News and societyExpenses in Thai
“Expenses” in Thai is ค่าใช้จ่ายkâa-chái-jàai; you'll also hear ต้นทุนdtôn-tun (business cost).
expenses, costs noun
- kâa falling
- chái high
- jàai low
- Falling: start high and drop clearly, like a firm “No!”
- High: start high and go a little higher, a bit tense; don’t let it fall.
cost (of making or buying something to sell) noun business cost
- dtôn falling
- tun mid
- Falling: start high and drop clearly, like a firm “No!”
How to use it
ค่าใช้จ่ายkâa-chái-jàai, "the cost of using and paying", is expenses: what you spend in a month, the costs of a trip, a company's outgoings. The cost of living is ค่าครองชีพkâa krawng-chîip.
A business's cost of making or buying what it sells is ต้นทุนdtôn-tun, and a vendor giving you a big discount may say it's ราคาทุนraa-kaa tun, cost price. The price of one thing is just ราคาraa-kaa.
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:
- kha chai jai
- khachaijai
- ka chai jaai
- tontun
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones