Good Night In Thai And Nice Ways To Say It

Being able to speak a few common Thai greetings and words like ‘Good night’ in Thai can be very helpful. Not only will it be easier to find your way around with a few words of vocabulary, but being able to speak some Thai is a friendly gesture and will at least give the impression that you’ve spent time in the country and know your way around.

It can also be the perfect ice-breaker when wanting to meet people or talking to locals. Thai people become friendlier when they realize that you are making an effort to learn their language. As a matter of fact, that is actually true for all the places in the world, speak the language (or at least some bits and pieces) and you’ll get around far easier.

So there are different possible phrases, both formal and informal ways of saying good night in Thai.

Formal: Good Night In Thai

• ราตรีสวัสดิ์ (raa-ttrii-sa-wat) Good night

It is considered formal, but it is not really completely accurate. A Thai person wouldn’t use this with their boss or an official. It is much more common (even in formal situations) to just use this phrase, which is borrowed from English. Raa-dtree sà-wàt is also wishing somebody good night, but just like, à-run sà-wàt (good morning), it is formal and sounds very nice. It is also poetic and not commonly used.

Informal: Good Night In Thai

If your goal is to speak Thai fluently, then get into the habit of copying what native Thai speakers say rather than translating a set phrase from your native language which often sounds strange in Thai.

Here are some phrases for “good night” that Thai people actually use with their friends and family.

• ฝันดีนะ (fan dii na) — Sweet dreams
• ฝัน (fan) — dreams
• ดี (dii) — good
• นะ (na) — a particle that can be added to the end of a sentence as a softener.

ฝันดีนะ (fan dii na) is a commonly used wording to say “good night” in Thai. It can be used amongst family members, couples, and friends. There are also some common ways to say “good night” in Thai in a short form, which have come from the English language.

• ไนท์ (nai) — night (short for “good night” just like in English)
• ไนท์ๆ (nai nai) — night night
• ไนท์ๆ feels more intimate than กู๊ดไนท์ and can be used with children or a partner.
• กู๊ดไนท์ (guut nai) — good night
• This borrowed phrase is used very frequently by Thais to say good night in both formal and informal situations. However, in a formal situation, make sure you always add the appropriate polite gender particle.
• Male Speaker: กู๊ดไนท์ครับ (guut nai khrap)
• Female Speaker: กู๊ดไนท์ค่ะ (guut nai kha)

A Thought On Pronunciation Here:

If you haven’t yet mastered the Thai script and sound system then it may be a bit tricky to get the pronunciation and tone right.

• กู๊ด (goot) — good (high tone)
• To get the ending sound correct here, you can pretend the word ends with a T, but when you get to the T sound, your tongue has to stay in place until the sound dies off
• ไนท์ (nai) — night (high tone)
• When saying this “nai” the back of your tongue will rise up a bit constricting the airflow in your throat, but it doesn’t cut the air off completely.

Thai Vocabulary Related To Sleeping:

Here are a few additional Thai words and phrases you might want to know.

• นอน: nawn (mid tone) / to sleep; to lay down
• นอนหลับ: nawn lap (mid + low tone) / to fall asleep
• นอนไม่หลับ: nawn mai lap (mid+falling+low) / to be unable to fall asleep
• ฝัน: fan (rising tone) / to dream
• กู๊ดไนท์: guut nai (high + high tones) / good night
• สวัสดีตอนเย็น (sà-wàt-dee dton-yen) / Good evening in Thai (dton-yen means evening. Together with sà-wàt-dee it makes ‘good evening’. This phrase is usable from 5 PM-ish onward until 7 PM.)
• ถึงเวลา ไป นอน แล้ว ครับ/ค่ะ (Tueng Waelaa Pai Norn Laew Krab/Ka) / About time for me to go to bed.
• ไปนอน (Pai Norn) / I’m going to bed.
• เมื่อคืน นอน หลับ สบาย มาก ครับ/ค่ะ (Muakuun Noan Lab sabaai Mark Krab/Ka) / I had a good sleep last night
• เมื่อคืน นอน ไม่ หลับ ครับ/ค่ะ (Muakuun Noan Mai Lab Krab/Ka) / I didn’t sleep well last night.

Well done! How are you doing? That’s quite a lot for now! The best thing you can do to kickstart your Thai learning is to immerse yourself in the language. What is the best way to do that? Go to Thailand! Obviously, when surrounded by the language you can listen, practice, and soak in the new vocabulary in everyday situations with native speakers. Listening to Thai music and watching Thai tv also helps absorb the language. Just going to the local market listening to conversations and already just by hearing the language daily helps to stick your vocabulary better in the brain.

Try to get away from the main tourist spot to get a better insight into the culture of the country and expose yourself to different accents and dialects. Doing this is the optimum way to perfect your pronunciation and learn new vocabulary. Most importantly, don’t be shy. Even if you make mistakes, people will be happy that you try and may even help correct you. Just remember friendliness is always welcome and a nice gesture. Who wouldn’t smile back if they heard a ‘Good night’, even from a Farang?

Good Night

Sleep tight, sleep well, sweet dreams, nighty night, have a good sleep, dream of me, until tomorrow, rest time for blossoms, don’t let the bed bugs bite you!

Now that you are equipped with another of the common phrases in the Thai language. Try it out the next time before you go home after meeting with a friend and see how they respond.

So, good night! If you want to practice this phrase and many more, the Ling Thai app is the perfect option. Try out the chatbot feature to increase your understanding of the Thai language.

Original blog post: https://ling-app.com/th/good-night-in-thai/