Beginner reading · A0

First vowels above consonants

Read short /a/ and /i/ and long /ii/ when their marks appear above a consonant.

18 min reading-foundations
Objectives

Thai vowels are not always written after the consonant. These three marks sit above the consonant they follow in speech.

  • readingRecognise vowels written above a consonant
  • readingDistinguish short ◌ิ from long ◌ี
  • vocabularyRead eight words with ◌ั or ◌ิ
Characters

Characters

◌ั a máy hǎn aakàat
◌ิ i
◌ี ii
Study cards

Study cards

ยัง yaŋ still, yet
ดัน dan push
ทัน than catch up
มัน man fat
วัง waŋ palace
วัน wan day
ดิน din soil
กิน kin eat

Source note

No local recorded audio was found. ResponsiveVoice is not used by the modern lesson. Historical games and stroke animations are retained only in the protected source archive.
Exercises

Exercises

01

Which mark represents long /ii/?

  • ◌ี
  • ◌ิ
  • ◌ั
Show answer

Correct answer: ◌ี

◌ี adds a short vertical stroke to distinguish long /ii/ from short /i/.

02

Which word reads /wan/?

  • วัน
  • วัง
  • มัน
Show answer

Correct answer: วัน

In วัน, ◌ั is written above ว and followed by น.

03

Which word uses short /i/ and means ‘eat’?

  • กิน
  • ดิน
  • ยัง
Show answer

Correct answer: กิน

กิน is read /kin/ and uses ◌ิ above ก.