Complicated in Thai

“Complicated” in Thai is ยุ่งยากyûng-yâak; you'll also hear ซับซ้อนsáp-sáwn (complex).

ยุ่งยาก yûng-yâak

complicated, a hassle adjective

yûng falling
yâak falling

Falling: start high and drop clearly, like a firm “No!”

Parts: ยุ่งyûng busy; tangled ยากyâak difficult

ซับซ้อน sáp-sáwn

complex, intricate adjective

sáp high
sáwn high

High: start high and go a little higher, a bit tense; don’t let it fall.

How to use it

ยุ่งยากyûng-yâak is complicated in the sense of a hassle: paperwork, a visa extension, a recipe with twenty steps. It's built from ยุ่งyûng, busy or tangled, and ยากyâak, difficult. ซับซ้อนsáp-sáwn is complex, with many layers: a plot, a system, a grammar. The opposite of both is ง่ายngâai, easy.

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:

yung yak
yoong yak
sap son
sab son

More describing things in Thai

All describing things

ดี dii Good
ไม่ดี mâi dii Bad
bad, not good
ดีกว่า dii gwàa Better
ดีที่สุด dii tîi-sùt Best
the best
ชอบที่สุด châwp tîi-sùt Favourite
favourite (literally 'like the most')
สุดยอด sùt-yâwt Awesome
awesome, amazing, the best

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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones