កោតសរសើរ
kaot saosae
In Khmer, to appreciate is កោតសរសើរ (kaot saosae).
The term កោតសរសើរ is often used in formal contexts, such as praising a person's character, a student's performance or an official's work.
Meaning: to be grateful for something (verb)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of កោត (kaot), meaning to admire or respect and សរសើរ (saosae), meaning to praise.
Which one should you use?
While កោតសរសើរ (kaot saosae) means to appreciate or praise someone's qualities or achievements, អរគុណ (orkun) is the standard way to say 'thank you' for a specific action or favor.
How do you pronounce it?
kaot saosae
When do people say it?
Gestures such as bows or placing hands together can accompany expressions of appreciation to show additional respect or gratitude.
Did you know?
- In formal settings, the act of appreciating someone often involves the 'Sampeah' gesture, where you place your palms together. The higher your hands are held towards your face, the more profound your respect and appreciation for the person should be.
- If you use កោតសរសើរ (kaot saosae) to a close friend in a casual setting, it can actually sound sarcastic or overly stiff because the word belongs to a more formal register of the language.
- If you want to say you 'appreciate' the beauty of a landscape rather than a person's talent, you would rarely use កោតសរសើរ (kaot saosae). Instead, Khmer speakers often use words related to 'feeling' or 'seeing' to describe an appreciation of nature.
Examples in context
- អរគុណច្រើនដែលបានជួយខ្ញុំ។Thank you very much for helping me.
- អរគុណច្រើនសម្រាប់ការជួយរបស់អ្នក។Thank you so much for your help.
Example conversation
Narong helps Sreyny with a difficult task.
- ស្រីនី Sreynyអរគុណច្រើនដែលជួយខ្ញុំ ណារ៉ុង។orkun chreun del chuoy khnhom Narong.Thank you so much for helping me, Narong.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongមិនអីទេ ខ្ញុំរីករាយនឹងជួយ។mun ey te khnhom riryeay nung chuoy.It's okay, I'm happy to help.
- ស្រីនី Sreynyខ្ញុំពិតជាកោតសរសើរទឹកចិត្តរបស់អ្នក។khnhom pit chea kaot sarsuer tuk chett roboh nek.I really appreciate your kindness.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongគ្មានបញ្ហាទេ ស្រីនី។kmean banhha te Sreyny.No problem, Sreyny.
