Conditionals with ถ้า...ก็

tha marks the condition and ko introduces the result. Both are often dropped once the meaning is clear.

If, then

tha (ถ้า) is if, and it opens the sentence. ko (ก็) sits in front of the result clause and does roughly the work of 'then'. tha fon tok ko mai pai: if it rains, then I will not go. The two halves are in the same order as English, which makes this one of the easier structures to build early. Thai has no separate set of conditional verb forms - no would, no had been. The verbs stay exactly as they are, and tha and ko carry the whole meaning.

Dropping the words

In speech, tha is often left out and the two clauses simply sit side by side: fon tok mai pai, rains, not going. Context does the rest. ko is dropped just as freely. What survives longest is ko, because it also has a life of its own meaning 'also' or 'well then', so it shows up even where there is no explicit if. That second use is worth knowing: ko dii (ก็ดี) means 'that would be good', and ko dai (ก็ได้) means 'that is fine by me', two of the most common short replies in the language.

When, whenever, as soon as

For a condition that will definitely happen, Thai uses phor (พอ) meaning 'as soon as' or 'once', or wela (เวลา) meaning 'when' in the habitual sense. phor thueng ko tho ma: once you arrive, call me. wela wang chan an nangsue: when I am free, I read. The difference from tha is certainty. tha leaves it open; phor and wela assume it happens.

Unless, and otherwise

tha mai (ถ้าไม่) is 'if not', which covers unless: tha mai fon ko pai, if it does not rain, I will go. mai ngan (ไม่งั้น) means 'otherwise' or 'or else' and opens the second half: rip noi mai ngan cha sai, hurry up or we will be late. For a polite hypothetical, tha pen phom (ถ้าเป็นผม) means 'if it were me', a gentle way to give advice without giving an instruction.

Conditions worth having ready

These are the sentences that let you negotiate, arrange and hedge, which is most of what conversation with strangers consists of.

Looking for a would

There is no conditional verb form to find. 'I would go' and 'I will go' are the same in Thai: ja pai. The if-clause is what supplies the hypothetical flavour. Stop hunting for the extra word and let tha do the job. If you want to stress the hypothetical, tha pen phom (if it were me) is the natural way.

Reading ko as if

ko is the 'then', not the 'if'. It also means 'also' and 'well', so learners meet it in a lot of places and start treating it as a general connector. If you need to mark the condition, tha is the word. ko marks the result, or softens a reply, or means too.

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