Questions & Answers about คุณ วาง รองเท้า ที่ไหน ครับ
Is the ที่ in ที่ไหน the same preposition "at" we are learning in this lesson?
Yes it is! ที่ means "at" and ไหน means "which" or "where". So ที่ไหน literally translates to "at where". This makes perfect sense when you remember that Thai places prepositions right before the location.
Why does the question word ที่ไหน come at the end of the sentence?
In English we put "where" at the beginning, but Thai keeps the standard Subject-Verb-Object word order and puts the question word exactly where the answer will go in the sentence. Since you might answer "I put the shoes on the floor", the question is asked as "You put the shoes at where".
How do we know รองเท้า means "the shoes" (plural) if there is no plural word here?
Thai nouns do not change to show if there is one or many. รองเท้า can mean "a shoe" or "shoes". You just rely on context and common sense. Since people usually take off and put away a pair of shoes, it is understood as plural here.
What do the two parts of the word รองเท้า mean?
รอง means "to support" or "to place under", and เท้า means "foot". So shoes in Thai are literally "foot supports". Breaking down compound words like this is a great trick for remembering Thai vocabulary!