Can't Translate (แปลไม่ออก): meaning and key lines
Billkinบิวกิ้น
What the song is about
แปลไม่ออกbplae mâi àwk is a T-pop song by Billkin (2020). One of Billkin's songs for the series I Told Sunset About You (2020): a boy who worries about a friend, gets jealous and can't stop thinking about them, but can't work out what it all means. Its slow, clearly sung lines teach why and have to, never, every night, there's only, what does it mean, and a handy pattern for what you can't manage: can't think of it, can't read it, can't translate it.
Free, no sign-up: learn the key lines and words with audio, then sing along.
Song facts
- Artist
- Billkin
- Released
- 2020
- Style
- T-pop
- Level
- B1 (intermediate)
- Mood
- tender, restless, unsure
- Views
- about 46M (Oct 2026)
- Video
- Nadao Music (Billkin's label at the time)
- Lyrics
- Key lines quoted; the full song is in the video
Key lines, explained
Tap a line to hear it. Once the video is playing, lines jump to their moment in the song.
- ทำไม tam-maiคน konอย่าง yàangฉัน chǎnต้อง dtâwngเป็นห่วง bpen-hùangเธอ toeเสมอ sà-mǒe
Why does someone like me always have to worry about you?
The first line. ทำไมtam-mai = why; a question can start with it, as here, or end with it: ไปทำไมbpai tam-mai = why go? คนอย่างฉันkon yàang chǎn = someone like me (อย่างyàang = like). ต้องdtâwng = to have to. เป็นห่วงbpen-hùang = to worry about someone you care for: ไม่ต้องเป็นห่วงmâi dtâwng bpen-hùang = don't worry (about me). เสมอsà-mǒe = always, at the end of the sentence. The next line says how little it takes. - ไม่ mâiเคย koeiรู้ rúuไม่ mâiเคย koeiถาม tǎam
I never knew, I never asked.
The start of the pre-chorus. ไม่เคยmâi koei + verb = never (have): ไม่เคยรู้mâi koei rúu = I never knew, ไม่เคยถามmâi koei tǎam = I never asked. Without ไม่mâi, เคยkoei + verb = have ever: เคยไปไหมkoei bpai mǎi = have you been (there)? ถามtǎam = to ask: ขอถามหน่อยkǎw tǎam nàwy = can I ask you something? - หัวใจ hǔa-jaiยัง yangแปล bplaeไม่ออก mâi àwk
My heart still can't translate it.
The title line, after a sung 'I don't know'. แปลbplae = to translate: แปลว่าอะไรbplae wâa à-rai = what does it mean? Verb + ไม่ออกmâi àwk = can't manage to, can't get it out: คิดไม่ออกkít mâi àwk = can't think of it, can't figure it out; อ่านไม่ออกàan mâi àwk = can't read it, can't make out the writing; พูดไม่ออกpûut mâi àwk = lost for words. So แปลไม่ออกbplae mâi àwk = can't translate it, can't make sense of it: his heart can't read what it feels. ยังyang = still. - เมื่อ mûeaเป็น bpenเรื่อง rûeangเธอ toeมัน manหมายความว่า mǎai-kwaam wâaอย่างไร yàang-rai
When it comes to you, what does it mean?
The end of the chorus. เมื่อmûea = when, a little more formal than ตอนdtawn. เป็นเรื่องเธอbpen rûeang toe = (when) it's about you, when it comes to you: เรื่องrûeang = a matter, a story, as in เรื่องงานrûeang ngaan = work matters. มันman = it. หมายความว่าmǎai-kwaam wâa = to mean (that): หมายความว่าอะไรmǎai-kwaam wâa à-rai = what does that mean?; in speech, หมายความว่าไงmǎai-kwaam wâa ngai = what do you mean? อย่างไรyàang-rai = how, in what way, the written form of ยังไงyang-ngai. - ทำไม tam-maiทุก túkคืน kuuenมีแต่ mii dtàeเธอ toeใน naiใจ jaiฉัน chǎn
Why is there only you in my heart every night?
The second verse, right after he asks why he has to miss someone so much. ทุกคืนtúk kuuen = every night (ทุกtúk = every: ทุกวันtúk wan = every day). มีแต่mii dtàe = there's only, nothing but: มีแต่เธอmii dtàe toe = only you. ในใจฉันnai jai chǎn = in my heart: Thai keeps the people you think about ในใจnai jai, in the heart, where English keeps them on your mind.
Words you'll learn
- เป็นห่วง bpen-hùang
to worry about (someone)
Worrying because you care. You know the same ห่วงhùang from ไม่ต้องห่วงmâi dtâwng hùang (don't worry).
- เสมอ sà-mǒe
always
- ถาม tǎam
to ask (a question)
- แปล bplae
to translate
Into a language: แปลเป็นภาษาอังกฤษbplae bpen paa-sǎa ang-grìt translate into English.
- หัวใจ hǔa-jai
heart
- หมายความว่า mǎai-kwaam wâa
to mean (that)
A little more formal than แปลว่าbplae wâa: หมายความว่าอะไรmǎai-kwaam wâa à-rai = what does that mean?
- เรื่อง rûeang
story; matter, topic (about …)
Also the topic of anything: เรื่องอะไรrûeang à-rai (what's it about?).
- คืน kuuen
night
Hotels count nights, not days: สองคืนsǎwng kuuen two nights. คืนนี้kuuen níi is tonight.
- มีแต่ mii dtàe
there's only, nothing but
- ไม่ออก mâi àwk
(after a verb) can't manage to
คิดไม่ออกkít mâi àwk = can't think of it; พูดไม่ออกpûut mâi àwk = lost for words.
- อย่างไร yàang-rai
how, in what way (formal, written)
- เคย koei
have ever (done); used to
It goes before the verb: เคยไปkoei bpai have been; ไม่เคยmâi koei never.
Grammar in this song
Why must I…? ทำไมtam-mai + ต้องdtâwng. ทำไมต้องเป็นฉันtam-mai dtâwng bpen chǎn (why does it have to be me?), ทำไมต้องรีบtam-mai dtâwng rîip (why the hurry?). The song asks it again and again: ทำไมคนอย่างฉันต้องtam-mai kon yàang chǎn dtâwng… = why does someone like me have to…
Can't manage it: verb + ไม่ออกmâi àwk. It's for things that have to come out of you: an idea, a word, a meaning, the writing you're trying to read. คิดไม่ออกkít mâi àwk (I can't think of it), พูดไม่ออกpûut mâi àwk (I'm lost for words), อ่านไม่ออกàan mâi àwk (I can't read it). Without the negative: คิดออกแล้วkít àwk láew (I've got it!).
Never: ไม่เคยmâi koei + verb. ไม่เคยรู้mâi koei rúu (I never knew), ไม่เคยกินmâi koei gin (I've never eaten it). And มีแต่mii dtàe = there's only: มีแต่เธอmii dtàe toe (only you), มีแต่คนไทยmii dtàe kon tai (it's all Thais).
The culture behind it
"แปลไม่ออกbplae mâi àwk" is one of the songs Billkin sang for I Told Sunset About You (2020), the Phuket coming-of-age series that made him a star; its theme is Skyline. Teh (Billkin) and Oh-aew (PP Krit), childhood friends turned rivals, meet again at a Chinese tutoring school, and the series' Thai title, แปลรักฉันด้วยใจเธอbplae rák chǎn dûay jai toe, means 'translate my love with your heart'. The song takes up the word: a heart that can't translate what it feels. Atom (ชนกันต์ รัตนอุดมchá-ná-gan rát-dtà-ná-ù-dom), the singer of Please and Dust, wrote the words and music; Ball of the band Apartment Khunpa, who had produced both of those, arranged and produced it with Boripat Wankampraw. Nadao Music released the video on 29 October 2020, a week after the series began on LINE TV; it passed a million views in two days, and the song won best series soundtrack at the Yniverse Awards 2020.
Worrying is how Thais show they care. Parents, friends and partners say เป็นห่วงนะbpen-hùang ná (I worry about you) or text ถึงบ้านหรือยังtǔeng bâan rǔue-yang (are you home yet?), and the polite answer is ไม่ต้องเป็นห่วงmâi dtâwng bpen-hùang (don't worry). The boy in the song worries, gets jealous and thinks of his friend every night, yet still can't say what it means: the shy, unspoken love of many Thai coming-of-age stories.
Learn “Can't Translate” in about 6 minutes
Hear each key line, learn its words with audio and fill the gaps as you sing along. Free, no sign-up needed.
More songs to learn Thai
Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones