Enciclopædia

Gay Dictionary Thai

How to say gay in Thai

Below are the words of our Thai Gay Dictionary that we will expand in new editions. If you know any more, please, contact us. But first some information about the language and where it is spoken.

Thai is the official language in Thailand, belonging to the Tai-Kadai family and spoken by sixty million people.

Although the government is promoting Thailand as a gay-friendly tourist destination, the situation of the LGBT community is far from good despite its anti-discrimination laws (incomplete) and against hate speech, as the society and the administration is not so tolerant of diversity. However, in large cities and westernized areas, acceptance and visibility are much greater, and there is a lot of leisure, nightlife, and business. Civil unions, equal marriage or homoparental adoption are not allowed, but it is the country with the largest tradition and number of sex reassignment operations in the world, although transgender people continue to be discriminated against outside the artistic or prostitution sphere. Since the 90s activism has been increasing and the first LGBT pride was held in Bankok 1999, however, from 2006 to 2017, it has only been held on the island of Phuket due to lack of LGBT boost in the capital.

Highlights in our Thai Gay Dictionary reference to the iron.

We want to thank Ferran for his collaboration in this dictionary.

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Ke (เกย์)

Ke (เกย์) is a neutral expression that is the phonetic adaptation of the English word gay.
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Khing (คิง)

[Colloquial] It is a transcript of the English word “king”; that refers to a gay man with a straight attitude. Gay slang words not only come from insults and disqualifications that different societies have been created with the passage of time but also have their origin in the own LGBT groups. This is the case of the Thai word คิง (pronounced khing), which is a phonetic adaptation of the English word “king”, a very interesting word to understand the role of referents in the construction of sexual identity. Check our article for the Gay Slang Collection to read more about this word and its implications.

T-shirt with the Khing drawing. You can purchase it in our online stores.

Read more: Khing. Gay Dictionary (Thailand).
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Khon Thipen Ke (คนที่เป็นเกย์)

Khon Thipen Ke (คนที่เป็นเกย์) is a neutral and standardized expression that means “a person who is gay” and is the Thai proposal for the term homosexual.
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Ko (กอ)

Ko (กอ) is the colloquial version of Ke (เกย์) which is the phonetic adaptation of the English word gay.
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Lek Ton (เหล็กท่อน)

Lek Ton (เหล็กท่อน) is a colloquial and idiomatic expression that would mean “big iron cock.” It could be translated by any non-pejorative idiom.
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Phu Rak Phet Diao Kan (ผู้รักเพศเดียวกัน)

Phu Rak Phet Diao Kan (ผู้รักเพศเดียวกัน) is a formal and respectful expression whose literal translation is “person who loves someone who is of the same sex”. It is used to show respect towards the person you are talking about.
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Set Lek (เศษเหล็ก)

Set Lek (เศษเหล็ก) is a colloquial and idiomatic expression that means something like “iron remains” and is used among friends.
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Taeo (แต๋ว)

Taeo (แต๋ ว) is a vulgar and pejorative expression used against effeminate homosexual men and may have several translations, such as sissy, pansy, etc.

Synonym: Tut (ตุ๊ด)
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Tut (ตุ๊ด)

Tut (ตุ๊ด) is a vulgar and pejorative expression used to refer to a very effeminate homosexual man and can have multiple translations, as sissy, queen, etc.

Synonym: Taeo (แต๋ว)