สวัสดีค่ะ
sà-wàt-dee khâfemale speaker, polite
A woman says สวัสดีค่ะ (sà-wàt-dee khâ) for "hello" in Thai. The ending ค่ะ (khâ) is the polite particle for female speakers. It is also called หวัดดีค่ะ (wàt-dee khâ) and สวัสดีคะ (sà-wàt-dee khá).
Meaning: greeting (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Thai | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| สวัสดีค่ะ | sà-wàt-dee khâ | female speaker, polite |
| หวัดดีค่ะ | wàt-dee khâ | casual |
| สวัสดีคะ | sà-wàt-dee khá | question or call |
The greeting is the same whether you speak to a man or a woman. Only the speaker's own gender decides the ending.
How does it change in a sentence?
There are two forms. ค่ะ (khâ) with a falling tone ends a statement, and คะ (khá) with a high tone ends a question or is used to call someone.
When do people say it?
A wai with the hands pressed together usually goes with the greeting. The higher the hands, the more respect.
Did you know?
- The question particle คะ (khá) and the statement particle ค่ะ (khâ) are written differently only by the tone mark.
Examples in context
- สวัสดีค่ะ ยินดีที่ได้รู้จักค่ะsà-wàt-dee khâ, yin-dee thîi dâai rúu-jàk khâHello, nice to meet you.
- หวัดดีค่ะ สบายดีไหมคะwàt-dee khâ, sà-baai dee mǎi kháHi, how are you?
Example conversation
Pim greets her teacher at school in Chiang Mai.
- Pimสวัสดีค่ะ คุณครูsà-wàt-dee khâ khun khruuHello, teacher.
- ครูสวัสดีจ้ะ พิมsà-wàt-dee já PimHello, Pim.
- Pimวันนี้อากาศดีนะคะwan-níi aa-gàat dii ná kháThe weather is nice today.
