Wai

ไหว้

A Thai greeting with palms pressed together and a slight bow of the head. In muay thai a fighter uses it to greet the trainer, the opponent and the spectators.

Quick Facts

Term typeEtiquette and ceremony

LanguageThai

Formnoun

Pronunciation[why]

Alternative Namesgreeting with palms pressed together

Readings and romanizations

RTGS (Thai)wai

Definition

Wai (ไหว้) is a Thai greeting. Palms join before the chest, fingers point up and the head bows slightly. The higher the hands and deeper the bow, the greater the respect. The younger and lower-ranked greets first. In muay thai, a fighter greets trainer and teacher with the wai on arriving at camp, and in the ring opponent, referee and spectators. Wai also underlies the wai kru ritual.

Relations to other terms

Narrower terms

Wai kruไหว้ครู

Pre-fight ritual in muay thai in which a fighter pays respect to teachers, parents and ancestors. It is followed by the ram muay dance.

Equivalent in another art

Gassho合掌

A greeting with palms pressed together in front of the chest, taken over from Buddhism. In Shorinji Kempo it replaces the usual bow.

Associated Martial Arts

Muay Thai