How to Say “I'm tired” in Thai
เหนื่อย
nɨ̀ay
I'm tired
ค่ะ (khâ) and ครับ (khráp) are polite particles — they depend on the speaker's gender, not the listener's.
When to use it
Describes physical or mental tiredness — from walking, working, exercising, and so on. It's different from ง่วง (ngûang) "sleepy" (wanting to sleep): เหนื่อย (nɨ̀ay) is about exhaustion, not drowsiness. It can pair with a cause: เหนื่อยจากงาน (nɨ̀ay càak ngaan) — tired from work.
Why you've seen it spelled differently
You may have seen เหนื่อย written as: nueay, nuay, neuy.
There is no single standard for writing Thai in the Roman alphabet — phrasebooks, road signs, and tourist guides each follow a different system, and many just invent their own spellings. The romanization on this page uses a consistent IPA-based system that marks all five tones and distinguishes short from long vowels. The same word always gets the same spelling. Paste any Thai to see it romanized →
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