Breakdown of เสื้อ ตัว นี้ สี เขียว ครับ
ครับ
polite particle (male)
เสื้อ
the shirt
ตัว
classifier for animals and things
นี้
this (modifier)
Questions & Answers about เสื้อ ตัว นี้ สี เขียว ครับ
Why is it เสื้อ ตัว นี้ instead of just เสื้อ นี้ for "this shirt"?
In Thai, when you want to point out a specific object using words like "this" or "that", you must include a classifier. The pattern is always Noun + Classifier + This/That. You can't just attach นี้ (this) directly to the noun.
I thought ตัว was the classifier for animals. Why is it used for a shirt here?
ตัว (which literally means "body") is the classifier for animals, but it is also used for most items of clothing, such as shirts, pants, and underwear. You can think of them as items that cover the body or have a body-like shape.
Where is the verb "to be" (is) in this sentence?
There isn't one! In Thai, you do not use words like เป็น (bpen) or คือ (kʉʉ) to say something is an adjective. The adjective itself acts as the verb. You simply put the subject (เสื้อ ตัว นี้) and the describing word (สี เขียว) side by side.
Why do we say สี เขียว (color green) instead of just เขียว?
In Thai, the word สี (color) is usually placed before the specific name of the color. While just saying เขียว is sometimes understood, adding สี is the standard, natural way to talk about colors, translating literally to "the color green".