เมา
be drunk
A native Thai recording for this word is on the way. Please check back soon.
- 1 be drunk、be intoxicated (by alcohol or drugs)
- 2 get motion sickness、be carsick or seasick
- 3 be intoxicated with (love, power, or success)
Describes being impaired or thrown off balance by alcohol, drugs, motion, or figuratively by an overwhelming obsession. When used alone, it normally means being drunk.
be drunk、be intoxicated (by alcohol or drugs)
Describes being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, with impaired judgment, awareness, or physical control.
-
เขาเมาแล้ว khǎw maw lɛ́ɛw He is already drunk. เขาเมาแล้ว details
-
เมื่อคืนฉันเมามาก mʉ̂a khʉʉn chǎn maw mâak I was very drunk last night. เมื่อคืนฉันเมามาก details
Show more (2)
-
อย่าขับรถตอนเมา yàa khàp rót tɔɔn maw Don't drive when you're drunk. อย่าขับรถตอนเมา details
get motion sickness、be carsick or seasick
Describes feeling dizzy or nauseated because of movement, usually with the type of vehicle or motion stated after เมา.
-
ฉันเมารถง่าย chǎn maw rót ŋâay I get carsick easily. ฉันเมารถง่าย details
-
เขาเมาเรือจนอาเจียน khǎw maw rʉa con aacian He got seasick and threw up. เขาเมาเรือจนอาเจียน details
be intoxicated with (love, power, or success)
Figuratively describes becoming so intoxicated with love, power, success, or something similar that clear judgment is lost.
-
เลิกเมาอำนาจ lə̂ək maw amnâat Stop being drunk on power. เลิกเมาอำนาจ details
-
เธอกำลังเมารัก thəə kamlaŋ maw rák She is intoxicated with love. เธอกำลังเมารัก details
Learning notes
Explanation
The central idea of เมา is that an outside influence disrupts a person's normal senses, physical control, or judgment. Used by itself, as in เขาเมา, it normally means “he is drunk.” It functions directly as the predicate, so no linking verb equivalent to “be” is added. Degree can be expressed with phrases such as เมานิดหน่อย (a little drunk), เมามาก (very drunk), and เมาหนัก (heavily drunk). The cause or object commonly follows เมา. For example, เมาเหล้า refers to intoxication from alcohol, เมารถ to sickness from traveling by car, and เมาอำนาจ to losing perspective under the influence of power.
Usage
It is used most often to describe someone's condition after drinking, whether discussing how drunk a person is or warning against driving under the influence. During travel, forms such as เมารถ and เมาเรือ describe carsickness and seasickness. In conversation and writing, expressions such as เมาอำนาจ and เมารัก figuratively describe being carried away by power or love.
Caution
On its own, เมา is normally understood as “drunk from alcohol.” Specify the cause for motion sickness, as in เมารถ or เมาเรือ. Do not confuse it with ง่วง “sleepy,” เวียนหัว “dizzy,” or คลื่นไส้ “nauseated.” Figurative expressions such as เมาอำนาจ often criticize someone for losing perspective, so they can sound accusatory when said directly to that person.
Differences from similar words
1 be drunk synonyms
-
มึนเมา emphasizes a dazed or impaired state and can sound somewhat more formal. เมา is the ordinary everyday word for being drunk.
2 get motion sickness synonyms
-
เวียนหัว means feeling dizzy and can have many causes. เมา combined with a vehicle indicates motion sickness caused by that vehicle.
3 be intoxicated with (love, power, or success) synonyms
-
หลง broadly describes being captivated or infatuated and does not always emphasize impaired judgment. เมา evokes intoxication and often suggests that the person has lost perspective, sometimes critically.