As you progress through the Thai language, you will often wonder how to gauge your fluency. How many more years until you understand the conversations of people on the street? How many more years will you have to endure until you speak like a native?

This list is probably relevant no matter the language you are learning, and indeed I got some of these by asking Google. They are somewhat ordered from 1-10, with #1 being the easiest and #10 being the hardest.

1) You, on occasion, accidentally speak Thai to those you know who do not speak a word of it.

2) You often find yourself thinking the Thai word, but can’t remember the English word.

3) You find it easier to explain some concepts by speaking Thai, not English.

4) You can say ‘I am hungry’ in Thai in 8 different ways.

5) A Thai says you ‘pood klawng’. If you ‘pood chat’, it means you’re half-way there.

6) Speaking Thai on the phone with a weak signal isn’t a challenge.

7) You can effortlessly read any menu in Thai, knowing exactly what every item is.

8 ) You can determine the definition of words you never heard before simply by context.

9) Those who do not see your face while conversing (by phone) mistake you as Thai.

10) You can tell which province (not just region) a Thai came from only by listening to his accent.