หวัดดี
wàt-diicasual, friends
The casual way to say "hi" to a girl in Thai is หวัดดี (wàt-dii). A man adds ครับ (khráp) and a woman adds ค่ะ (khâ) to sound polite. It is also called หวัดดีครับ (wàt-dii khráp) and หวัดดีค่ะ (wàt-dii khâ).
Meaning: casual greeting (interjection)
Ways to say it
| Thai | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| หวัดดี | wàt-dii | casual, friends |
| หวัดดีครับ | wàt-dii khráp | male speaker |
| หวัดดีค่ะ | wàt-dii khâ | female speaker |
หวัดดี (wàt-dii) is a relaxed short form of สวัสดี (sà-wàt-dii). It fits friends, classmates and people of your own age.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
With an older woman or someone you do not know, use the full สวัสดี (sà-wàt-dii) plus the polite ending instead of the short form.
How does it change in a sentence?
Thai greetings do not change for the person you talk to. The polite ending depends on who is speaking, so a man says ครับ (khráp) and a woman says ค่ะ (khâ) whether the listener is a girl or a boy.
Did you know?
- A woman asking a question ends it with คะ (khá) instead of ค่ะ (khâ), which has a different tone.
Examples in context
- หวัดดี เป็นยังไงบ้างwàt-dii pen yang-ngai bâangHi, how are you?
Example conversation
Tom meets his friend Nok at a campus cafe in Bangkok.
- Tomหวัดดีครับ นกwàt-dii khráp nókHi, Nok.
- Nokหวัดดีค่ะ ทอมwàt-dii khâ thɔɔmHi, Tom.
- Tomเป็นยังไงบ้างครับpen yang-ngai bâang khrápHow are you?
- Nokสบายดีค่ะsà-baai dii khâI am fine.
