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แต่　ไปๆมาๆ　มัน　กลายเป็น　ธุรกิจ　ที่　จริงจัง　ครับ

แต่　ไปๆมาๆ　มัน　กลายเป็น　ธุรกิจ　ที่　จริงจัง　ครับ
But eventually, it became a serious business.
From Lesson 429:Unpredictable outcome (ไปๆ มาๆ)·Thai

Questions & Answers about แต่　ไปๆมาๆ　มัน　กลายเป็น　ธุรกิจ　ที่　จริงจัง　ครับ

What is the literal meaning of ไปๆ มาๆ and how does it convey the meaning of 'eventually'?
Literally, it translates to 'going going, coming coming'. It is used as a discourse marker to show that after a period of time, back-and-forth events, or a shift in circumstances, an unexpected or unplanned outcome happened. It translates best to 'eventually' or 'in the end', usually carrying a vibe of surprise.
Why use กลายเป็น instead of just เป็น for 'became' here?
The word กลาย means 'to transform'. When combined with เป็น (to be), กลายเป็น means a complete change of state ('turned into' or 'became'). Because ไปๆ มาๆ already implies an unexpected outcome, using กลายเป็น perfectly highlights the surprising transformation from what was likely a hobby or small idea into a fully-fledged business.
Could I drop the word ที่ and just say ธุรกิจจริงจัง?
Yes, you can. ธุรกิจจริงจัง works fine as a standard noun-adjective pair. However, adding the relative pronoun ที่ (that/which) turns it into 'a business that is serious.' Thai speakers often do this to emphasize the adjective, giving the phrase a bit more weight and making the sentence flow better.
Can the word จริงจัง be used for other 'serious' things, like a serious injury or a serious mistake?
No, จริงจัง specifically means 'serious' in the sense of being earnest, committed, or not joking around. If you want to describe a problem, injury, or consequence as serious (severe), you would use a word like ร้ายแรง or หนัก instead.

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