17-11-2025, 09:24 AM
Thai syllables are similar to the Chinese words above:
A is one or two consonants, but the pairs are very limited. Essentially, the second one can be L or R following a limited set of other consonants
B is a vowel or diphthong
C is empty or a consonant
Syllables may not be complete words. W and Y count as consonants even if at the end of words they sound like vowels.
There are five tones, of which one is 'neutral'. Mandarin also has this but there it is quite rare.
Special for Thai is that vowel length is meaningful, and there are a great many minimal pairs distinguished only by vowel length.
A is one or two consonants, but the pairs are very limited. Essentially, the second one can be L or R following a limited set of other consonants
B is a vowel or diphthong
C is empty or a consonant
Syllables may not be complete words. W and Y count as consonants even if at the end of words they sound like vowels.
There are five tones, of which one is 'neutral'. Mandarin also has this but there it is quite rare.
Special for Thai is that vowel length is meaningful, and there are a great many minimal pairs distinguished only by vowel length.
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