GoUni Tips - Education

Thai speakers are not nearly as bad at pronouncing English as English speakers are at pronouncing Thai, but there are some mistakes that are commonly made. Often these mispronunciations are so fundamental they persist in even in Thais who have been living in an English-speaking country for many years. 

It is best to make an effort to correct these errors early on, otherwise the mispronunciation may become a habit you find hard to get rid of. Here’s our list of the most common mispronunciations, and how to try to correct them.

1. Th, as in the

Many Thais say “de” instead of “the”. The tip of your tongue should be on the bottom (the sharp bit) of your top front teeth, not on the back of your teeth. Your tongue should not touch your gums at all. It is not a sharp sound like the “d” sound. To practise, try saying “the” but with a really long “th” sound: “ttttttttttttthhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhe”!

2. Th, as in thing

There are of course two th sounds in English. The th in thing is the same, but it is unvoiced (whispered). Again, the tip of your tongue should be on the bottom (the sharp bit) of your top front teeth, not on the back of your teeth. Try saying “ttttttttttthhhhhhhhhhhing”; do not say “ting”!

3. V

Thais often pronounce the letter V the same as W. If you do this it will be very hard for English speakers to understand you, as V and W are very different sounds. The v sound is actually like an f, but it is voiced instead of aspirated. Your bottom lip should touch your top teeth when you pronounce V.

4. Ch & Sh

Ch is not the same as sh! Ch is a combination of the t and sh sounds. Your tongue should touch your teeth to make the ch sound, but not when making the sh sound. Ch should be short and sharp; sh should be soft.