Sea in Thai

“Sea” in Thai is ทะเลtá-lee.

ทะเล tá-lee

sea; the seaside noun

tá high
lee mid

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

ไปทะเลbpai tá-lee means a trip to the seaside, not sailing out to sea. You know it from อาหารทะเลaa-hǎan-tá-lee (seafood).

Taught in Unit 21 · Lesson 1: On the island of the free course.

Practise it free

How to use it

ทะเลtá-lee covers the sea, the ocean and the seaside: ไปทะเลbpai tá-lee is a beach trip. The formal word for ocean, มหาสมุทรmá-hǎa-sà-mùt, is for geography lessons and the news.

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:

thale
talay
ta lay
thalay
tale

More nature and weather in Thai

All nature and weather

ดำน้ำ dam-náam Snorkel
to snorkel, to dive
พระอาทิตย์ตก prá-aa-tít dtòk Sunset
sunset (the sun goes down)
แดด dàet Sunshine
sunshine, the sun
พระจันทร์ prá-jan Moon
the moon
ฟ้า fáa Sky
ภูเขา puu-kǎo Mountain

Learn this word in Unit 21, free

Unit 21 · Island stories · On the island. Short lessons with audio for every word, speaking practice and spaced review. No sign-up needed.

Practise it free (2 min) See Unit 21

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