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2 min read · week 2

Why the greeting is 'have you eaten yet?'

Someone asked if I have eaten. Are they inviting me to lunch?

Almost certainly not. กินข้าวหรือยัง (literally 'eat rice or not yet') is a greeting, roughly where English puts 'how are you'. It is asked at times of day when nobody could be about to offer you a meal.

The expected answer is not a report on your appetite. กินแล้ว (eaten already) or ยัง (not yet) closes it, and the conversation moves on.

  • กินข้าวหรือยังkin kʰâːw rɯ̌ː jaŋ

    have you eaten yet?

    a greeting, not an invitation

  • กินแล้วkin lɛ́ːw

    eaten already

    the safe answer

  • ยังjaŋ

    not yet

    also fine: it does not commit you to anything

The useful part

ข้าว is rice, and it is also food in general: 'eat rice' means 'eat'. That substitution runs deep enough that you will meet it constantly, and it is worth noticing early rather than being puzzled by it for a month.

In polite company ทาน replaces กิน. Same meaning, softer register; use it with anyone older or senior and you will sound considerably better brought up.

  • ทานtʰaːn

    to eat (polite)

    swap it in for กิน when speaking to someone older