พ่อแม่
pɔ̂ɔ-mɛ̂ɛ/pʰɔː˥˩.mɛː˥˩/
The Thai phrase for parents is พ่อแม่ (pɔ̂ɔ-mɛ̂ɛ).
พ่อแม่ refers to the father and mother of a person. Because Thai nouns do not typically change to indicate number, พ่อแม่ can be used to mean either a single 'parent' or the plural 'parents' depending on the context of the sentence.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a compound of พ่อ, meaning father and แม่, meaning mother.
How do you pronounce it?
pɔ̂ɔ-mɛ̂ɛ
Did you know?
- In Thai culture, พ่อแม่ are often referred to as พระในบ้าน, which translates to 'the monks in the house'. This reflects the belief that parents deserve the same spiritual respect and devotion as Buddhist monks.
- The word แม่ (mɛ̂ɛ) is also used as a prefix for many different types of 'great' or 'main' things in Thai, such as แม่น้ำ (mɛ̂ɛ-náam) for 'river' (literally 'mother of water').
- Thai speakers may use ป๋า (paa) or ม้า (maa) as affectionate or colloquial alternatives for พ่อ and แม่, which are loanwords influenced by Chinese dialects.
Examples in context
- พ่อแม่เธอไม่ชอบฉันYour parents hate me.This sentence shows how to express that someone's parents have a dislike for another person using พ่อแม่.Tatoeba #8737970 by ojiisan, translation #3822724 by CK
- พ่อแม่ของฉันหย่ากันMy parents are divorced.This sentence is useful for describing a parental divorce using พ่อแม่.Tatoeba #8717396 by pastelite, translation #456461 by lukaszpp
- คุณควรเคารพพ่อแม่คุณYou should be respectful to your parents.This sentence provides an example of advising respect toward one's parents using พ่อแม่.Tatoeba #10116073 by Somsak, translation #269729 by CK
- เรามีพ่อแม่ที่น่าภูมิใจมากWe have parents we are proud of.
- เด็กในไทยนิยมเคารพบิดามารดาอย่างสูงChildren in Thailand typically have high respect for their parents.
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry พ่อแม่, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
