Making a Suggestion with 'เถอะ' — Thai Grammar

The particle (tə̀thòethờ) is used at the end of a sentence to turn a statement or a command into a suggestion, invitation, or soft urging. It functions very similarly to the English phrase Let's.

Adding (tə̀thòethờ) softens the tone of the sentence. Without it, a verb alone might sound like a direct order. With (tə̀thòethờ), the speaker is proposing an action rather than demanding it.

Basic Suggestions

To form a simple suggestion, place (tə̀thòethờ) immediately after the verb or the object of the sentence. This indicates that the speaker wants to perform the action along with the listener.

ไปเถอะ
bpai tə̀pai thòepai thờ
Let's go.
หยุดเถอะ
yùt tə̀yùt thòeyùt thờ
Let's stop.
ซื้อเถอะ
sʉ́ʉ tə̀súe thòesứ thờ
Let's buy it.

Using 'กัน' for 'Let's... together'

In natural, everyday conversation, (tə̀thòethờ) is frequently preceded by the word (gankankan). The word (gankankan) means together or each other.

The structure Verb + (gankankan) + (tə̀thòethờ) explicitly marks the sentence as a group activity. While (tə̀thòethờ) alone implies "Let's", adding (gankankan) makes the invitation sound more complete and friendly.

กินกันเถอะ
gin gan tə̀kin kan thòekin kan thờ
Let's eat (together).
กลับบ้านกันเถอะ
glàp bâan gan tə̀klàp bân kan thòeklàp bân kan thờ
Let's go home.
ดูหนังกันเถอะ
duu nǎng gan tə̀du nǎng kan thòedu nǎng kan thờ
Let's watch a movie.

Urging or Giving Permission

While the primary meaning is "Let's", (tə̀thòethờ) is also used when speaking only to the listener (excluding the speaker). In this context, it translates closer to Go ahead, Just do it, or You should....

This is used to urge someone to perform an action for their own benefit, or to give permission when someone is hesitating. It makes a command sound encouraging rather than bossy.

นอนเถอะ
nɔɔn tə̀non thòeno̦n thờ
Go to sleep. / You should sleep.
เอาเถอะ
ao tə̀ao thòeao thờ
Go ahead and take it. / Just take it.
พักผ่อนเถอะ
pák·pɔ̀n tə̀phák·phòn thòephák·phò̦n thờ
You should rest. / Go ahead and rest.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Thai course

9 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 49. A few of them, with the words “Making a Suggestion with 'เถอะ'” is about in bold:

รู้จักสิ กินอาหารจีนกันเถอะ
rúu·jàk sì · gin aa·hǎan jiin gan tə̀rú·chàk sì · kin a·hǎn chin kan thòerú·čàk sì · kin a·hǎn čin kan thờ
Yes. Let's eat Chinese food.
Lesson 127

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