In this video, we will answer the question “How do I say “thank you for …(something)…” and “sorry for …(something)…”?”
Many Thai learners have trouble expressing their gratitude and apologies in Thai beyond saying the well-known phrases “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun]” and “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote].” This video will show you how to let someone know what you thank them for as well as what you apologize for. After watching this video, you will be able to convey your messages more deeply and in a more meaningful way.
Transcript
Q: “How do I say “thank you for ….” and “sorry for ….”?”
A: Everyone knows how to say “Thank you” and “Sorry” in Thai but what if you want to be specific and say what you thank for or what you’re sorry for, do you know how to express it? Don’t worry if you don’t. This is something that’s hardly taught and we’re going to talk about that in detail in this lesson.
Thai people say “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun]” for “Thank you,” followed by a polite particle,
“ค่ะ [kâ]” for females and “ครับ [kráp]” for males, unless you talk to a friend or someone you’re close to. So in general, a Thai woman will say “ขอบคุณค่ะ” [khàwp khun kâ] and a Thai man will say “ขอบคุณครับ” [khàwp khun kráp] for “Thank you.”
To soften the tone of voice, sometimes we also add the ending particle “นะ [ná]” right before the polite particle, “ขอบคุณนะคะ [khàwp khun na ká]” and “ขอบคุณนะครับ [khàwp khun ná kráp]. Note that the tone of the female polite particle will change from falling tone to high tone when following “นะ [ná]”. So we don’t say “นะค่ะ [ná kâ]” but, we say “นะคะ [ná ká].” While the tone of the female particle can change, that of the male polite particle always remains the same, “ครับ” and “นะครับ [ná kráp].”
Now, to say what you thank for, we use “สำหรับ [sǎmrap],” a preposition meaning “for,” if what follows is a noun. For example,
ขอบคุณสำหรับของขวัญ
[khàwp khun sǎmrap kǎwng kwǔan]
Thank you for the present.
ขอบคุณสำหรับวันนี้
[khàwp khun sǎmrap wanníi]
Thank you for today.
ขอบคุณสำหรับความทรงจำดีๆ
[khàwp khun sǎmrap kwaam song jam dii dii]
Thank you for the good memories.
If you want to add the ending particle “นะ [ná]” to the phrase, you can either add it to the very end of the sentence or right after “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun].” If you choose to put it after “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun],” just remember to pause a little before you go on to say what you thank someone for. While the meaning is the same, as you can guess, your feeling of gratitude is more emphasized when you structure the sentence this way.
ขอบคุณนะ สำหรับความทรงจำดีๆ
[khàwp khun ná, sǎmrap kwaam song jam dii dii]
Thank you, for the good memories.
ขอบคุณสำหรับความทรงจำดีๆ นะ
[khàwp khun sǎmrap kwaam song jam dii dii ná]
Thank you for the good memories.
Now, if what follows “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun]” is often a verb, rather than a noun, as you often thank someone for doing something for you. In that case, we use “ที่ [tîi]” to connect the word “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun]” with the verb or the verb phrase. For example,
ขอบคุณที่พามา
[khàwp khun tîi paa maa]
Thank you for bringing me (here).
ขอบคุณที่พาฉันมาโรงพยาบาล
[khàwp khun tîi paa chán maa rong payaabaan]
Thank you for bringing me to the hospital.
ขอบคุณที่มา
[khàwp khun tîi maa]
Thank you for coming.
ขอบคุณที่มาวันนี้
[khàwp khun tîi maa wanníi]
Thank you for coming today.
ขอบคุณที่มาหาฉันวันนี้
[khàwp khun tîi maa hǎa chán wanníi]
Thank you for coming to see me today.
ขอบคุณที่เข้าใจ
[khàwp khun tîi kâojai]
Thank you for understanding me.
ขอบคุณที่เข้าใจแล้วก็ไม่โกรธ
[khàwp khun tîi kâojai láew gâw mâi gròte]
Thank you for understanding me and not being mad at me.
ขอบคุณที่เป็นกำลังใจ
[khàwp khun tîi bpen gamlang jai]
Thank you for being my support.
ขอบคุณที่คอยเป็นกำลังใจให้ฉันเสมอ
[khàwp khun tîi koi bpen gamlang jai hâi chán saměr]
Thank you for always being there supporting me.
Note that when these phrases are translated into English, “Thank you for” is usually followed by a gerund (a verb in the noun form ending with the suffix -ing) or a gerund phrase.
Now, let’s take a look at how to apologize for something. First, when we apologize or say sorry to someone, we say “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote]“ and just as with the phrase “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun], you can add the ending particle “นะ [ná]” after it and say “ขอโทษนะ [kǎw tôte ná],” and if you want to sound polite, “ขอโทษนะคะ [kǎw tôte ná ká]” or “ขอโทษนะครับ” [kǎw tôte ná kráp].
For the case of “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote]” though, because adding “นะ [ná]” usually softens your tone of voice, your apology would generally sound more serious without it. So when you want to apologize about something serious, it’s better to say “ขอโทษค่ะ” [kǎw tôte kâ] or “ขอโทษครับ” [kǎw tôte kráp] without adding นะ [ná].
Apart from expressing apologies, “ขอโทษนะคะ [kǎw tôte ná ká]” and “ขอโทษนะครับ” [kǎw tôte ná kráp] are also commonly used to get someone’s attention, or to start saying something or interrupt someone. It can be treated as an equivalent of the expression “Excuse me” in English. In this situation, it’s not appropriate to say just “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote].” Otherwise, it would sound as if you had done something wrong.
For example,
ขอโทษนะคะ แบบนี้มีสีอื่นไหมคะ
[kǎw tôte ná ká, bàep níi mii sǐi èun mái ká]
Excuse me, are there other color options for this design?
ขอโทษนะครับ อันนี้ของคุณหรือเปล่าครับ
[kǎw tôte ná kráp, anníi kǎwng khun réu plào kráp]
Excuse me, is this yours?
ขอโทษนะคะ ตรงนี้มีคนนั่งไหมคะ
[kǎw tôte ná ká, dtrong níi mii kon nâng mái ká]
Excuse me, is this seat taken?
ขอโทษนะครับ ขอเบียร์เพิ่มอีกสองขวดครับ
[kǎw tôte ná kráp, kǎw beer pêum ìik sǎwng kùat kráp]
Excuse me, can I have two more bottles of beer, please?
Apart from “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote],” there is another expression meaning “to apologize” or “to be sorry,” that is “ขออภัย [kǎw apai].” It’s more polite and formal. It’s often used in the written language and in a formal setting. For example,
ขออภัยสำหรับความไม่สะดวก
[kǎw apai nai kwaam mâi sadùak]
Sorry for the inconvenience.
As with “ขอบคุณ [khàwp khun],” we also use “สำหรับ [sǎmrap]” with “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote]” and “ขออภัย [kǎw apai]” when what follows the phrase is a noun.
ขอโทษสำหรับทุกอย่างที่เกิดขึ้น
[kǎw tote sǎmràp túkyàang tîi gèrd kêun]
Sorry for all that happened.
ขอโทษสำหรับเรื่องเมื่อวาน
[kǎw tote sǎmràp reûang mêua waan]
Sorry about yesterday.
ขอโทษสำหรับสิ่งที่ผมทำ
[kǎw tote sǎmràp sìng tîi phǒm tam]
Sorry for what I did.
Again, most of the time, what follows “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote]” is a verb, rather than a noun, as you often apologize to someone for doing something. In that case, we use “ที่ [tîi]” to connect the word “ขอโทษ [kǎw tote]” with the verb and the verb phrase. For example,
ขอโทษที่มาสาย
[kǎw tote tîi maa sǎai]
Sorry for being late.
ขอโทษที่ทำให้ผิดหวัง
[kǎw tote tîi tamhâi pìtwǎng]
Sorry for disappointing you.
ขอโทษที่ไม่พูดความจริง
[kǎw tote tîi mâi dâi phûut kwaam jing]
Sorry for not telling the truth.
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