Travel and transportPassport in Thai
“Passport” in Thai is พาสปอร์ตpáat-sà-bpàwt; you'll also hear หนังสือเดินทางnǎng-sǔue-doen-taang (formal).
passport noun everyday
- páat high
- sà low
- bpàwt low
- High: start high and go a little higher, a bit tense; don’t let it fall.
- Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.
Classifier: เล่มlêm · counting word for knives and books
passport (formal: forms, signs) noun
- nǎng rising
- sǔue rising
- doen mid
- taang mid
- Rising: start low, dip, then rise to the top, like a doubtful “Really?”
How to use it
In conversation it's พาสปอร์ตpáat-sà-bpàwt; forms and signs use หนังสือเดินทางnǎng-sǔue-doen-taang, the "travel document". Hotels, banks, phone shops and motorbike rentals all ask for it, often with a signed photocopy, สำเนาsǎm-nao. Some rental shops want to keep your passport as a deposit: offer a copy and a cash deposit instead if you can.
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:
- phatsapot
- pat sa pot
- paat sa port
More travel and transport in Thai
All travel and transport
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones