If you look for the word “Fix” in a Thai dictionary, you will come across 2 words ซ่อม (sôm) and แก้ไข (gâe kăi). Do you know the difference between these words?

in this article, I will explain the difference and when to use each.

Quick Summary: ซ่อม (sôm) is used when talking about fixing something physical while แก้ไข (gâe kăi) is used when talking about something like fixing a problem.

ซ่อม (sôm)

ซ่อม is used when talking about fixing something physical because it’s broken. You can also think of ซ่อม as meaning to repair. For example, fixing your car, fixing your phone, fixing your roof, etc.

Let’s see some examples:

• I need to fix my roof.
  ฉันต้องซ่อมหลังคา
  chăn dtông sôm lăng kaa
  
  
• Fix your phone.
  ซ่อมโทรศัพท์ของคุณ
  sôm toh-rá-sàp kŏng kun
  
  
• The mechanic is fixing my car.
  ช่างกำลังซ่อมรถของฉัน
  châang gam-lang sôm rót kŏng chăn

แก้ไข (gâe kăi)

แก้ไข is used when talking about fixing a problem. You can also think about it as meaning “to solve”, or “to rectify”.

For example, if you fight with your friend and you want to fix/solve the problem or if you want to fix a conflict.

Let’s see some examples:

• Ignoring won’t fix the problem.
  การเพิกเฉยจะไม่ช่วยแก้ไขปัญหา
  gaan pêrk chŏie jà mâi chûay gâe kăi bpan-hăa
  
  
• I can help you fix it.
  ฉันสามารถช่วยคุณแก้ไขมันได้
  chăn săa-mâat chûay kun gâe kăi man dâai

Sometimes you will see แก้ไข (gâe kăi) shortened to just แก้ (gâe). But, please note that แก้ by itself also means to untangle.

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I hope you now know the difference between ซ่อม (sôm) and แก้ไข (gâe kăi) when talking about fixing something in Thai.