แพง

Explanation

แพง is the standard everyday word for saying that something is expensive. It follows the noun in phrases such as อาหารแพง “expensive food,” and commonly appears in patterns such as แพงมาก “very expensive,” แพงเกินไป “too expensive,” แพงกว่า “more expensive than,” and แพงขึ้น “become more expensive.” Thai adjectives can function directly as predicates, so แพง by itself can form the statement “It’s expensive.” Add ครับ or ค่ะ when politeness is appropriate. It can also describe a heavy nonfinancial cost, as in บทเรียนราคาแพง “a costly lesson,” referring to an experience involving serious loss or sacrifice. In modern casual usage, ดูแพง means “look classy or high-end,” especially in discussions of fashion and appearance. It does not necessarily mean that the item was actually expensive.

Usage

It is widely used when asking about prices in stores and markets, evaluating the cost of food, hotels, rent, transportation, and other services, or discussing price increases and comparisons. In casual conversation and on social media, it may also compliment the high-end appearance of clothing, makeup, or design.

Caution

แพง does not mean “high” in general. Use สูง for height, tall people, buildings, mountains, or high numerical levels. Also, แพงขึ้น means that something has become more expensive, while ขึ้นราคา means that a seller raises the price. Its opposite, ถูก, can also mean “correct” and has other grammatical uses, so interpret it from context.

1 expensive synonyms

• สูง

  sǔuŋ high (in amount or degree)

  สูง generally means “high” and is often used with nouns referring to an amount, such as ราคา “price” or ค่าใช้จ่าย “expenses.” แพง directly describes an item or service as expensive and is the usual everyday choice.

3 classy-looking [slang] synonyms

• หรู

  rǔu luxurious

  หรู means “luxurious” or “fancy” and can describe the actual quality of places and objects. Slang แพง focuses more on the impression that a look or style appears expensive and polished, regardless of its real price.