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ลูก　ขี่　จักรยาน　เป็น　ไหม　คะ

ลูก　ขี่　จักรยาน　เป็น　ไหม　คะ
Does your child know how to ride a bicycle?
From Lesson 30:Knowing how to do something (เป็น)·Thai

Questions & Answers about ลูก　ขี่　จักรยาน　เป็น　ไหม　คะ

Doesn't เป็น usually mean "to be"? Why does it mean "know how to" in this sentence?
You're right! By itself, เป็น often means "to be" (like in "I am a teacher"). However, when you put it after an action like ขี่ จักรยาน (ride a bicycle), it changes meaning. It shows that someone has learned or acquired the skill to do that action.
Can I use ขี่ for driving a car as well?
No, ขี่ is specifically used for vehicles or animals that you straddle to ride, like a bicycle, a motorcycle, or a horse. If you want to talk about driving a car, you would use a different word: ขับ (to drive).
Does ลูก mean any child, like a kid playing in the park?
No, ลูก specifically refers to someone's offspring (a son or daughter). If you want to talk about a child in general, you would use เด็ก. In this sentence, the speaker is asking the parent, "Does your child know how to ride a bicycle?"
Why are there two particles, ไหม and คะ, at the end of the sentence?
ไหม is the question word that turns the sentence into a yes/no question. คะ is a polite particle added by female speakers at the end of questions. You need ไหม to ask the question, and คะ makes it polite.

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