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Thai tones: the 5 tones explained, with audio
Thai has five tones, and they change what a word means. Hear each one, see its pitch, test your ear, then let the tone trainer check your own voice.
Quick answer
The 5 Thai tones in 30 seconds
Tap the speaker to hear an example of each tone.
Mid
no mark (maa)
Level, in the middle of your normal voice. Relaxed. Like a calm, flat "mm".
ดี diigoodLow
grave accent (à)
Level and lower than mid, dropping slightly at the end. Like a quiet, low "uh-huh".
ป่า bpàaforestFalling
circumflex (â)
Starts high and drops clearly. Like an emphatic "No!".
ไม่ mâinotHigh
acute accent (á)
High and level or slightly rising, a little tense. Don’t let it fall. Like an excited "Hi!".
ม้า máahorseRising
caron (ǎ)
Starts low, dips, then rises clearly to the top. Like a doubtful "Really?".
หมา mǎadog
One syllable, different meanings
Same consonants, same vowel. Only the tone changes, and so does the word.
all five tones
คา kaastuck
mid
ข่า kàagalangal
low
ค่า kâavalue; fee
falling
ค้า káatrade
high
ขา kǎaleg
rising
rising vs falling vs low vs high
ไหม mǎi(question word)
rising
ไม่ mâinot
falling
ใหม่ màinew
low
ไม้ máaiwood
high
mid vs high vs rising
มา maacome
mid
ม้า máahorse
high
หมา mǎadog
rising
rising vs low vs falling
เสือ sǔeatiger
rising
เสื่อ sùeamat
low
เสื้อ sûeashirt
falling
rising vs low vs falling
ขาว kǎaowhite
rising
ข่าว kàaonews
low
ข้าว kâaorice
falling
mid vs low
ปา bpaathrow
mid
ป่า bpàaforest
low
Is Thai a tonal language?
In Thai, the pitch of your voice is part of the word. ปาbpaa means "throw"; say the same syllable lower and it becomes ป่าbpàa, "forest". Every syllable has one of five tones, and you'll learn them two or three at a time.
Yes, and Thai keeps the tone of every word even in questions and when you are excited. That is why tones are worth learning from your very first word. From the free lesson Tones 1: mid and low.
Hear each tone
Everyday words sorted by tone. Listen to a column, then say the words with the same pitch.
mid
no mark
- ดี dii
good
- มา maa
come
- ไป bpai
go
- กิน gin
eat
- ใจ jai
heart, mind
- เงิน ngoen
money
low
à
- ป่า bpàa
forest
- ปู่ bpùu
grandpa (dad's dad)
- ไก่ gài
chicken
- ไข่ kài
egg
- สี่ sìi
four
- หก hòk
six
falling
â
- ไม่ mâi
not
- ใช่ châi
yes
- บ้าน bâan
house
- ข้าว kâao
rice
- ได้ dâi
can
- ที่ tîi
at; place
high
á
- ม้า máa
horse
- น้ำ náam
water
- ร้อน ráwn
hot
- รู้ rúu
know
- ใช้ chái
use
- ช้า cháa
slow
rising
ǎ
- หมา mǎa
dog
- สาม sǎam
three
- สอง sǎwng
two
- ขา kǎa
leg
- ขาว kǎao
white
- สวย sǔay
beautiful
Test your ear: 10 words
Listen to a word and pick its tone. No sign-up, no score saved.
Listen. Which tone is it?
Say it: the tone trainer
Hearing tones is half the job. In the tone trainer you say a word, and the speech trainer tells you which tone it heard, word by word, so you know exactly what to fix. It's free and works in your browser.
How tones are written in Thai
Thai script shows the tone with a small system: the class of the first consonant (mid, high or low), whether the syllable is live or dead, the vowel length, and one of four tone marks. ขาkǎa has no mark but is rising because ข is high class; ม้าmáa is high because of the mark ◌้ on a low-class letter.
All combinations are on one page in the Thai tone rules chart, with a calculator, and the marks themselves are explained on Thai tone marks.
Mistakes English speakers make
Rising at the end of questions
English questions go up ("Coffee?"). Thai questions use a question word like ไหม (mǎi) instead, and every other word keeps its own tone.
Mixing up high and rising
High starts high and stays there; rising starts low and climbs. ม้า (máa, horse) vs หมา (mǎa, dog) is the classic mix-up.
Not falling far enough
The falling tone needs a big drop. Start above your normal high: ไม่ (mâi), ใช่ (châi).
Growling the low tone
Low is just lower, not creaky. Relax your throat: ไก่ (gài), สี่ (sìi).
Learning words without their tone
Learn the tone with the word from day one. Our romanization always shows it, and the audio lets you check.
A 5-minute daily tone routine
- 11 minute: listen to one column of words above and hum the pitch without the words.
- 21 minute: play a minimal set (มา, ม้า, หมา) and say it back, exaggerating the pitch.
- 31 minute: the ear test on this page. Note which tone you miss most.
- 42 minutes: the tone trainer in the app, focusing on that tone.
Free tone lessons
Part of the free Sounds and tones course.
- 1 Tones 1: mid and lowKnow what a tone is, and hear and say the mid and low tones.
- 2 Tones 2: falling and highHear and say the falling and high tones, and stop mixing up châi (yes) and chái (use).
- 3 Tones 3: rising, and all five togetherHear and say the rising tone, and tell all five tones apart on one syllable.
- 4 Tone pairs and triplesTell apart the word sets learners mix up most, by ear and in your own speech.
- 5 Long and short vowelsHear and make the difference between long and short vowels, which changes meaning.
- 6 With or without a puff: k/g, p/bp/b, t/dt/dSay g, bp and dt without a puff of air and k, p and t with one, and hear the difference.
- 7 Final sounds: k, t, p you don't releaseEnd syllables cleanly with unreleased k, t, p and keep m, n and ng apart.
- 8 New sounds: ng at the start, and the vowels ue and oeStart words with ng, and say the two vowels English doesn't have.
- 9 r, l and clustersTell r from l, say clusters like kr, pl and kw in one beat, and understand the casual short forms.
- 10 Polite particles: kráp, kâ and káSay the polite particles with the right tone, and use kâ and ká in the right places.
- 11 Tones in real speech, and common mistakesKeep your tones in full sentences and fix the mistakes English speakers make most.
Related pages
Thai tones FAQ
How many tones does Thai have?
Five: mid, low, falling, high and rising. Every syllable has exactly one of them.
Is Thai a tonal language?
Yes. In Thai the pitch of a syllable is part of the word, so the same consonants and vowel can mean different things: ค่า (kâa) is value or fee, ขา (kǎa) is leg and คา (kaa) is stuck.
Do Thai people understand you if your tones are wrong?
Often yes, from context, especially in common phrases. But wrong tones can change the meaning or make you hard to follow, so it is worth practising them from the start. Thais are patient listeners and will usually help.
What is the hardest Thai tone?
For most English speakers it is telling high from rising, and keeping the falling tone big enough. Minimal pairs like ม้า / หมา and ใช่ / ใช้ train exactly that.
How do I know which tone a word has?
In our romanization every syllable carries its tone mark (à, â, á, ǎ; no mark for mid). In Thai script the tone comes from the consonant class, the syllable type and the tone marks: see the tone rules chart.