พ่อ
father
A native Thai recording for this word is on the way. Please check back soon.
- 1 father、dad
- 2 Dad [form of address]、Dad [father referring to himself]
This is the everyday, familiar word for a male parent. It is also used to address one’s father and by a father referring to himself when speaking to his children.
father、dad
The ordinary everyday word for a person’s male parent.
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พ่อของฉันเป็นครู phɔ̂ɔ khɔ̌ɔŋ chǎn pen khruu My father is a teacher. พ่อของฉันเป็นครู details
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คุณพ่อสบายดีไหมครับ khun phɔ̂ɔ sabaay dii mǎy khráp How is your father? คุณพ่อสบายดีไหมครับ details
Dad [form of address]、Dad [father referring to himself]
Used like a personal pronoun when addressing one’s father or when a father calls himself “Dad” while speaking to his child.
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พ่อ ไปไหน phɔ̂ɔ pay nǎy Dad, where are you going? พ่อ ไปไหน details
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พ่อรักลูกนะ phɔ̂ɔ rák lûuk ná Dad loves you. พ่อรักลูกนะ details
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ขอบคุณครับพ่อ khɔ̀ɔpkhun khráp phɔ̂ɔ Thanks, Dad. ขอบคุณครับพ่อ details
Learning notes
Explanation
พ่อ is the familiar, everyday word for “father” or “dad.” It can refer to your own father or someone else’s. คุณพ่อ is often preferred when respectfully referring to another person’s father. Thai commonly uses family terms like personal pronouns. A child can address their father as พ่อ, and a father can call himself พ่อ when speaking to his child. The classifier for people, คน, is used when counting fathers. พ่อ also appears in compounds such as พ่อค้า “merchant” and พ่อครัว “male cook.” In such words, it does not necessarily translate as “father,” so the whole compound should be learned as a unit.
Usage
It is extremely common when addressing a father, talking about one’s father, or describing family relationships. In schools, hospitals, and other polite interactions, คุณพ่อ is often used for someone else’s father. For animals, พ่อ commonly appears in compounds such as พ่อพันธุ์ for a breeding male.
Caution
Unlike English, Thai does not require a switch from a family word to a more detached term when speaking about your own father; พ่อ remains natural. It is not the standard way to address any adult man. Using it for someone with no paternal or father-like relationship may sound odd outside certain established expressions. Formal or legal writing may use บิดา instead.
Differences from similar words
1 father synonyms
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บิดา is a formal word for “father,” common in official or written contexts. พ่อ is the familiar, natural choice in everyday speech and family life.
2 Dad [form of address] synonyms
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คุณพ่อ is a more respectful or polite way to say or address “father.” พ่อ is more direct and intimate within the family.