Having a partner in Thailand often means having a long distance relationship for many months at a time. And for those who meet a partner online, it is usually a long time before you actually get to meet in person.
During that time apart, it's a good idea to brush up on your Thai skills; because it's a wonderful thing to be able to convey how you feel in your partner's language.
Perhaps you want to say “I miss you”, or “I wish you were here”; you know, all those sweet words lovers message each other with when they're feeling a little lonely.
Sending a message like this in your partner's native language shows she/he that you're going the extra mile to put a smile on her/his face.
Missing your girlfriend. She's probably missing you too 🙂
12 Romantic Thai Phrases for Long Distance Lovers
Below are some romantic phrases you can use to communicate your feelings to your girlfriend or boyfriend when you're apart.
I've included the transliteration, which is the way we translate a word from the alphabet of one language to another (in this case, English).
I've also included the Thai script, which you can copy and paste into an email or message, and isolated some easy-to-learn takeaway words that you can add to your Thai vocabulary.
1. I want to be there beside you
Transliteration: Pŏm yàak bpai yùu dtrong-nán kâang kâang khun
Thai script: ผมอยากไปอยู่ตรงนั้นข้างๆคุณ
Useful words:
- Yàak: This means ‘want'.
- kâang kâang: This means ‘next to' / ‘beside'.
2. Are you missing me as much as I’m missing you?
Transliteration: Khun kít-tŭeng pŏm tâo tîi pŏm kít-tŭeng khun rúe-bplàao
Thai script: คุณคิดถึงผมเท่าที่ผมคิดถึงคุณรึเปล่า
Useful words:
- Khun: This means ‘you'.
- Rúe-bplàao: This means ‘are you'.
3. I miss you all the time
Transliteration: Pŏm kít-tŭeng khun dtà-làwd way-laa
Thai script: ผมคิดถึงคุณตลอดเวลา
Useful words:
- kít-tŭeng: This means ‘miss'.
- dtà-làwd way-laa: This means ‘all the time'.
4. I want to see you
Transliteration: Pŏm yak pop khun
Thai script: ผมอยากพบคุณ
Useful words:
Pop: This means ‘see'. You can also use the word ‘jer', which you will hear in other sentences that refer to seeing something or someone.
5. I wish you were here with me
Transliteration: Pǒm yak hai khun yuu gap pǒm tîi nii
Thai script: ผมอวังว่าคุณจะอยู่ที่นี่กัผมอ
Useful words:
tîi nii (can be written as tee nee): This means ‘here'
6. You mean a lot to me
Transliteration: Khun mii kwaam mǎai tàw pǒm mâak
Thai script: คุณมีความหมายต่อผมมาก
- Kwaam mǎai: This means ‘mean'.
7. I’ll see you in my dreams
Transliteration: Jer gan nai kwaam- făn ná
Thai script: เจอกันในฝันนะ
Useful words:
This is literally translated as ‘see you in a dream' but colloquially is how you'd say it.
- Jer gan: This means to ‘see'.
- Nai: This means ‘in'.
- Kwaam- făn: This means ‘dream'.
8. You make me so happy!
Transliteration: Khun tam hâi pǒm mii kwaam sùk
Thai script: คุณทำให้ผมมีความสุข
Useful words:
- Tam: This means ‘make'
- Kwaam sùk: This means ‘happy'
9. Be patient, we’ll get through this together
Transliteration: Ot-ton nòi ná, rao jà sûu bpai dûai-gan
Thai script: อดทนหน่อยนะ เราจะสู้ไปด้วยกัน
Useful words:
Literally translated this means “we'll fight together”, but in this instance it translates the same sentiment as the English saying.
- Ot-ton: This means ‘patient'.
- Sûu: This means ‘fight'.
- Dûai-gan: This means ‘together'.
10. Even though we are far apart, my heart is always with you
Transliteration: Tŭeng dtua rao jà hàang gan, dtàe jai pŏm yùu gàp khun dtà-làwd way-laa
Thai script: ถึงตัวเราจะห่างกันแต่ใจผมอยู่กับคุณตลอดเวลา
Useful words:
Note that dtà-làwd way-laa is used for ‘always with you', as it is for ‘all the time' in number 1 of this list.
- Tŭeng dtua rao: This means ‘even though'.
- Hàang gan: This means ‘far apart'
- Jai: This means ‘heart'.
11. There’s not a day I don’t miss you
Transliteration: Mâi mii wan nǎi tîi pǒm mâi kít-tŭeng khun
Thai script: ไม่มีวันไหนที่ผมไม่คิดถึงคุณ
Useful words:
- Mâi mii: This means ‘don't have', but in these instance ‘there isn't'.
- Wan: This means ‘day'.
12. Distance makes us love each other more
Thai script: ระยะทางทำให้เรารักกันมากขึ้น
Transliteration: Rá-yá-taang tam-hâi rao rák gan mâak kûen
Useful words:
- Mâak kûen: this means ‘more' / ‘a lot'.
Why It's Important to Learn Thai
Learning the language of your Thai girlfriend /boyfriend is important for a number of reasons:
- Communication: Learning Thai can help you communicate better with your partner, understand her/his culture better and express yourself more clearly.
- Respect: By learning your Thai girlfriend's or boyfriend's language, you demonstrate that you respect her culture and are interested in learning more about it.
- Connection: Speaking your partner's language can help you form a deeper connection with her and her family and friends. Thais have close family connections and you'll likely spend a lot of time at the main family home. If you can't speak Thai you'll be left out of the conversation.
- Independence: Learning the language will give you greater independence in Thailand, not just when interacting with her friends and family but also when traveling and shopping.
- Career opportunities: If you think you might settle down and live in Thailand at some point you will be at a greater advantage for work opportunities in fields such as teaching and international business.
How to Get Started
It's much easier to get started with learning Thai than you think. In fact, you'l be surprised just how quickly you can learn to have a basic conversation.
I use Thaipod, and so do hundreds of my readers.
They've got tons of easy lessons, just like this one, with audio, on a range of different subjects. Best of all, it's free to get started.
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In Summary
Even though these romantic Thai phrases make it easy for you to copy and paste your feelings into a message, I hope you were able to learn some Thai words in the process.
I'm sure you were able to pick out a few words you've heard before, and perhaps a lightbulb went off in your head upon seeing how some of the words fit together in the transliterations.
I hope this has gotten you a little excited to learn more Thai. I'm sure the next you see your partner she/he will be super-impressed that you've learned so much during your time apart.
The fact is, successful relationships are based on good communication. It can be frustrating when you don't understand each other, and it can cause problems.
When I consider my own relationship, I can recall a number of times words got lost in translation and ended up causing a bit of a kerfuffle!