Everyday expressionsWhat happened? in Thai
“What happened?” in Thai is เกิดอะไรขึ้นgòet à-rai kûen; you'll also hear เป็นอะไรbpen à-rai (about a person).
What happened? phrase
- gòet low
- à low
- rai mid
- kûen falling
- Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.
- Falling: start high and drop clearly, like a firm “No!”
what's wrong?, what's the matter? phrase about a person
- bpen mid
- à low
- rai mid
- Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.
Taught in Unit 21 · Lesson 2: Telling the story of the free course.
Practise it freeHow to use it
เกิดอะไรขึ้นgòet à-rai kûen asks what happened: after a noise, a crowd, an accident. เป็นอะไรbpen à-rai, "be what?", asks about a person, "what's wrong?", and Thais answer ไม่เป็นอะไรmâi bpen à-rai or ไม่มีอะไรmâi mii à-rai, nothing, I'm fine.
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:
- koet arai khuen
- gert arai kuen
- pen arai
More everyday expressions in Thai
All everyday expressions
Learn this word in Unit 21, free
Unit 21 · Island stories · Telling the story. 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