Animals
cat noun
- maew mid
- Mid: level, in your normal speaking voice.
Classifier: ตัวdtua · counting word for animals, clothes, tables and chairs
How to use it
แมวmaew is said with a flat mid tone. A kitten is ลูกแมวlûuk-maew ("cat child"), and cats are counted with ตัวdtua, like all animals: แมวสามตัวmaew sǎam dtua is three cats.
Thais also call a cat เหมียวmǐaw, the sound it makes, especially when talking to one. The Siamese cat comes from Thailand, where it's called วิเชียรมาศwí-chian-mâat.
Don't mix it up
-
เมาmao
drunk
Keep the vowel of แมวmaew like the a in cat, gliding into a w. A plain mao means drunk.
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:
- meow
- maeo
- meaw
- maow
Cat in Thai: questions people ask
How do Thai cats say meow?
Thai cats say เหมียวmǐaw, which is also a cute name for a cat. Chat messages write it เมี้ยวmíaw or เหมียวๆmǐaw-mǐaw.
More animals in Thai
All animals
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones