เขา
kǎo/kʰaw˩˩˦/
The English word 'him' is translated into Thai as เขา (kǎo).
The word เขา can be used to mean 'he' or 'she' depending on the context.
Meaning: accusative / direct object (pron)
Which one should you use?
Unlike English, Thai does not change the form of the pronoun based on whether it is the subject or the object.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word เขา is used for both the nominative (he) and the accusative (him) cases.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is kǎo. The IPA is /kʰaw˩˩˦/.
Did you know?
- The word เขา is not only a pronoun but also the standard Thai word for 'mountain'.
- The word เขา is derived from the Proto-Tai word for 'horn'.
- While เขา is the standard word for 'him', Thai speakers often replace pronouns with the person's actual nickname or kinship term, such as 'older brother', to sound more polite.
Examples in context
- จับเขาGrab him.Tatoeba #7878712 by pastelite, translation #285184 by CK
- ตามเขาไปFollow him.Tatoeba #7878463 by pastelite, translation #433754 by CK
- ฉันชอบเขาI like him.Tatoeba #7878715 by pastelite, translation #283629 by CK
- เค้าบอกว่าเขาจะมาพบเราHe said he would come to meet us.
- เค้าซื้อของให้เขามาแล้วThey bought things for him already.
- 53 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Chonsit and Kanokwan are talking about a mutual friend.
- ชลสิทธิ์ Cholasitคุณเห็นเขาไหมKhun hen khao maiDo you see him?
- กนกวรรณ Kanokwanไม่เห็นเลยค่ะMai hen loey khaI don't see him at all.
- ชลสิทธิ์ Cholasitผมกำลังรอเขาอยู่Phom kam-lang ro khao yuI am waiting for him.
- กนกวรรณ KanokwanลองโทรหาเขาดูนะคะLong tho ha khao du na khaTry calling him.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry เขา, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries เขา, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
