Repetition with 'ๆ' — Thai Grammar

The symbol ๆ is a punctuation mark called (mái yá·mók). It is placed immediately after a word or phrase to indicate that the preceding element should be repeated. While it often signifies plurality, its function changes depending on the part of speech it follows.

Pluralizing Nouns

Thai nouns do not have a specific plural form (like adding "s" in English). To explicitly refer to a group or a large number of items, you can repeat the noun using ๆ. This is most commonly used with people and objects.

เด็กๆ กำลัง เล่น ฟุตบอล
dèk dèk gam·lang lên fút·bɔɔndèk dèk kam·lang lên fút·bondèk dèk kam·lang lên fút·bo̦n
The children are playing football.
พี่ๆ ของ ฉัน อยู่ ที่บ้าน
pîi pîi kɔ̌ɔng chǎn yùu tii bâanphî phî khǒng chǎn yù thi bânphî phî khǒ̦ng čǎn yù thi bân
My older siblings are at home.

Intensifying Adjectives and Adverbs

When placed after an adjective or adverb, ๆ usually acts as an intensifier. It adds the meaning of "very," "really," or emphasizes the urgency of a command.

ขอบคุณ มากๆ
kɔ̀ɔp·kun mâak mâakkhòp·khun mâk mâkkhò̦p·khun mâk mâk
Thank you very much.
ขอ เผ็ดๆ นะ
kɔ̌ɔ pèt pèt nákhǒ phèt phèt nákhǒ̦ phèt phèt ná
I would like it very spicy, please.
มา เร็วๆ
maa reo reoma reo reoma reo reo
Come here quickly!

Softening Meaning and Approximation

In specific contexts, repetition does the opposite of intensifying: it softens the meaning or makes it approximate. This is common with colors and verbs.

Colors: Repeating a color word indicates a shade or "ish" quality (e.g., "reddish" instead of "red").
Verbs: Repeating a verb can imply that the action is casual, ongoing without a specific goal, or done tentatively.

เขา ชอบ สี ดำๆ
kǎo chɔ̂ɔp sǐi dam damkhǎo chôp sǐ dam damkhǎo čô̦p sǐ dam dam
He likes blackish colors / dark colors.
ฉัน แค่ ดูๆ อยู่
chǎn kɛ̂ɛ doo doo yùuchǎn khâe do do yùčǎn khê̩ do do yù
I am just looking around (browsing).

Creating Indefinite Pronouns

When ๆ is used with question words (such as "who," "what," or "where"), it changes the meaning from a question to a general statement involving "any-" or "every-".

ใครๆ ก็ รู้
krai krai gɔ̂ɔ rúukhrai khrai kô rúkhrai khrai kô̦ rú
Everyone knows.
ที่ ไหนๆ ก็ สวย
tii nǎi nǎi gɔ̂ɔ sǔaithi nǎi nǎi kô sǔaithi nǎi nǎi kô̦ sǔai
Everywhere is beautiful.

Usage Rules

The mark ๆ is a punctuation symbol, not a letter. Therefore:

It cannot be placed at the beginning of a sentence.
It is usually preceded and followed by a space in formal writing, though this is often omitted in casual digital communication.
It cannot be used if the repeated word looks the same but has a different meaning (homonyms).

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