Unit 7 · First steps · A1
Unit 7: By Grab and BTS
Say where you're going, direct a driver, and get on and off the skytrain.
6 lessons · about 46 min CEFR A1
The story
Boss picks you up in his Grab car and jokes his way through the Bangkok traffic; later you ride the BTS skytrain on your own.
After this unit
- I can say where I want to go.
- I can tell a driver to go straight, turn left or right, slow down and stop.
- I can make my instructions sound polite and friendly.
- I can ride the BTS: find the station, get on and get off.
The 6 lessons
Each lesson takes 5-10 minutes. Read it here, then practise it in the app: free, no sign-up.
Words and phrases in Unit 7
Tap the speaker to hear each one. Tap any Thai word to see what it means.
Taking a Grab
Lesson page- มา maa
to come verb
ไปbpai is movement away from you, มาmaa is movement towards you.
- รถ rót
car; vehicle noun
Any vehicle with wheels: a car, a van, a bus. The skytrain is รถไฟฟ้าrót-fai-fáa.
- แท็กซี่ táek-sîi
taxi noun
- จอด jàwt
to stop, to park verb
For stopping a car, bus or taxi, and for parking.
- เลี้ยว líaw
to turn verb
- ซ้าย sáai
left noun
High tone, with a long aa.
- ขวา kwǎa
right (the direction) noun
Rising tone, with kw as in quarter. Only the direction: 'that's right' is ใช่châi.
- ตรงไป dtrong bpaiครับ kráp
go straight on phrase
Men ตรงไปครับ dtrong bpai krápWomen ตรงไปค่ะ dtrong bpai kâ
- ตรงนี้ dtrong-níi
right here, this spot adverb
More exact than ที่นี่tîi-nîi (here): the very spot you point at. Just what you need to stop a taxi.
- ไกล glai
far adjective
Mid tone: keep it flat and level.
- รถติด rót dtìt
traffic jam; the traffic is bad phrase
Bangkok's favourite complaint, and a perfectly good excuse for being late.
- ช่วย chûay
to help; please (do this for me) verb
ช่วยchûay + verb (+ หน่อยnàwy) is the polite way to ask someone to do something for you.
- ลืม luuem
to forget; to leave something behind verb
On the BTS
Lesson page- รถไฟฟ้า rót-fai-fáa
skytrain, metro (BTS/MRT) noun
Both the BTS skytrain and the MRT underground: an 'electric vehicle'.
- สถานี sà-tǎa-nii
station noun
- ตั๋ว dtǔa
ticket noun
Rising tone. On the BTS you buy a single ticket at the machine or tap a Rabbit card; on the MRT a contactless bank card works too.
- ขึ้น kûen
to go up; to get on, to get in (a vehicle) verb
You 'go up' into any vehicle: ขึ้นรถkûen rót, ขึ้นรถไฟฟ้าkûen rót-fai-fáa, ขึ้นแท็กซี่kûen táek-sîi.
- ลง long
to go down; to get off, to get out (of a vehicle) verb
- เดิน doen
to walk verb
- นั่ง nâng
to sit; to ride, to take (a vehicle) verb
With a vehicle it means to take or ride it: นั่งแท็กซี่nâng táek-sîi (take a taxi).
- วัด wát
temple noun
- กัน gan
together, each other; let's (at the end) adverb
You already know it from แล้วเจอกันláew joe gan (see you, literally 'then meet each other').
- ด้วย dûay
please (after a request); too, also particle
After a request it adds 'please': เลี้ยวซ้ายด้วยlíaw sáai dûay. After a verb it can also mean 'too': ไปด้วยbpai dûay (I'm coming too).
- ระวัง rá-wang
to be careful, to watch out verb
- ไม่ต้องห่วง mâi dtâwng hùang
don't worry phrase
Grammar: Telling a driver where to go
- ไป bpaiสุขุมวิท sù-kǔm-wítครับ kráp
To Sukhumvit, please.
Men ไปสุขุมวิทครับ Women ไปสุขุมวิทค่ะ
- บอส báwtมา maaรับ ráp
Boss is coming to pick me up.
- ไป bpaiสถานี sà-tǎa-niiอโศก à-sòokยังไง yang-ngaiครับ kráp
How do I get to Asok station?
Men ไปสถานีอโศกยังไงครับ Women ไปสถานีอโศกยังไงคะ
Dialogue: A Grab ride with Boss
Late afternoon on Sukhumvit. Boss, Nam's cousin, is driving for Grab today and picks you up outside your condo. The app already told him where you're going, but he greets you like a formal taxi driver, just to tease you.
14 lines · tap a line to hear it
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Bossบอส
สวัสดี sà-wàt-diiครับ krápไป bpaiไหน nǎiครับ krápHello! Where to?
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You
ไป bpaiสยาม sà-yǎamครับ krápTo Siam, please.
Men ไปสยามครับ Women ไปสยามค่ะ
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You
ไกล glaiไหม mǎiครับ krápIs it far?
Men ไกลไหมครับ Women ไกลไหมคะ
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Bossบอส
ไม่ mâiไกล glaiครับ krápรถติด rót dtìtนิดหน่อย nít-nàwyNot far. There's a bit of traffic.
Culture note: Getting around Bangkok
Bangkok locals mix and match. Grab and Bolt cars are booked in the app, so the price and the destination are set before you get in. Metered taxis are cheap: tell the driver ไปbpai + your destination through the window first, and if he nods, hop in. For short hops down a soi, jump on a motorbike taxi (มอเตอร์ไซค์maw-dtôe-sai): the riders in orange vests wait at the end of most sois. In rush hour the BTS skytrain and the MRT underground beat the รถติดrót dtìt every time: tap in with a Rabbit card on the BTS, or with a contactless bank card on the MRT.
And when a neighbour calls out ไปไหนbpai nǎi, they're not really asking where you're going: it's a friendly 'hi, how's it going?'. A vague answer is perfect, like ไปกินข้าวbpai gin kâao (off to eat) or ไปเซเว่นbpai see-wên (to 7-Eleven), with a smile.
AI role-play: Get me home
At the end of the unit you talk with Driver, an AI character who answers in natural Thai and helps when you get stuck.
The scene
You take a taxi home to your condo off Sukhumvit, but the driver doesn't know your little soi. Tell him where to go, steer him there and tell him where to stop.
Driver starts
Hello! Where to?
Your goals
- 1Say where you want to go
- 2Give directions: straight on, left, right
- 3Ask him to slow down or wait a moment
- 4Tell him to stop and thank him