Thai GL & the Meaning of "We" (เรา Rao & พวกเรา Phuak rao)

Series: Harmony Secret (Pilot, 2025) & 23.5 (2024)
เรา (Rao) vs. พวกเรา (Phûak rao)

สวัสดีค่ะ (sà-wàt-dii kà - hello), GL fellows! Today we’re diving into the topic of เรา (Rao) and พวกเรา (Phûak rao). We’ll explore the difference between the two pronouns - both meaning “we” but used in different contexts. Let’s find put when to use each one!

เรา (Rao) - The Versatile “We”
The word “เรา” is very common in Thai language. It can both mean “I” and “We”. In the case of ‘we’, it’s the go-to pronoun when talking about yourself and others as a group.

🌟 Using "เรา" in daily life:

• When inviting people to activities: "เราไปดูหนังกันไหม?" (Rao bpǎi duu nǎng gan mái?) → "Shall we go watch a movie?"

  • เรา (rao) = we

  • ไป (bpǎi) = go

  • ดู (duu) = watch

  • หนัง (nǎng) = a movie

  • กัน (gan) = together/each other (*emphasizing mutuality.)

  • ไหม (mái) = a question particle (*used to turn the sentence into a yes/no question.)

  When talking about relationships: "เราเป็นเพื่อนกันมานานแล้ว" (rao bpen phûean gan maa naan láew) → "We've been friends for a long time"

  • เรา (rao) = we

  • เป็น (bpen) = is/am/are (used for nouns and identities).

  • เพื่อน (phûean) = friend

  • กัน (gan) = together/each other (*emphasizing mutuality.)

  • มา (maa) = come/have been (*in this case, it’s ‘have been” indicating that the action has been happening up until now)

  • นาน (naan) = long/for a long time

  • แล้ว (láew) = then/already (*in this case, it indicates that the action has been ongoing and is still true.)

พวกเรา (Phûak rao) - The Collective “We”
The word "พวกเรา" is used when you want to emphasize that you're speaking about an entire group or in more formal situations. Think of it as saying "all of us" or "our group."

🌟 Using "พวกเรา" in different situations:

• In meetings or group activities: "พวกเราทุกคนต้องช่วยกันทำงานนี้" (puak-raw tuk khon tong chuay gan tam ngaan nee) → "All of us must help with this work"

  • พวกเรา (phûak rao) = we/all of us (*พวก phûak indicates a group, making "เรา (rao)" more collective)

  • ทุกคน (thúk khon) = everyone or every person

  • ต้อง (tông) = must/have to

  • ช่วย (chûay) – to help

  • กัน (gan) – together/each other (*emphasizing mutuality.)

  • ทำ (tham) – to do/to make

  • งาน (ngaan) – work/task

  • นี้ (níi) – this (*specifying งาน (ngaan) as "this work" or "this task.")

• Speaking as a fan: "พวกเราเป็นแฟนคลับตัวยง" (Phûak rao bpen fan-club tuay-yong) → "We are dedicated fans"

  • พวกเรา (phûak rao) = we/all of us (*พวก phûak emphasizes a group)

  • เป็น (bpen) – is/am/are (*used for nouns and identities)

  • แฟนคลับ (faen-khlàp) – fanclub (*borrowed from English, meaning fans of someone/something)

  • ตัวยง (tua-yong) – die-hard (*used to describe someone who is very dedicated or passionate about something)

To summarize, พวกเรา (Phûak rao) is more specific and always means "we/us" in a plural sense. The prefix พวก (Phûak) explicitly indicates a group or collection of people. You would use พวกเรา (Phûak rao) when you want to emphasize that you're talking about multiple people, or when you want to be very clear that you're referring to a group rather than just yourself.