Hai Khao Rak Thoe Muean Thoe Rak Khao (ให้เขารักเธอ เหมือนเธอรักเขา): meaning and key lines
Monkaen Kaenkoonมนต์แคน แก่นคูน
What the song is about
ให้เขารักเธอ เหมือนเธอรักเขาhâi kǎo rák toe mǔean toe rák kǎo, “Hai Khao Rak Thoe Muean Thoe Rak Khao (May He Love You the Way You Love Him)”, is a luk thung song by Monkaen Kaenkoon (2016). The title track of Monkaen Kaenkoon's seventh album: the woman he loves has chosen another man, and he wishes her luck and hopes the man she chose will love her as much as she loves him. It is mostly Central Thai, sung slowly and clearly, with the Isan 'I' and 'you' of couples, and it teaches how to wish someone well, how to say 'still', 'however long', 'like' and 'take care of', and the dignity of a man who wishes his rival well.
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Song facts
- Artist
- Monkaen Kaenkoon
- Released
- 2016
- Style
- Luk thung
- Level
- B1 (intermediate)
- Mood
- selfless, aching, gracious
- Views
- about 278M (Oct 2026)
- Video
- Grammy Gold Official
- 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.
- ยังคง yang-kongมี miiเงา ngaoเจ้า jâoใน naiใจ jaiอ้าย âai
There's still a shadow of you in my heart.
ยังคงyang-kong = still, a more formal ยังyang: ยังคงรักyang-kong rák = still in love. เงาngao = a shadow, a reflection. He uses the words couples use in Isan and Laos: เจ้าjâo = you, to the woman he loves, and อ้ายâai, older brother, = I. Thai puts the owner after the thing: เงาเจ้าngao jâo = your shadow, ใจอ้ายjai âai = my heart, and ในnai = in. - จบ jòpนาน naanเท่าใด tâo-daiใจ jaiยังไม่ yang mâiจาง jaang
However long it's been over, my heart hasn't faded.
จบjòp = to end, to be over: their love is over. นานเท่าใดnaan tâo-dai = however long; เท่าใดtâo-dai is the formal, written เท่าไหร่tâo-rài, how much. ยังไม่yang mâi + verb = still hasn't, not yet: ยังไม่กินyang mâi gin = I haven't eaten yet. จางjaang = to fade, of a colour, a smell or a feeling: สีจางsǐi jaang = the colour has faded. - ส่ง sòngคำ kamโชคดี chôok-diiที่ tîiเธอ toeเลือก lûeakเขา kǎo
I wish you luck, now that you've chosen him.
ส่งsòng = to send and คำkam = a word: ส่งคำโชคดีsòng kam chôok-dii, to send the words 'good luck', is to wish someone luck. โชคดีchôok-dii is also how Thais say goodbye before a trip or an exam: good luck, take care. ที่tîi + clause = for (the fact) that: ขอบคุณที่มาkàwp-kun tîi maa = thank you for coming. เลือกlûeak = to choose. Here he calls her เธอtoe, the Central Thai 'you' of love songs: Monkaen mixes it with the Isan เจ้าjâo of the first line. - ขอให้ kǎw-hâiเขา kǎoรัก rákเธอ toeเหมือน mǔeanดังที่ dang tîiเธอ toeรัก rákเขา kǎo
May he love you the way you love him.
The title, sung with ขอkǎw in front and ดังที่dang tîi after เหมือนmǔean. ขอให้kǎw-hâi + a sentence makes a wish, like 'may…': ขอให้โชคดีkǎw-hâi chôok-dii = good luck to you; ขอให้มีความสุขkǎw-hâi mii kwaam-sùk = be happy, said at birthdays and New Year. เหมือนmǔean = like, the same as, and ดังที่dang tîi = as (formal or poetic): เหมือนดังที่mǔean dang tîi = just as, the way that. In everyday speech it's เหมือนที่mǔean tîi: ทำเหมือนที่ฉันทำtam mǔean tîi chǎn tam = do it the way I do. เขาkǎo = he, him: the other man. - ภาวนา paa-wá-naaให้ hâiเขา kǎoดูแล duu-lae
I pray that he'll look after you.
ภาวนาpaa-wá-naa = to pray, to meditate; in everyday talk, to hope hard: ภาวนาให้ฝนไม่ตกpaa-wá-naa hâi fǒn mâi dtòk = I'm praying it won't rain. ให้hâi + person + verb = for someone to…, that someone will… ดูแลduu-lae = to take care of, to look after: ดูแลตัวเองด้วยนะduu-lae dtua-eeng dûay ná = take care of yourself, a warm way to say goodbye. - เจ็บ jèpของ kǎwngอ้าย âaiจะ jàมี miiเกียรติ gìatเสมอ sà-mǒe
My pain will always be an honourable one.
เจ็บjèp, to hurt, works as a noun here: เจ็บของอ้ายjèp kǎwng âai = my hurt, my pain (ของkǎwng = of, belonging to). เกียรติgìat = honour, dignity: มีเกียรติmii gìat = to be honourable, and เป็นเกียรติbpen gìat = to be an honour, as in เป็นเกียรติมากbpen gìat mâak, 'it's a great honour'. จะjà … เสมอsà-mǒe = will always…
Words you'll learn
- เงา ngao
shadow; reflection
- จาง jaang
to fade (colour, scent, feelings)
ความรักจางkwaam-rák jaang = love fades; กาแฟจางgaa-fae jaang = weak coffee.
- โชคดี chôok-dii
good luck; take care
Also a warm 'take care' when someone heads off.
- เลือก lûeak
to choose, to pick
- เหมือน mǔean
like; the same as
- ภาวนา paa-wá-naa
to pray (for); to meditate
From Pali bhāvanā, mental training: monks use it for meditation, everyone else for 'please, please let it happen'.
- ดูแล duu-lae
to take care of, look after
- เกียรติ gìat
honour, dignity
เป็นเกียรติbpen gìat = it's an honour; มีเกียรติmii gìat = honourable.
- เท่าใด tâo-dai
how much; however much (formal)
In speech: เท่าไหร่tâo-rài.
- ดังที่ dang tîi
as, just as (formal)
In speech: อย่างที่yàang tîi or เหมือนที่mǔean tîi.
Grammar in this song
Wishing someone well: ขอให้kǎw-hâi. ขอให้kǎw-hâi + a sentence = may…, I wish that…: ขอให้เขารักเธอkǎw-hâi kǎo rák toe (may he love you), ขอให้โชคดีkǎw-hâi chôok-dii (good luck), ขอให้หายไวไวkǎw-hâi hǎai wai wai (get well soon). ภาวนาให้paa-wá-naa hâi + person + verb = to pray that someone will…
Still, and not yet. ยังyang, or the more formal ยังคงyang-kong, = still: ยังคงรักyang-kong rák (still in love). ยังไม่yang mâi + verb = not yet, still hasn't: ใจยังไม่จางjai yang mâi jaang (my heart hasn't faded). To กินข้าวหรือยังgin kâao rǔue yang (have you eaten yet?), ยังyang alone answers 'not yet'.
Like and as. เหมือนmǔean + noun = like: เหมือนแม่mǔean mâe (like Mum). Before a clause, say เหมือนที่mǔean tîi; songs and writing use ดังที่dang tîi or เหมือนดังที่mǔean dang tîi: just as, the way that.
The culture behind it
The song. Monkaen Kaenkoon (มนต์แคนแก่นคูนmon-kaen gàen-kuun) named his seventh album, released in September 2016, after this song, written by the album's producer, the songwriter Sala Khunnawut, and arranged by Piyawut Na Bangchang. Grammy Gold first released it in August 2016 as the last episode of a three-song 'music series' with two other songs from the album, among them Kham Wa Hak Kan Man Hia Thim Sai: a love story across the Mekong between a Thai man and a Lao woman, played by an actor from Isan and an actress from Laos (GMM Grammy). This shorter music video followed in October 2016. By August 2022 it was one of eleven Monkaen songs with more than 100 million views on YouTube (Sanook).
Two 'you's. Monkaen calls himself อ้ายâai, older brother, as men in Isan and Laos do with the woman they love, and calls her both เจ้าjâo, the tender Isan and Lao 'you', and เธอtoe, the 'you' of Central Thai love songs. The words are almost all Central Thai, which helps listeners all over the country, while those two pronouns keep the song's Isan heart. For more on how Isan differs from Central Thai, see our page on the Isan language.
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