TimePast (time gone by) in Thai
“Past (time gone by)” in Thai is อดีตà-dìit; you'll also hear สมัยก่อนsà-mǎi gàwn (back then).
the past; former (before a title) noun
- à low
- dìit low
- Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.
in the old days, back then adverb
- sà low
- mǎi rising
- gàwn low
- Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.
- Rising: start low, dip, then rise to the top, like a doubtful “Really?”
How to use it
อดีตà-dìit is the past as a noun, and before a title it means former, as in อดีตแฟนà-dìit faen, an ex. When telling stories, Thais say สมัยก่อนsà-mǎi gàwn or เมื่อก่อนmûea-gàwn, "before", for the old days, and use เคยkoei for "used to": เคยอยู่ที่นี่koei yùu tîi-nîi, I used to live here.
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:
- adit
- a deet
- adeet
- samai kon
- samai gon
More time in Thai
All time
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones