ลับ
secret
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- 1 secret、confidential
- 2 hidden from view、secluded
- 3 disappear from view、fade away
- 4 sharpen (a blade)、hone (the mind or a skill)
This word has two main ideas: being hidden from knowledge or sight, and making something sharper. It is used for secrets, things disappearing from view, sharpening blades, and figuratively honing the mind or a skill.
secret、confidential
Describes information, matters, or activities that are intentionally kept from public knowledge.
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นี่เป็นข้อมูลลับ nîi pen khɔ̂ɔmuun láp This is confidential information. นี่เป็นข้อมูลลับ details
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เก็บเป็นความลับนะ kèp pen khwaamláp ná Keep it a secret, okay? เก็บเป็นความลับนะ details
hidden from view、secluded
Describes a place or something else that is concealed from view or away from other people's eyes.
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ฉันมีไฝในที่ลับ chǎn mii fǎy nay thîi láp I have a mole on my private parts. ฉันมีไฝในที่ลับ details
disappear from view、fade away
Describes someone or something fading, moving away, or passing behind an obstruction until it can no longer be seen; it can also refer to fading from memory.
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รถแล่นลับตาไป rót lɛ̂n láp taa pay The car drove away and disappeared from sight. รถแล่นลับตาไป details
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ดวงอาทิตย์ลับขอบฟ้า duaŋ aathít láp khɔ̀ɔp fáa The sun sinks below the horizon. ดวงอาทิตย์ลับขอบฟ้า details
sharpen (a blade)、hone (the mind or a skill)
Means to make a blade sharp by grinding or honing it. Figuratively, it can mean exercising and improving the mind or an ability.
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ต้องลับมีดก่อนใช้ tɔ̂ŋ láp mîit kɔ̀ɔn cháy You need to sharpen the knife before using it. ต้องลับมีดก่อนใช้ details
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เขากำลังลับกรรไกร khǎw kamlaŋ láp kankray He is sharpening the scissors. เขากำลังลับกรรไกร details
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เกมนี้ช่วยลับสมอง keem níi chûay láp samɔ̌ɔŋ This game helps sharpen your mind. เกมนี้ช่วยลับสมอง details
Learning notes
Explanation
ลับ has two broad, distinct sets of meanings. The first centers on something not being exposed. With information, it means “secret” or “confidential”; with a place, it means hidden from other people's eyes; and with a moving person or object, it means passing out of sight. It often appears in combinations such as ข้อมูลลับ, ที่ลับ, ลับตา, and ลับหลัง. The other core meaning is to make something sharp by rubbing or grinding it. ลับมีด “sharpen a knife” is the standard example. This extends figuratively to expressions such as ลับสมอง, meaning to exercise or sharpen the mind. The usual noun meaning “a secret” is ความลับ. ลับ itself is more often used as a modifier after a noun or as a verb.
Usage
In conversations about secrets or confidential matters, common expressions include เรื่องลับ, ข้อมูลลับ, and เก็บเป็นความลับ. ที่ลับ is used for a place away from other people's eyes, while ลับหลัง refers to doing or saying something behind someone's back. The word also appears when a person or vehicle recedes from view or when the sun passes below the horizon. In kitchens and workshops it refers to sharpening blades, and in games or learning activities it can describe exercising the mind.
Caution
For the general action of hiding an object, use ซ่อน. ลับ is not normally used as a general verb meaning “to hide something.” Also, ลับตา relates to being out of sight or away from other people's eyes. “Close one's eyes” is หลับตา, a different word spelled with an initial ห.
Differences from similar words
1 secret synonyms
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ปกปิด focuses on concealing something or on its having been concealed. ลับ commonly modifies a noun to describe the information or matter itself as secret or confidential.
2 hidden from view synonyms
3 disappear from view synonyms
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จาง describes a color, light, smell, or similar quality becoming faint. ลับ focuses on a person or thing passing out of sight or awareness.
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หายไป is the general everyday expression for going missing, leaving, or disappearing. ลับ is especially suited to something receding or passing behind an obstruction and vanishing from sight.