How to say hello in Thai

How it is pronounced

Syllable	Sounds like	Tone
ส	sà	low tone low tone
วัส	wàt	low tone low tone
ดี	dii	mid tone mid tone

Down, down, level. The last syllable is the one to watch: English speakers instinctively lift it, and a rising tone on the end makes the word sound like a question rather than a greeting.

The versions worth knowing

The same word for hello and goodbye

สวัสดี does both. You say it arriving and you say it leaving, at any hour, to anyone. There is no Thai equivalent of the hello/goodbye split, and no equivalent of the English habit of picking a greeting to suit the time of day — though the time-of-day versions do exist if you want them.

It is also newer than most learners assume. สวัสดี was coined in the 1930s and promoted as a national greeting; before that Thai managed with questions like "where are you going?" and "have you eaten yet?", both of which you will still hear used as greetings today and neither of which is a real question.

The wai, and when you do not need it

The palms-together gesture is a ไหว้ (wâi) and it usually accompanies the greeting. The rules around it are genuinely complicated — the height of your hands, who initiates, who returns it — and the important thing for a visitor is this: you are not expected to get it right, and you should not wai everyone.

You do not wai children, staff serving you, or the person who takes your money. A foreigner wai-ing a 7-Eleven cashier is a well-known and slightly awkward sight. Return a wai when you are given one by an adult, wai someone clearly senior to you, and otherwise a nod and the spoken greeting is completely fine.

Time-of-day greetings exist, but nobody needs them

สวัสดีตอนเช้า is "good morning" and สวัสดีตอนเย็น is "good evening". They are correct, they are taught in textbooks, and Thai people mostly do not bother. Plain สวัสดี covers the whole day. Learn these two so you recognise them, not so you use them.

The mistake English speakers make

The middle syllable. Written out as sa-wat-dee, it invites an English reading with the stress in the middle and a flat delivery throughout. In reality the first two syllables are both low tones and only the last one sits at mid — the phrase drops, stays down, then levels out.

There is also a rule hiding in the spelling that is worth meeting early. In สวัสดี, the leading ส is a high-class consonant, and it governs the tone of the syllable after it as well as its own. That is why วัส comes out low rather than high, which is what ว on its own would have given you. Thai spelling does this a lot, and it is one of the reasons the script is worth learning: the tone is written down, and romanisation throws it away.

In casual speech it gets shortened

Among friends you will hear it clipped to wàt-dii, dropping the first syllable entirely, in roughly the way "hello" becomes "'lo". Understand it, but say the full version — a foreigner using the casual form with a stranger sounds like someone trying it on.

In a sentence

Common questions

Is it sawadee krap or sawadee ka?

Whichever matches you. Men say sà-wàt-dii kráp and women say sà-wàt-dii kâ. The greeting itself does not change — only the politeness particle on the end, and that follows the speaker rather than the listener.

Does sawadee mean hello or goodbye?

Both. Thai uses the same greeting arriving and leaving, and at any hour. There is no separate word you need for goodbye in ordinary situations.

Do I have to wai when I say hello?

No. Return a wai if an adult gives you one, and wai someone clearly senior to you. Do not wai children, service staff or cashiers — a foreigner wai-ing everyone is a common and slightly awkward sight rather than a sign of respect.

How do you say good morning in Thai?

สวัสดีตอนเช้า, sà-wàt-dii dton-cháo. It is correct but rarely used — most Thai people say plain สวัสดี all day. Learn it to recognise it rather than to say it.