How do you say "not too sweet, please" in Thai?

ขอหวานน้อย (khɔ̌ɔ wǎan nɔ́ɔi). Add the polite particle at the end. A man says ขอหวานน้อยครับ khɔ̌ɔ wǎan nɔ́ɔi khráp. A woman says ขอหวานน้อยค่ะ khɔ̌ɔ wǎan nɔ́ɔi khâ. You can also say it without ขอ: หวานน้อยครับ/ค่ะ.

How to say "not too sweet, please" in Thai (with phonetics)

ขอหวานน้อย

khɔ̌ɔ wǎan nɔ́ɔi

Less sweet, please.

When you are ordering a drink or iced coffee, this is the everyday way to say "not too sweet, please" in Thai.

Tips

Add the polite particle at the end. A man says ขอหวานน้อยครับ khɔ̌ɔ wǎan nɔ́ɔi khráp. A woman says ขอหวานน้อยค่ะ khɔ̌ɔ wǎan nɔ́ɔi khâ. You can also say it without ขอ: หวานน้อยครับ/ค่ะ.
Tone tip: wǎan and khɔ̌ɔ both rise, like a question. nɔ́ɔi is high and short-ish, not falling. Don't flatten wǎan, or it can sound like a different word.
Another option is ไม่หวานมาก mâi wǎan mâak (not very sweet). Both mâi and mâak are falling tone. For a full order: ขอกาแฟเย็น หวานน้อย khɔ̌ɔ kaa-fɛɛ yen wǎan nɔ́ɔi (iced coffee, less sweet).

Word by word

ขอ khɔ̌ɔ: to ask for, may I have, please (Rising tone. This is the polite way to ask for something when ordering.)
หวาน wǎan: sweet (Rising tone.)
น้อย nɔ́ɔi: a little, less (High tone. หวานน้อย is the set phrase for "less sweet", which is what Thais say at drink stalls.)

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Romanisation and tones are written by the Thinglish tutor. Generated 2026-10-24.