Small wordsthe beginning, the start (of a month, a year, a street) noun
- dtôn falling
- Falling: start high and drop clearly, like a firm “No!”
How to use it
ต้นdtôn is a tree's trunk, and the counting word for trees and plants: ต้นไม้สามต้นdtôn-máai sǎam dtôn, three trees. From there it's the beginning of things: ต้นเดือนdtôn duean, the start of the month, when rent is often due, and ต้นซอยdtôn sawy, the mouth of a soi, where it meets the main road. The end is ปลายbplaai or สุดsùt: ปลายเดือนbplaai duean, สุดซอยsùt sawy. A beginner is a มือใหม่muue mài, "a new hand".
Other spellings you'll see
There's no single official way to write Thai in English letters. We mark the tone of every syllable; online you'll also find:
- tohn
- ton duean
More small words in Thai
All small words
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones