Describing thingsSlow in Thai
“Slow” in Thai is ช้าcháa; you'll also hear ช้าๆcháa-cháa (slowly) and ค่อยๆkâwy-kâwy (gently, little by little).
slow adjective
- cháa high
- High: start high and go a little higher, a bit tense; don’t let it fall.
slowly adverb
- cháa high
- cháa high
- High: start high and go a little higher, a bit tense; don’t let it fall.
The mark at the end means 'say it twice': ช้าcháa ('slow') two times.
slowly, gently, little by little adverb
- kâwy falling
- kâwy falling
- Falling: start high and drop clearly, like a firm “No!”
ค่อยๆไปkâwy-kâwy bpai = take it slowly.
ช้าๆcháa-cháa is taught in Unit 2 · Lesson 2: Where are you from? of the free course.
Practise it freeHow to use it
ช้าcháa is slow; said twice, ช้าๆcháa-cháa means slowly or gently, as in พูดช้าๆหน่อยpûut cháa-cháa nàwy, please speak slowly.
Don't mix it up
-
ชาchaa
tea
Mid tone instead of high: tea.
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:
- cha
- char
- cha cha
More describing things in Thai
All describing things
Learn this word in Unit 2, free
Unit 2 · Nice to meet you · Where are you from? Short lessons with audio for every word, speaking practice and spaced review. No sign-up needed.
Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones