เล่า
tell
A native Thai recording for this word is on the way. Please check back soon.
- 1 tell、recount、narrate
- 2 then; on earth [question emphasis]、what about ...? [contrast]
- 3 again and again [repeated action]、keep doing
This word mainly means to tell or recount a story, experience, or sequence of events. In literary-style expressions, it can also emphasize a question or indicate that an action happens repeatedly.
tell、recount、narrate
To communicate a story, experience, or sequence of events as a connected account.
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เล่าเรื่อง lâw rʉ̂aŋ tell a story เล่าเรื่อง details
then; on earth [question emphasis]、what about ...? [contrast]
Added to a question to make it more emphatic, rhetorical, or contrastive.
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ทำไมเล่า? thammay lâw Why on earth? ทำไมเล่า? details
again and again [repeated action]、keep doing
Used in a repeated-verb pattern to show that the same action continues or happens again and again.
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คิดแล้วคิดเล่า khít lɛ́ɛw khít lâw think it over again and again คิดแล้วคิดเล่า details
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ฟังแล้วฟังเล่า faŋ lɛ́ɛw faŋ lâw listen over and over ฟังแล้วฟังเล่า details
Learning notes
Explanation
The verb is by far the most important use. It does not simply refer to speaking aloud; it presents an event, experience, story, or situation as a connected account for someone to hear. A basic pattern is เล่า followed by the content being told. When the listener is stated, Thai commonly uses เล่า + content + ให้ + person + ฟัง, or เล่าให้ + person + ฟัง. For example, เล่าเรื่องนี้ให้เพื่อนฟัง means “tell this story to a friend.” The particle uses occur mainly in writing and rhetorical language. One emphasizes a question, while another appears in repeated-verb patterns such as คิดแล้วคิดเล่า, meaning to think something over again and again.
Usage
It is commonly used when telling someone what happened, sharing a personal experience, explaining a situation, or passing along news or a story. It also appears in storytelling, interviews, personal recollections, and accounts of how an incident unfolded.
Caution
For a single brief piece of information, บอก is often more natural; for speaking in general, use พูด. A listener is normally introduced with ให้ ... ฟัง, as in เล่าให้เขาฟัง (“tell him/her”), rather than placed directly after เล่า. Do not confuse เล่า (“tell, recount”) with เหล้า (“alcohol”); the latter has an additional ห at the beginning.
Differences from similar words
1 tell synonyms
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บรรยาย means to describe, explain, or lecture in detail and often sounds more formal. เล่า is the ordinary word for telling someone a story or recounting an experience.
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บอก means to tell, inform, or give someone a piece of information and works well for brief messages. เล่า is used for a fuller account with events, context, or a storyline.
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พูด refers broadly to speaking or saying something. เล่า focuses on giving a connected account of a story, experience, or event.
2 then; on earth [question emphasis] synonyms
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ล่ะ is common in everyday conversation for questions and contrasts. The particle เล่า sounds more literary or rhetorical and can give a question stronger emphasis.