Daily Thai Confidence — Using เชื่อกันว่า (chêua gān wâa)

Verb: เชื่อกันว่า (chêua gān wâa)
Meaning: it is believed that… / it is generally believed that… / it is widely believed that… / it is commonly believed that… / people generally believe that…

In this Thai lesson, we learn how to use the verb เชื่อกันว่า (chêua gān wâa), which means ‘it is believed that…’ or ‘people generally believe that…’ It is used when a belief is shared by a group of people or commonly held, rather than being presented as one particular person’s belief.

The typical structure usually follows the pattern: (subject+) เชื่อกันว่า (chêua gān wâa) + clause.

For examples (ตัวอย่างเช่น — dtūa-^awyàang chên)

เชื่อกันว่าประเทศไทยมีวัฒนธรรมที่หลากหลาย

chêua gān wâa bprà-t^hâed Thāi mēe wád-t^há-ná-t^hām t^hêe ^hlàak-^hlǎai
Literal: It is believed that Thailand has culture that is diverse.
It is believed that Thailand has a diverse culture.

The adjective หลากหลาย (^hlàak-^hlǎai) means ‘is diverse,’ ‘is varied,’ ‘is various,’ or ‘a wide variety of.’ It describes something that contains many different types, forms, choices, or characteristics, rather than being all the same — noun + หลากหลาย (^hlàak-^hlǎai). For example: ร้านนี้มีอาหารหลากหลายประเภท (ráan née mēe āa-hǎan ^hlàak-^hlǎai bprà-p^hâed = This restaurant has a wide variety of food.); เมืองนี้มีสถานที่ท่องเที่ยวหลากหลายแห่ง (mēuang née mēe sà-t^hǎan-t^hêe t^hâwng-t^hîew ^hlàak-^hlǎai hàeng = This city has a variety of tourist attractions.); ผู้คนมีความคิดเห็นที่หลากหลาย (p^hôo-k^hōn mēe k^hwāam-k^híd-hěn t^hêe ^hlàak-^hlǎai = People have diverse opinions.); etc.

คนไทยเชื่อกันว่าการไหว้เป็นการแสดงความเคารพ

k^hōn Thāi chêua gān wâa gāan-^hwâi bpēn gāan-sà-dāeng k^hwāam-k^hāo-rób
Literal: People Thai believe that the action of wai to be action of showing respect.
Thai people believe that the wai is a way of showing respect.

The abstract noun ความเคารพ (k^hwāam-k^hāo-rób) means ‘respect’ or ‘a feeling of respect.’ It refers to the feeling of admiration, regard, or recognition of someone’s value, position, rights, or qualities, and it can also describe the respectful attitude shown towards someone or something.

พวกเขาเชื่อกันว่าเมืองนี้สร้างขึ้นเมื่อหลายร้อยปีก่อน

p^hûak-k^hǎo chêua gān wâa mēuang née sâang-k^hêun mêua ^hlǎai róy bpēe gàwn
Literal: They believe that city this build-up at the time when several hundred year before.
They believe the city was built several hundred years ago.

เชื่อกันว่าบริเวณนี้เคยเป็นป่ามาก่อน

chêua gān wâa bāw-rí-wāen née k^hēuy bpēn bpàa māa-gàwn
Literal: It is believed that area this used to be forest before now.
It is believed that this area was once a forest .

The noun บริเวณ (bāw-rí-wāen) means ‘area,’ ‘location,’ ‘vicinity,’ or ‘surrounding area.’ It is used to refer to a particular place or geographical area, especially when talking about what is located, happening, or used within that area.

Homework (การบ้าน — gāan-bâan)

Practise putting your newly learned Thai word into a sentence by translating the following sentences below.

1. It is believed that this information is correct.
2. It is believed that he did not do anything wrong.
3. It is believed that he is a good person.
4. Local people believe that this area is haunted.
5. People in ancient times believed that the Earth was flat.

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