Thai tones · tone rules
Thai tone rules: one chart for every tone
Four questions tell you the tone of any Thai syllable. Here they are in one chart, with examples you can hear and a calculator that does it for you.
Quick answer
The Thai tone rules chart
Find the class of the first consonant (column), then the syllable type or tone mark (row).
| Syllable or mark | mid class | high class | low class |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liveno mark | mid ดีdii | rising ขาkǎa | mid มาmaa |
| Dead, short vowelno mark | low จะjà | low ผักpàk | high รักrák |
| Dead, long vowelno mark | low ปากbpàak | low ถูกtùuk | falling มากmâak |
| ◌่ mai ekany syllable | low ไก่gài | low ไข่kài | falling แม่mâe |
| ◌้ mai thoany syllable | falling ได้dâi | falling ข้าวkâao | high ม้าmáa |
| ◌๊ mai trimid class only | high โต๊ะdtó | – | – |
| ◌๋ mai chattawamid class only | rising ตั๋วdtǔa | – | – |
Live = long vowel, or ending in m, n, ng, w, y. Dead = short vowel, or ending in k, t, p. Tone marks give the same tone whether the syllable is live or dead.
Tone calculator
Pick the class, the mark and the syllable type. The calculator gives you the tone and an example you can hear.
1 · First consonant's class
2 · Tone mark
3 · Syllable
The tone is
mid
A live syllable (long vowel, or ending in m, n, ng, w or y) with a mid-class consonant and no tone mark is mid.
Live and dead syllables
The single most useful idea in the tone rules.
Live: you can hold the sound
Ends in a long vowel, or in m, n, ng, w or y (also ไ◌ ใ◌ เ◌า ◌ำ).
- มา maa
come
- ใจ jai
heart, mind
- คน kon
person
- ขาว kǎao
white
Dead: the sound stops short
Ends in a short vowel, or in a k, t or p sound.
- จะ jà
will (future)
- ปาก bpàak
mouth
- รัก rák
love
- มาก mâak
very, a lot
Two special cases
A silent letter in front can lend its class to the next consonant.
Leading ห (ห นำhǎw nam)
A silent ห before ง ญ น ม ย ร ล ว makes them follow the high-class rules: rising when live, low when dead.
- หมา mǎa
dog
- หนู nǔu
mouse
- ไหม mǎi
(question word)
- หลาย lǎai
many
Leading อ (อ นำaw nam)
In four common words a silent อ before ย gives the mid-class rules, so with mai ek or a dead syllable they are low.
- อยู่ yùu
be (at), live
- อย่า yàa
don't
- อย่าง yàang
kind, way
- อยาก yàak
want to
Learn the tone rules step by step
The free Read Thai course adds one rule at a time, always with words you can hear.
Related pages
Thai tone rules FAQ
What are the Thai tone rules?
The tone of a Thai syllable follows from four things: the class of its first consonant (mid, high or low), whether the syllable is live or dead, the vowel length (for dead low-class syllables) and any tone mark. The chart on this page shows every combination.
What is a live syllable in Thai?
A syllable that ends in a long vowel, or in m, n, ng, w or y (including the vowels ไ ใ เ◌า ◌ำ). You can hold the sound: มา (maa), คน (kon).
What is a dead syllable in Thai?
A syllable that ends in a short vowel, or in a k, t or p sound. The sound stops abruptly: จะ (jà), ปาก (bpàak), รัก (rák).
Why are there tone marks if the class decides the tone?
Without marks each class can only make two or three tones. The marks fill in the rest: mai ek and mai tho give every class two more tones, and mai tri and mai chattawa let mid-class letters reach high and rising.
Do I need the tone rules to speak Thai?
Not at first: if you learn with audio and tone-marked romanization, you learn each word’s tone directly. The rules matter when you read Thai script, because they let you say a word you have never heard before.