How to say "turn left" in Thai (with phonetics)
เลี้ยวซ้าย
líiao sáai
Turn left.
When you are giving directions to a taxi or motorbike taxi, this is the everyday way to say "turn left" in Thai.
Tips
- To make it polite, add a particle at the end. A man says เลี้ยวซ้ายครับ (líiao sáai khráp) and a woman says เลี้ยวซ้ายค่ะ (líiao sáai khâ).
- Tones: both words are high tone (á). Say them at the same high, steady pitch and don't let the voice fall at the end of sáai.
- Useful extra: เลี้ยวซ้ายตรงนี้ (líiao sáai trong-níi) means "turn left here". For right, say เลี้ยวขวา (líiao khwǎa).
Word by word
- เลี้ยว líiao: to turn (High tone.)
- ซ้าย sáai: left (High tone. The opposite is ขวา khwǎa (right).)
Say it your own way
Type it half in English, half in Thai, spelled any way you like: Thinglish works out what you meant and gives you the Thai with tones and a native voice.
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Romanisation and tones are written by the Thinglish tutor. Generated 2026-10-24.