Thai vowels
Every written vowel form, side by side with its short or long partner. The faint ก shows where the consonant sits; tap any vowel to hear it.
Short / long pairs
One sound per row. Length alone can change the word.
Before a final consonant
The shape a vowel takes when a consonant closes the syllable.
Built-in endings
These already end in a consonant sound; nothing can follow.
sara aa, long
Length changes the word, and the tone
เข้า (kâo) means to enter; ข้าว (kâao) is rice. Both take a falling tone, so the vowel length alone tells them apart. Length also feeds the tone rules: a short open vowel makes a syllable dead, a long one makes it live.
Live and dead syllablesCommon questions
How many vowels does Thai have?
Thai schools traditionally count 32 vowels: 12 short/long pairs plus special forms like ำ, ไ, ใ, and เ◌า. Linguistically there are 9 vowel sounds and 3 diphthongs, each with a short and long version. The larger count comes from the different written forms.
Where are Thai vowels written?
Around the consonant: after it (า), above it (ี), below it (ู), before it (เ แ โ ใ ไ), or wrapped around it (เ◌ีย). Vowels written before a consonant are still pronounced after it: in ไป (bpai, 'go'), you say the ป first.
What is the difference between ใ and ไ?
They sound identical (/ai/). ไ (sara ai mai malai) is the everyday spelling. ใ (sara ai mai muan) is used in only 20 words: ใหญ่ (yài, big), ใหม่ (mài, new), ให้ (hâi, give), สะใภ้ (sà-pái, daughter-in-law), ใช้ (chái, use), ใฝ่ (fài, aspire), ใจ (jai, heart), ใส่ (sài, put in or wear), หลงใหล (lǒng-lǎi, be infatuated), ใคร (krai, who), ใคร่ (krâi, wish), ใบ (bai, leaf or sheet), ใส (sǎi, clear), ใด (dai, which or any), ใน (nai, in), ใช่ (châi, yes, that's right), ใต้ (dtâi, under), ใบ้ (bâi, mute), ใย (yai, fibre) and ใกล้ (glâi, near). Thai children learn them with this rhyme, which uses all 20 in order: ผู้ใหญ่หาผ้าใหม่ ให้สะใภ้ใช้คล้องคอ ใฝ่ใจเอาใส่ห่อ มิหลงใหลใครขอดู จะใคร่ลงเรือใบ ดูน้ำใสและปลาปู สิ่งใดอยู่ในตู้ มิใช่อยู่ใต้ตั่งเตียง บ้าใบ้ถือใยบัว หูตามัวมาใกล้เคียง เล่าท่องอย่าละเลี่ยง ยี่สิบม้วนจำจงดี The last line says: recite it and skip none, twenty mai muan, remember them well.
Why do Thai vowels change shape?
Several vowels take a different written form when the syllable is closed by a final consonant: ◌ะ becomes ◌ั (กัน), เ◌ะ becomes เ◌็ (เป็น), and โ◌ะ disappears entirely (คน has an invisible short o). The sound stays the same; only the spelling changes.
Do short and long vowels really matter?
Yes. Length alone separates words (เข้า 'enter' vs ข้าว 'rice', both with a falling tone). Length also feeds the tone rules: a short open vowel makes a syllable dead, a long one makes it live, which changes the resulting tone.