How to Say “Is it far?” in Thai
ไกลไหม
klay máy
Is it far?
ครับ (khráp) and คะ (khá) are polite particles — they depend on the speaker's gender. In a question the female particle is คะ (khá) (high tone), not the statement form ค่ะ (khâ).
Word by word
When to use it
A quick way to check distance before deciding to walk or take a taxi, using the simple [adjective] + ไหม (máy) pattern. Possible answers are ไกล (klay) "far," ไม่ไกล (mây klay) — not far — or ใกล้ (klây) "close, near." Note that ไกล (klay) "far" and ใกล้ (klây) "close" are near-opposites that differ by tone alone, so listen and pronounce carefully.
Why you've seen it spelled differently
You may have seen ไกลไหม written as: glai mai, klai mai, kly my.
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 →
Related phrases
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