

The word rooN, which may be translated 'house' (as the term is used in words like 'school - house'), is placed before verbs or nouns to form new nouns which indicate the place where certain activities take place. Note that rooN is rarely used alone except as a classifier or as an abbreviation for a compound noun (such as those above) which have rooN as their first member. See Sentence No. 9 in the Basic Sentences of this unit.

Point 10. The use of na@n with descriptive clauses.

Note carefully that the combination khon thi^i ... na@n means 'the one who ...' and that the proper position for na@n is after the descriptive clause introduced by thi^i. The word khon in both examples above is a classifier and ofcourse similar sentences containing other classifiers are also widely used, e.g.

The broad formula taking in all types of such phrases, then, is:
Noun + Classifier + thi^i + Clause introduced by thi^i + na@n

Point 11. Some classifiers

Point 12. Some special phrases