Each Thai term is followed by its RTGS romanization. Where a recording is available, select its speaker button to listen.
Two spellings, two tones
You will hear ค่ะ (Kha) and คะ (Kha) at the end of greetings, questions, and replies throughout the school day. The first has a falling tone and is used for statements; the second has a high tone and is used for many questions.
These examples use the endings conventionally used by female speakers. Choose an ending to suit your own way of speaking; the listener’s gender does not determine it. Speakers may also vary their usage with their identity, relationship, and setting.
ค่ะ (Kha) : statements and acknowledgments
Use the falling-tone form ค่ะ (Kha) for a statement, greeting, or confirmation. It can also be a short acknowledgment meaning “yes,” “I see,” or “understood.”
- สวัสดีค่ะ (Sawatdi kha) : Hello / Good morning.
- ขอบคุณ ค่ะ (Khop khun kha) : Thank you.
- รับทราบค่ะ (Rap sap kha) : Noted / Understood.
Listen for the tone: For ค่ะ (Kha) , the learner spellings khâ and kâ show a falling tone. RTGS leaves the tone out. See the romanization guide’s tone table if the accent marks are new to you.
If you are greeting a colleague in person, the words may accompany a ไหว้ (Wai) . The ไหว้ (Wai) guide covers greetings with colleagues and students.
คะ (Kha) : questions and “Yes?”
Use the high-tone form คะ (Kha) in many questions. On its own, it can also mean “Yes?” when someone calls your name and you are waiting to hear what they need.
- เข้าใจไหมคะ (Khao chai mai kha) : Do you understand?
- มีคำถามไหมคะ (Mi kham tham mai kha) : Any questions?
- อะไรนะคะ (Arai na kha) : Pardon me? / What was that?
- When someone calls “Teacher Sarah!”, a short คะ (Kha) ? can mean “Yes?” when you are waiting to hear what they want.
นะคะ (Na kha) : a softer ending
The word นะ (Na) can soften a request, invite agreement, or add emphasis. In นะคะ (Na kha) , both syllables have a high tone. This ending can appear in statements and requests as well as questions, so “high tone means a question” is not a complete rule. After นะ (Na) , use คะ (Kha) , not ค่ะ (Kha) .
A useful distinction: The tones in ค่ะ (Kha) and คะ (Kha) are different even though they share the same RTGS spelling. Use the Thai spelling and recording together.
Polite particles in school LINE groups
When a department head or school director posts a schedule change, a brief รับทราบค่ะ (Rap sap kha) confirms that you have read the message. If the message also asks you to do something, confirm the task or deadline. The staffroom guide covers replies and other school group-chat habits.
Compare a greeting with a question
Begin with สวัสดีค่ะ (Sawatdi kha) . When audio is available, listen to the final falling tone and copy it. Then try a question ending in คะ (Kha) . A Thai speaker can help you check the difference if you cannot hear it yet.
For more on replies when someone calls your name, see Chulalongkorn University’s Thai-language notes on particles