Breakdown of เมื่อก่อน ผม นึกว่า เขา หยิ่ง ครับ
ครับ
polite particle (male)
ผม
I (male)
เขา
he, she, they
เมื่อก่อน
in the past
นึกว่า
to mistakenly think that / thought that
หยิ่ง
arrogant / snobbish
Questions & Answers about เมื่อก่อน ผม นึกว่า เขา หยิ่ง ครับ
If I replaced นึกว่า with คิดว่า, would it change the meaning?
Yes, significantly. คิดว่า simply means "think that" or "thought that" neutrally. Using นึกว่า specifically signals a mistaken assumption. By using นึกว่า here, the speaker is implying, "I used to think he was arrogant, but I now realize I was wrong (he is actually quite nice)."
Why is there no word for "was" between เขา and หยิ่ง?
In Thai, descriptive words like หยิ่ง (arrogant) act as stative verbs. This means the "is/am/are/was" is already built into the word itself. Adding a "to be" verb like เป็น or คือ before an adjective is a common mistake for English speakers, but it is grammatically incorrect in Thai.
Since this happened in the past (เมื่อก่อน), do I need to add a completion marker like แล้ว at the end of the sentence?
No, it is not necessary and would sound unnatural here. เมื่อก่อน (before / in the past) already clearly establishes the timeframe. Thai does not require you to add completion markers like แล้ว (already) when the context of time is explicitly stated and you are just describing a past state of mind rather than a completed physical action.
What kind of "arrogance" does หยิ่ง imply in this context?
หยิ่ง often carries the nuance of being snobby, aloof, or giving someone the cold shoulder, rather than just openly boasting. When someone is described as หยิ่ง upon first impression, it usually means they did not smile, did not talk much, or seemed unapproachable.
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