Numbers in Thai: The Pattern You Need From the Start

Thai numbers are regular: learn 0 to 10, remember that 20 is ยี่สิบ (yi sip) and that a final 1 becomes เอ็ด (et), then combine the same building blocks for larger numbers. That single pattern covers almost every number you will hear in Thailand.

This lesson on numbers in Thai takes you from 0 to 100, shows you how to build larger numbers with the same logic, and helps you recognize the Thai numeral symbols ๐ to ๙ that you will see in Thai text. No Thai reading skill or tone knowledge is assumed.

Every Thai expression here is followed by romanization in parentheses. Romanization is only an approximate guide, because it cannot show tones or every vowel detail. For script basics before you start, see our Thai alphabet guide. For accurate pronunciation, audio or a teacher is the reliable route.

Thai Numbers 0 to 10: The Building Blocks

Every Thai number is built from the words for 0 to 10, so these 11 words are the core vocabulary of the whole system. Larger numbers also require place-value words, which this lesson introduces later. Once you know the core set, the decimal pattern does most of the work.

Read the table across each row: the Arabic digit, the Thai numeral symbol, the Thai word and the romanization all represent the same quantity. The Thai numerals are shown here so you meet them early, and they get a full chart of their own below.

A warning about romanization: it is approximate. It gives you the shape of each word, but it does not encode the tones that distinguish meaning in Thai. If you plan to speak these numbers, practice them with audio or a teacher rather than trusting the romanization alone.

The 2 Exceptions: ยี่สิบ (Yi Sip) and เอ็ด (Et)

Thai has exactly 2 common exceptions within the counting pattern covered here: 20 is ยี่สิบ (yi sip), and a final 1 in a compound number is เอ็ด (et). Everything else in the 11 to 100 range follows the regular pattern.

Exception 1 is 20. You might expect the ordinary word for 2, สอง (song), combined with สิบ (sip), but Thai uses ยี่สิบ (yi sip) instead. This is simply a form you memorize once, and it appears inside every number that contains 20 as its tens value.

The other exception affects compound numbers ending in 1. Instead of หนึ่ง (nueng), the final digit 1 in a compound is commonly pronounced เอ็ด (et). So 11 is สิบเอ็ด (sip et), not สิบหนึ่ง (sip nueng), and 21 is ยี่สิบเอ็ด (yi sip et). The 2 exceptions stack neatly: 21 contains both of them at once.

These 2 forms are what you memorize beyond the basic pattern for counting to 100. Every other number from 11 to 100 follows the rule you are about to learn, and the exceptions appear in predictable positions once you know where to look for them.

Counting From 11 to 100: How Thai Builds Larger Numbers

Thai says the tens word first, then the unit word, and this order never changes. A number like 21 is its tens word plus เอ็ด (et), and every compound from 11 to 99 works the same way.

Learn the tens next. The numbers 30 to 90 use the unit word placed before สิบ (sip), while 10 is simply สิบ (sip) and 20 is the exception ยี่สิบ (yi sip):

Now combine tens with units. The number 34 is สามสิบสี่ (sam sip si), literally 30 plus 4. The number 89 is แปดสิบเก้า (paet sip kao). When the unit is 1, swap in the exception: 41 is สี่สิบเอ็ด (si sip et), and 91 is เก้าสิบเอ็ด (kao sip et).

The word for 100 is ร้อย (roi). The same decimal logic continues past it using further place values: ร้อย (roi) for hundreds, พัน (phan) for thousands, หมื่น (muen) for 10,000s, แสน (saen) for 100,000s and ล้าน (lan) for millions. A price like 125 is หนึ่งร้อยยี่สิบห้า (nueng roi yi sip ha), built from the same blocks you already know.

Thai Numerals ๐ to ๙: Reading Thai Digit Symbols

Thai has its own numeral symbols, ๐ through ๙, which exist alongside the Arabic digits that are also common in Thailand. Recognizing them takes a short chart, and each symbol maps directly to a spoken number word you have already learned.

You will meet these glyphs in Thai text, sometimes mixed with Arabic digits on the same sign or document. If you can read the 10 symbols above, you can read any Thai numeral quantity, because the symbols combine with the same decimal logic as the spoken words.

A practical tip: when you see a string of Thai numerals, convert each symbol to its Arabic digit in order. The number is then just a number, and you can apply the tens and place-value rules you learned above without any extra vocabulary.

Using Thai Numbers in Daily Life: Prices, Dates, Phone Numbers and Quantities

The same building blocks handle prices, dates and phone numbers, and counting objects follows the noun-before-number-and-classifier order. Once the pattern is automatic, daily situations need no new number words at all.

Prices. A price combines exactly like any other number. If a market stall charges 25 baht, the seller says ยี่สิบห้าบาท (yi sip ha baht): the 20 exception, the unit ห้า (ha), then the currency word. Listen for the tens word first and you can usually reconstruct the price.

Dates and phone numbers. Within a date, the number 15 is สิบห้า (sip ha), built with the standard rule. Phone numbers are handled digit by digit, so each position is one of the 0 to 10 words you already know, including ศูนย์ (sun) for 0 and สอง (song) for 2. Practicing the 0 to 10 table makes phone exchanges far easier to follow.

Quantities and classifiers. When you count things, Thai generally places the noun first, then the number, then a classifier. To say 2 teachers, you say ครูสองคน (khrue song khon), where ครู (khrue) is the noun, สอง (song) is the number and คน (khon) is the classifier used for people. English puts the number before the noun, so this is a word-order difference to get used to when counting objects.

For more everyday expressions built around numbers, see our Thai phrases to know. Numbers appear constantly in real conversation, so pairing them with common phrases multiplies what you can already do.

FAQs About Numbers in Thai

How do you count from 1 to 10 in Thai?

Count 1 to 10 as หนึ่ง (nueng), สอง (song), สาม (sam), สี่ (si), ห้า (ha), หก (hok), เจ็ด (chet), แปด (paet), เก้า (kao) and สิบ (sip). Add ศูนย์ (sun) for 0. These 11 words are the building blocks of every larger Thai number, so mastering them first is the fastest route to counting further.

Why is 20 in Thai ยี่สิบ (yi sip) instead of the regular pattern?

Thai uses ยี่สิบ (yi sip) for 20 instead of combining the ordinary word for 2, สอง (song), with สิบ (sip). It is a fixed exception that you memorize once. It then reappears inside every number whose tens value is 20, such as ยี่สิบห้า (yi sip ha) for 25.

How do you say numbers ending in 1 like 11 and 21 in Thai?

Compound numbers ending in 1 commonly use เอ็ด (et) instead of หนึ่ง (nueng). So 11 is สิบเอ็ด (sip et) and 21 is ยี่สิบเอ็ด (yi sip et). The rest of the number follows the normal tens-then-unit pattern, so the เอ็ด (et) substitution is all you need to remember.

Do Thai people use Thai numerals or Arabic digits?

Both exist. Thai has its own numeral symbols ๐ through ๙, and Arabic digits are also common in Thailand. You will see Thai numerals in some Thai text, so learning to map ๐ to ศูนย์ (sun) through ๙ to เก้า (kao) lets you read any quantity written with them.

How does classifier word order work when counting things in Thai?

Thai generally places the noun first, then the number, then the classifier. For 2 teachers, say ครูสองคน (khrue song khon): noun, number, classifier. English puts the number before the noun, so counting objects in Thai takes practice with this order.

If you want guided practice as you learn numbers in Thai, our Thai language course in Bangkok can help you build on what you have read here.