A1 Time Expressions 3 min read Facile

Les bases du temps en thaï : Aujourd'hui (Wun-nee) et demain (Phrueng-nee)

Simply place the time word at the start or end of your sentence to set the timeline.
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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Thai time expressions like 'today' or 'tomorrow' usually go at the very beginning or the very end of a sentence.

  • Use 'wun-nee' for today: Wun-nee phom kin khao (Today I eat rice).
  • Use 'phrueng-nee' for tomorrow: Phrueng-nee phom pai thiao (Tomorrow I go travel).
  • Use 'muea-wan-nee' for yesterday: Muea-wan-nee phom tham ngan (Yesterday I worked).
Time + Subject + Verb + Object OR Subject + Verb + Object + Time

Overview

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Time Expression Placement

Position Structure Example
Start
Time + Subject + Verb
Wun-nee phom kin
End
Subject + Verb + Time
Phom kin wun-nee
Negative
Subject + mai + Verb + Time
Phom mai kin wun-nee
Question
Subject + Verb + Time + mai?
Khun kin wun-nee mai?
Future
Time + Subject + cha + Verb
Phrueng-nee phom cha pai
Past
Time + Subject + dai + Verb
Muea-wan-nee phom dai pai

Common Time Contractions

Full Short/Casual
Wun-nee
Wun-nee
Phrueng-nee
Phrueng-nee
Muea-wan-nee
Muea-wan

Meanings

These words function as temporal adverbs that anchor an action to a specific point in the past, present, or future.

1

Absolute Time

Defining the specific day an action occurs.

“Wun-nee ron mak”

“Phrueng-nee wan-ao-rai”

Reference Table

Reference table for Les bases du temps en thaï : Aujourd'hui (Wun-nee) et demain (Phrueng-nee)
Thai English Usage
Wun-nee
Today
Current day
Phrueng-nee
Tomorrow
Next day
Muea-wan-nee
Yesterday
Past day
Wan-nee pai nai
Where are you going today?
Question
Phrueng-nee wang mai
Are you free tomorrow?
Planning
Wun-nee sanook
Today is fun
Statement

Spectre de formalité

Formel
Wun-nee phom cha pai

Wun-nee phom cha pai (General statement)

Neutre
Wun-nee phom pai

Wun-nee phom pai (General statement)

Informel
Wun-nee pai na

Wun-nee pai na (General statement)

Argot
Wun-nee pai loey

Wun-nee pai loey (General statement)

Time Flow

Time

Days

  • Wun-nee Today
  • Phrueng-nee Tomorrow

Placement Options

Start
Wun-nee Today
End
Wun-nee Today

When to use?

1

Is it now?

YES
Use Wun-nee
NO
Use Phrueng-nee

Time Vocab

⏰

Time Words

  • • Wun-nee
  • • Phrueng-nee
  • • Muea-wan-nee
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Exemples par niveau

1

Wun-nee phom kin khao

Today I eat rice

2

Phrueng-nee pai thiao

Tomorrow go travel

3

Muea-wan-nee phom yu ban

Yesterday I was at home

4

Wun-nee ron

Today is hot

1

Khun pai nai wun-nee

Where are you going today?

2

Phom mai dai pai phrueng-nee

I am not going tomorrow

3

Muea-wan-nee khun tham-ngan mai

Did you work yesterday?

4

Phrueng-nee phom cha pai ha khun

Tomorrow I will go see you

1

Wun-nee phom gam-lang tham-ngan

Today I am working

2

Muea-wan-nee phom dai pai kin khao

Yesterday I went to eat

3

Phrueng-nee phom khong mai pai

Tomorrow I probably won't go

4

Wun-nee khun tong pai ha mor

Today you must go see the doctor

1

Wun-nee phom mi prachum sam-khan

Today I have an important meeting

2

Muea-wan-nee khao dai bok wa cha ma

Yesterday he said he would come

3

Phrueng-nee pen wan-yut

Tomorrow is a holiday

4

Wun-nee phom ru-suek mai khoi di

Today I don't feel very well

1

Wun-nee ni-lae thi phom tong-kan

Today is exactly what I wanted

2

Muea-wan-nee khao dai ma ha phom thi ban

Yesterday he came to see me at home

3

Phrueng-nee khong cha pen wan thi di

Tomorrow will likely be a good day

4

Wun-nee phom dai rian-ru arai mai-mai

Today I learned something new

1

Wun-nee phom dai triam-tua sam-rap ngan phrueng-nee

Today I prepared for tomorrow's event

2

Muea-wan-nee pen wan thi phom cha cham pai nan

Yesterday was a day I will remember for a long time

3

Phrueng-nee khong pen wan thi wun-wai

Tomorrow will likely be a busy day

4

Wun-nee phom dai chai wela yang khum-kha

Today I spent my time worthily

Facile à confondre

Thai Time Basics: Today (Wun-nee) and Tomorrow (Phrueng-nee) vs Duration vs Absolute Time

Learners mix up 'today' with 'for two hours'.

Thai Time Basics: Today (Wun-nee) and Tomorrow (Phrueng-nee) vs Future vs Present

Learners forget to add 'cha' for future.

Thai Time Basics: Today (Wun-nee) and Tomorrow (Phrueng-nee) vs Past vs Present

Learners forget to add 'dai' for past.

Erreurs courantes

✗

Phom kin-ed wun-nee

✓

Phom kin wun-nee

Do not conjugate verbs.
✗

Phom wun-nee kin

✓

Wun-nee phom kin

Time words should be at the boundaries.
✗

Kin wun-nee phom

✓

Phom kin wun-nee

Subject must come before the verb.
✗

Wun-nee phom kin-ing

✓

Wun-nee phom kin

No continuous tense markers needed.
✗

Phom pai wun-nee mai?

✓

Khun pai wun-nee mai?

Ensure the subject is correct in questions.
✗

Phom mai wun-nee pai

✓

Phom mai pai wun-nee

Negative 'mai' must be before the verb.
✗

Muea-wan-nee phom pai-ed

✓

Muea-wan-nee phom pai

Verb remains base form.
✗

Wun-nee phom dai-ed pai

✓

Wun-nee phom dai pai

The past marker 'dai' does not conjugate.
✗

Phrueng-nee phom cha-ed pai

✓

Phrueng-nee phom cha pai

Future marker 'cha' is invariant.
✗

Wun-nee phom gam-lang-ed kin

✓

Wun-nee phom gam-lang kin

Continuous marker 'gam-lang' is invariant.
✗

Wun-nee ni-lae-ed phom pai

✓

Wun-nee ni-lae phom pai

Particles do not take tense markers.
✗

Muea-wan-nee phom dai-ed ma ha

✓

Muea-wan-nee phom dai ma ha

Keep markers simple.
✗

Phrueng-nee phom khong-ed pai

✓

Phrueng-nee phom khong pai

Modal verbs do not conjugate.

Structures de phrases

___ phom kin khao

Phom ___ pai thiao

Khun ___ wun-nee mai?

___ phom dai tham-ngan

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Wun-nee pai nai?

Job Interview common

Wun-nee phom mi prachum.

Food Delivery App very common

Wun-nee song khao.

Travel common

Phrueng-nee pai Chiang Mai.

Social Media very common

Wun-nee sanuk mak!

Business Email common

Phrueng-nee phom cha song ngan.

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💡

Flexible Placement

You can place time markers at the start or end of your Thai sentence.
⚠️

Don't Overthink Tense

Thai verbs do not change for tense, so stop trying to conjugate!
🎯

Social Particle

Add 'krub' or 'ka' to your time sentences to sound extra polite.

Smart Tips

Drop the subject pronoun if the context is clear.

Phom pai wun-nee → Pai wun-nee

Always front the time word.

Phom mi prachum wun-nee → Wun-nee phom mi prachum

Focus on the time word, not the verb.

Phom kin-ed → Muea-wan-nee phom kin

Use 'mai' at the end to turn any statement into a question.

Khun pai wun-nee → Khun pai wun-nee mai?

Prononciation

Wun (falling) nee (high)

Tones

Wun-nee has a falling tone on Wun. Phrueng-nee has a rising tone on Phrueng.

Question

Khun pai wun-nee mai? (rising at end)

Indicates a yes/no question.

Mémorise-le

Moyen mnémotechnique

Wun-nee is 'one' day (today), Phrueng-nee is 'springing' forward (tomorrow), Muea-wan-nee is 'more' than yesterday.

Association visuelle

Imagine a calendar. Today is a bright sun (Wun-nee). Tomorrow is a rocket ship flying forward (Phrueng-nee). Yesterday is a ghost fading into the past (Muea-wan-nee).

Rhyme

Wun-nee is today, bright and clear, Phrueng-nee is tomorrow, drawing near.

Story

Today (Wun-nee) I am happy. Tomorrow (Phrueng-nee) I will be busy. Yesterday (Muea-wan-nee) I was tired.

Word Web

Wun-neePhrueng-neeMuea-wan-neeWan-neeWan-phrueng-neeWan-muea-wan

Défi

Write three sentences about your day using these words and post them in the community chat.

Notes culturelles

People often drop the subject 'phom' or 'chan' in casual conversation.

They might use different local words for time, but 'wun-nee' is understood everywhere.

Always use 'khrap' or 'kha' at the end of sentences with time markers.

These words are derived from ancient Tai roots for 'day' (wan) and 'time' (nee).

Amorces de conversation

“

Wun-nee khun tham-arai?

“

Muea-wan-nee khun pai nai?

“

Phrueng-nee khun mi plan arai mai?

“

Wun-nee khun ru-suek yang-rai?

Sujets d'écriture

Write about what you did today.
Describe your plans for tomorrow.
Reflect on yesterday's challenges.
Compare your today with your yesterday.

Erreurs courantes

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

Correct

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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank

___ pai kin khao kan (Let's go eat tomorrow).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Phrueng-nee
Phrueng-nee means tomorrow, which fits the context of future plans.
Which sentence is correct? Choix multiple

Choose the correct sentence:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Both are correct
In Thai, time expressions can go at the beginning or the end of the sentence.
Find and fix the mistake Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Wun-nee pai kin khao chan (Today I go eat).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Both are correct
The subject usually comes before the verb, but the time can be at the start or end.

Score: /3

Exercices pratiques

8 exercises
Fill in the correct time word.

___ phom kin khao (Today)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Wun-nee
Wun-nee means today.
Choose the correct sentence. Choix multiple

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Phom kin wun-nee
Subject + Verb + Time is correct.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Phom kin-ed wun-nee

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Phom kin wun-nee
No conjugation in Thai.
Reorder the words. Sentence Reorder

pai / phom / wun-nee

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Phom pai wun-nee
Subject + Verb + Time.
Translate to Thai. Traduction

Tomorrow I go.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Phrueng-nee phom pai
Phrueng-nee is tomorrow.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Wun-nee pai nai? B: ___

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Phom pai ban
Simple verb form.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Subject: Phom, Verb: tham-ngan, Time: Muea-wan-nee

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Muea-wan-nee phom tham-ngan
Correct time and verb.
Sort by tense. Grammar Sorting

Which is past?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Muea-wan-nee
Muea-wan-nee is yesterday.

Score: /8

Practice Bank

1 exercises
Fill in the blank Texte trous

___ chan mai wang (I am not free today).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Wun-nee

Score: /1

FAQ (8)

No, Thai verbs never change. Just add the time word.

Only at the beginning or end of the sentence.

Use 'sup-da-thi-laew'.

It is neutral and used in all contexts.

You might be putting the time word in the middle.

Yes, 'phrueng-nee' is for tomorrow.

Add 'mai' at the end of the sentence.

The words themselves are the same, but the surrounding particles change.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish high

Hoy/Mañana/Ayer

Thai verbs are invariant.

French high

Aujourd'hui/Demain/Hier

Thai lacks conjugation.

German high

Heute/Morgen/Gestern

Thai is an isolating language.

Japanese moderate

Kyou/Ashita/Kinou

Thai word order is more flexible.

Arabic moderate

Al-yawm/Ghadan/Ams

Thai is not root-based.

Chinese high

Jintian/Mingtian/Zuotian

Thai has more flexible particle usage.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Previous
Les bases de la localisation en thaï : Sur, Dans, Sous
Next
Marqueurs directionnels en thaï

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