Telling time in Thai is pretty complicated. In the western system, time is divided into two 12-hour periods: am and pm.

In the Thai system, time is *roughly* divided into four 6-hour periods: dtee1 ตี, chao4 เช้า, yen1 เย็น, tum3 ทุ่ม.

When I first learned time in Thai, I was taught to learn it using those four periods. But to me, it’s an oversimplified rule with a dozen exceptions. Following the oversimplified rules, without memorizing all the exceptions, would only welcome silly mistakes by the speaker. Instead, I think the best way to learn Thai time is to list each hour one after the other. You will see some patterns in it, as shown in the notes, but in the end it will require mostly brute memorization.

When looking at the below list, notice that many of the times have two ways to say it. You need to learn both ways, as both are equally common. If you stare at it long enough, you’ll notice patterns to help you with memorization. I’ve divided the time up into 7 different periods, colored coded, as I think this is a much better way to think of time in Thai.

I’m sure you’re ready to practice, so simply ask your friend ‘what time is it’?

gee2 mong1 laew4?
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