Vietnamese for foreigners - Ting Vit cho ngi nc ngoi

INTRODUCTION

The Vietnamese language is the communicative language of Vietnamese people

and also the mother-tongue of Viet people (also named as Kinh, the major ethnic
group in Vietnam). The formation of a common language used by the entire
people is a hard task due to the diversity of dialects and accents. Vietnamese is
based on melodious syllables and stressed accent. Accent has an important role
to play in helping distinguish and identify the meaning of the sayings. There also
exist numerous accents in the Vietnamese language, among which the most
common and favorite is the Southern one. This accent seems to be different form
the a standard one as its pronunciation is based heavily on the main sound
disregard of the standard accent and even grammar. Vietnamese is a monosyllabic
language with each articulated sound carrying a certain meaning. Also, it offers
innumerable pairs of compound words, which are comprised of 2, 3 or even for
constituent single sounds.

The Vietnamese language has been formed and developed for many centuries
now. Documents of early feudal dynasties used Chinese and not until the birth of
Nom (Demotic script) language in 14th century was it employed in both speaking
and writing, especially in composing literature. In 17th century, Vietnamese or
namely national language came to existing. Its origin is closely related to
Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and French propagators working in South East Asia
countries.

Those invented a new writing script as the mean to express the Vietnamese
language. The most noticeable contributors to the formation and studying
Vietnamese at that time was a French vicar named Alexandre de Rhode with his
publication of one of the first Vietnamese dictionary and grammar called
Vietnamese Portuguese Latin Dictionary. Initially, Vietnamese was used
merely for the purpose of propagation but was soon popularised officially when
French people imposed their colonial regime on Vietnam. To some extents,
Vietnamese was originally the tools for ruling of colonists, but then, thanks to its
convenience, Vietnamese became popular. Moreover, its easy-to-pronounce
alphabet system and combination enabled it to overcome any criticism.

(VietSens)

Vietnamese (ting Vit, or less commonly Vit ng) is the national and official
language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population,
and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second
language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam. It is part of the Austro-Asiatic
language family, of which it has the most speakers by a significant margin
(several times larger than the other Austro-Asiatic languages put together). Much
of Vietnamese vocabulary has been borrowed from Chinese, and it was formerly
written using the Chinese writing system, albeit in a modified format and was
given vernacular pronunciation. As a byproduct of French colonial rule, the
language displays some influence from French, and the Vietnamese writing
system (quc ng) in use today is an adapted version of the Latin alphabet, with
additional diacritics for tones and certain letters.
As the national language of the majority ethnic group, Vietnamese is spoken
throughout Vietnam by the Vietnamese people, as well as by ethnic minorities. It
is also spoken in overseas Vietnamese communities, most notably in the United
States, where it has more than one million speakers and is the seventh most-
spoken language (it is 3rd in Texas, 4th in Arkansas and Louisiana, and 5th in

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California). In Australia, it is the sixth most-spoken language.
According to the Ethnologue, Vietnamese is also spoken by substantial numbers
of people in Cambodia, Canada, China, Cte d'Ivoire, Czech Republic, Finland,
France, Germany, Laos, Martinique, the Netherlands, New Caledonia, Norway, the
Philippines, the Russian Federation, Senegal, Taiwan, Thailand, the United
Kingdom, and Vanuatu.
" At first, as Vietnamese has tones and shares a large vocabulary with Chinese, it
was grouped into Sino-Tibetan. Later, it was found that the tones of Vietnamese
appeared very recently (Andr-Georges Haudricourt-1954) and the Chinese-like
vocabulary is also borrowed from Han Chinese during their shared history (1992);
these two aspects had nothing to do with the origin of Vietnamese. Vietnamese
was then classified into the Kam-Tai subfamily of Daic together with Zhuang
(including Nung and Ty in North Vietnam) and Thai, after removing the surface
influences of Chinese. Nevertheless, the Daic aspects were also borrowed from
Zhuang in their long history of being neighbors (Andr-Georges Haudricourt) , not
original aspects of Vietnamese. Finally, Vietnamese was classified into the Austro-
Asiatic linguistic family, the Mon-Khmer subfamily, Viet-Moung branch (1992)
after more studies were done. Kinh is the largest population in Vietnam.
According to Fudan University's 2006 study, it belongs to Mon-Khmer
linguistically, but there is no last word for its origin.

Henri Maspero maintained the Vietnamese Language of Thai-Origin, and the

Reverend Father Souvignet traced it to the Indo-Malay group. A.G. Haudricourt
had refuted the thesis of Maspero and concluded that Vietnamese is properly
placed in the Austro-Asiatic family. None of these theories quite explain the origin
of the Vietnamese language. One thing, however, remains certain: Vietnamese is
not a pure language. It seems to be a blend of several languages, ancient and
modern, encountered throughout history following successive contacts between
foreign peoples and the people of Vietnam.

While spoken by the Vietnamese people for millennia, written Vietnamese did not
become the official administrative language of Vietnam until the 20th century. For
most of its history, the entity now known as Vietnam used written classical
Chinese. In the 13th century, however, the country invented Ch nm, a writing
system making use of Chinese characters with phonetic elements in order to
better suit the tones associated with the Vietnamese language. Ch nm was
proven to be much more efficient than classical Chinese characters that it was
extensively used in the 17th and 18th centuries for poetry and literature. Ch
nm was used for administrative purposes during the brief H and Ty Sn
Dynasties. During French colonialism, French superseded Chinese in
administration. It was not until independence from France that Vietnamese was
used officially. It is the language of instruction in schools and universities and is
the language for official business.

Like many other Asian countries, as a result of close ties with China for thousands
of years, much of the Vietnamese lexicon relating to science and politics is
derived from Chinese. At least 60% of the lexical stock has Chinese roots, not
including naturalized word borrowings from China, although many compound
words are composed of native Vietnamese words combined with Chinese
borrowings. One can usually distinguish between a native Vietnamese word and a
Chinese borrowing if it can be reduplicated or its meaning does not change when
the tone is shifted. As a result of French occupation, Vietnamese has since had
many words borrowed from the French language, for example c ph (from
French caf). Nowadays, many new words are being added to the language's
lexicon due to heavy Western cultural influence; these are usually borrowed from
English, for example TV (though usually seen in the written form as tivi).
Sometimes these borrowings are calques literally translated into Vietnamese (for

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example, software is calqued into phn mm, which literally means "soft part").

(wiki)

Vietnamese Alphabet

1. Vietnamese alphabet system

There are 29 letters in the Vietnamese alphabet system which consists of 12

vowels and 17 consonants. See the list below:

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Gg

Hh Ii Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp

Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Xx Yy

2. Vowels
As mentioned above, there are 12 vowels in the Vietnamese alphabet system.
They are including:

a e i

o u y

How to pronoun these vowels is to follow the below

Front Central Back

High i, y [i] [] u [u]

Upper mid [e] [] / [] [o]

Lower mid e [] o []

Low [a] / a [a]

Front, central, and low vowels (i, , e, , , , , a) are unrounded, whereas the
back vowels (u, , o) are rounded. The vowels [] and [a] are pronounced
very short, much shorter than the other vowels. Thus, and are basically
pronounced the same except that [] is long while [] is short the same

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applies to the low vowels long a [a] and short [a].

* Diphthongs and Tripthongs

In addition to single vowels (or monophthongs), Vietnamese has diphthongs and
triphthongs. The diphthongs consist of a main vowel component followed by a
shorter semivowel offglide to either a high front position [], a high back position
[], or a central position []. See the table below:

Vowel Diphthong Diphthong Diphthong with Tripthong Tripthong

nucleus with front with back centering offglide with front with back
offglide offglide offglide offglide

i - iu~yu [i] ia~i~y~ya [i] - iu [i]

~ ~~~

- u [e] - - -

e - eo [] - - -

i [] u [] a~ [] i [] u []

y [] u [] - - -

i [] - - - -

ay [a] au [a] - -

a ai [a] ao [a] - - -

u ui [u] - ua~u [u] ui [u] -

i [o] - - - -

o oi [] - - - -

The centering diphthongs are formed with only the three high vowels (i, , u) as
the main vowel. They are generally spelled as ia, a, uawhen they end a word
and are spelled i, , u, respectively, when they are followed by a consonant.

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There are also restrictions on the high offglides: the high front offglide cannot
occur after a front vowel (i, , e) nucleus and the high back offglide cannot occur
after a back vowel (u, , o) nucleus.

The correspondence between the orthography and pronunciation is complicated.

For example, the offglide [] is usually written as i however, it may also be
represented with y. In addition, in the diphthongs [a] and [a] the
letters y and i also indicate the pronunciation of the main vowel: ay = +
[], ai = a + []. Thus, tay hand is [ta] while tai ear is [ta].
Similarly, u and o indicate different pronunciations of the main vowel: au = +
[], ao = a + [].

The four triphthongs are formed by adding front and back offglides to the
centering diphthongs. Similarly to the restrictions involving diphthongs, a
triphthong with front nucleus cannot have a front offglide (after the centering
glide) and a triphthong with a back nucleus cannot have a back offglide.

With regards to the front and back offglides [, ], many phonological descriptions
analyze these as consonant glides /j, w/. Thus, a word such as u where []
would be /w/.

It is difficult to pronoun these sounds:

Liu xiu m khuya ma lao xao mi hai

chai ru tay tai lu bu hiu hiu

3. Consonant
The consonants that occur in Vietnamese are listed below in the Vietnamese
orthography with the phonetic pronunciation to the right.

Labial Alveolar Retroflex palatal Velar Glottal

Stop voiceless p[p] t [t] tr [~] ch [c~t] c/k [k]

aspirated th [t]

voiced b [] [] d []

Fricative voiceless ph [f] x [s] s [] kh [x] h [h]

voiced v [v] gi [z] r [~] g/gh []

Nasal m [m] n [n] nh [] ng/ngh []

Approximant u/o [w] l [l] y/i [j]

Some consonant sounds are written with only one letter (like p), other

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consonant sounds are written with a two-letter disgrah (like ph), and others are
written with more than one letter or digraph (the velar stop is written variously as
c, k, or q).
The tables below show detail and it may help you easier to understand
* There are 17 single consonants as listed below:

Consonants Sound Phoneme English equivalent sounds

b /b/ but, bike

c /k/ car, clean

d /z/ zoo,

/d/ do, does

g /g/ go, get

h /h/ hat, house

k /k/ keep,

l /l/ leaf, lose

m /m/ meet, mouse

n /n/ not, no

p /p/ pipe, people

q /k/ queen

r /r/ run, road

s /sh/ show, shower

t /t/ tea, top

v /v/ video, vowel

x /s/ see, sea

* There are 11 consonants clusters:

Consonants Sound Phoneme English equivalent sounds

ch /ts/ cheap

gh /g/ ghost

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gi /j/ yes

kh /x/ loch

nh // canyon

ng // sing

ngh // single

ph /f/ fine

th // thin, theory

tr // try

qu /kw/ queen

* There are 8 final consonants:

Consonants Sound Phoneme English equivalent sounds

c /k/ car

ch /ts/ lunch

m /m/ them

n /n/ then

nh // canyon

ng // sing

p /p/ stop

t /t/ top

It is necessray to make a difference between these two sounds:

+) K vs. Kh

K & kh are two of the consonant symbols in the Vietnamese language. K is

produced fortis and unaspirated. It is similar to the c in cat. In Vietnamese
language it is similar to c and q. Perhaps one of the most common words
beginning with k is kem which means ice cream and ko which means
candy. Kh is produced lenis voiceless dorsorelar spirant. The most common
kh word is khng which means no or not though there are less common
meanings as well. Khe which means strong and healthy is another common
word. To place khe khng after a personal referent is to enquire as to
anothers health literally: you well no? as in bn khe khng? Also in these

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times of fast food, the ubiquitous french fry is known as khoai ty chin
meaning potato fry.

+) Ng and Ngh

The sound that ng and ngh make in Vietnamese is by far the hardest sound for
Westerners to make. Ng and ngh simply make the last sound in king or
running (as long as you dont make the hard /g/ sound at the end). The
problem arises when ng or ngh come at the beginning of a word, as the common
family name Nguyn clearly demonstrates. Here, the speaker has to isolate the
// sound, which even many Western dictionaries dont recognize in their
pronunciation guides. (Those that do tend to represent it as /ng/.) This lesson will
help you to at least pronounce the // sound well enough for a native listener.

One thing you have to take a notice of is the combination of these above
consonants Ng/ ngh with vowels. See below for detail:

a e i o u y

Ngh nghe ngh nghi

Ng nga ngo ng ng ngu ng

1. Ngh can only combine with the vowels which

are started with i, e, .
2. Ng can combine with vowels started with a,
o, , , u, .

Besides, Vietnamese has another pair of sound (g/ gh) which are all pronouned
as /g/, for these consonants, there is also rule in combining with vowels.

a e i o u y

g ga gi* go g g gu g

gh ghe gh ghi

- gh can only combine with vowel started with e, , i.

-g can go with vowel started with a, o, , , u, .
* g can also go with i but in this case it will be pronoun as /j/, e.g. ci g.

3. Tones
Vietnamese is a tonal language, It means that different voice inflections on any
word will change the meaning of that word. For example, if you say ban with a
rising tone, it means sell, but if you say it with a falling tone, it means table.
Tone is the central part of a word.

There are five tones in Vietnamese, plus a mid-level non-tone. Press each symbol
button below to hear what each tone sounds like, and the name of the tone. Then
press the word buttons to hear how one word can be pronounced with all six
tones. Underneath is the English translation of each word.

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Description Name of tones Symbol Sample word & meaning

Midrange voice goes flat and level. Ngang three

High rising Sc b to hug

Low falling Huyn grandmother

Start in a low tone, go down and gently back up Hi bane

Start high, bring voice down, cut off, and go back up Ng residue

Bring voice down and cut off abruptly. Nng haphazardly

It is time to practice.

1 Ba B B B B B

2 Ma M M M M M

3 Be b b b b b

4 Me m m m m m

5 Le l l l l l

* How to type Vietnamese on computer:

To use Vietnamese on your computer, you need to download Unikey and then
choose vietnamese. You also need to follow this rule:

Letters Tones

=aw Huyn = F
=aa Sc = S
=dd Hi = R
=ee Ng = X
=oo Nng = J
=ow
=uw

- The rest is to follow the normal rule.

Example:
Ting Vit = t i e e n g s v i e e t j
Greeting

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 3. Dialogue
David is a student he has just attended a Vietnamese class, he has not known
somebody in the class. Nam is also a member of that class and when he saw
David he actively makes Davids acquaintance.
Nam: Xin cho!
David: Xin cho!
Nam: Mnh l Nam. Bn tn l g?
David: Tn mnh l David.
Nam: Rt hn hnh c lm quen vi bn
David: Rt vui c gp bn.

Nam: Hello!
David: Hello!
Nam: I am Nam. What is your name?
David: My name is David.
Nam: Nice to meet you.
David: Glad to see you.
4. New word:
Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

xin cho hello

cho hello

mnh I

tn Name

l to be

g what

ci g what

Rt hn hnh c lm quen vi bn Nice to meet you

Rt vui c gp bn Glad to see you

Note:
Rt vui c gp bn and Rt hn hnh c lm quen vi bn have the same
meaning. We use these phrases for the first time.

3. Grammar:

3.1 Personal Pronoun.

Vietnamese use terms denoting family relationships (kinship terms) when
addressing each other (even when talking to whom they are not related). In fact,
they are used as personal pronouns. The system is rather complicated and the
choice of the correct expression depends on many factors such as sex, age, social
status, the family relationship, the relationship between the speaker and the
person he or she is addressing or the overall degree of intimacy between them.
You may find it difficult to make sure which term should be used; thus, you need
a little bit experience to get it right. The below list will help you understand more.

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3.1.1. The first person

The first person pronoun in Vietnamese is ti which means I in English. It is

the only personal pronoun that can be used in polite speech. Beside it, the first
person can be ta, tao but they are only used in informal case, e.g. when
talking with close friends.

3.1.2. The second person

The below table shows you some personal addresses and their usage

Personal pronoun Sound How to use

Em Use for person who are younger than you as your younger sisters or brothers

Bn Use for person who is as the same age as you or your friends

Anh a young male who is a little older than you or your elder brothers

Ch a young female who is a little older than you or your elder sisters

C in formal case; to a young female (Miss )

B Formal, an old female (Mrs., lady); informal, as your grandmother

ng/ ngi / Formal, an old male (Mr., gentleman); informal, as your grandfather

my informal; people are younger than you

3.1.3. The third person

It is simple that when adressing the third person, Vietnamese adds the word y
after the personal pronoun.

Example:
Anh y, ng y / -> He
Ch y, c y, b y / / -> She
N * -> It
N* often refers to the things, animals but sometimes, n can denote for a little
child in informal case.

*Plural personal pronoun:

- For the first person, the word chng is added before the personal address.
Example:
Ti -> Chng ti
Ta -> chng ta
T -> chng t
- For the second person, we use the word cc before the personal address.
Example:
Anh -> cc anh
ch -> cc ch
Bc -> cc bc

- When addressing plural pronoun for the third person, the word h is used. It
refers to a group of people in general both male and female.
- The second way to form the plural personal pronoun for the third person is to

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add the word y after the second person pronoun.
Example:
Anh -> cc anh y
ch -> cc ch y
bc -> cc bc y

The below table will show you general information.

* Singular pronoun
Pronoun Sound English equivalence How to use it

First Ti I - Refer to yourself

person (formal)

Tao - Refer to yourself with close

friends (informal)

Second Em You - Miss, girl or boy

person (younger than you,
informal)

Anh - Mr. (older than you)

Ch - Miss or Mrs. in formal address

ng - Mr., Sir., gentleman (formal)

B - Mrs., Madam, lady (formal)

My - Address between close friends

(to use with tao first person)

Third Em y He - Boy (younger than

person you)

Anh y - Mr. (Older than you or slightly

younger than you in formal
address)

ng y - Mr., sir, gentleman (person is

older than you or higher status)

Em y She - Girl (younger than

you)

C y - Miss.

Ch y - Miss or Mrs.

B y - Lady, Mrs, Madam (person is

older than you or higher status)

N It - Thing in general

*Plural pronoun
Sound Pronoun English How to use it

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 equivalence

First Chng ti We - Refer to a group of

person yourselves (formal)

Chng ta

Second Cc Em You - Address to boys or

person girls (younger than
you)

Anh - A group of young males (older than

you)

Ch - A group of young females (older than

you, )

C - A group of women (Miss)

B - A group of old females (Mrs., ladies)

ng - A group of old males (Mr., Sir)

Third H They - Address to a group

person of people (in general)

Cc Em - A group
of boys
and girls
(younger
than you)

Anh - A group of young males

Ch - A group of females (Miss, Mrs.)

C - A group of young females (in general)

B - A group of old females

ng - A group of old males

Chng n - A group
of young
people
(younger
than you,
informal)

In addition, there are different pronouns for each kind of relative. For a listing of
those pronouns, see family terms:
Pronoun Sound Usage

c your grandgrand parents

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b Your grand mother

ng your grandfather

ch your uncle who is your fathers younger brother

bc Your uncle who are your parentss older siblings

c your aunt, who is your fathers younger sister

d your aunt, who is your mothers younger sister

ch your elder sister or siblings

anh your elder brother or siblings

em your younger sister or brother or siblings

thy the teacher (if he is a man)

c the teacher (if she is a woman)

3.2. Greeting:

Cho/ xin cho: Hello

The Vietnamese greet others by using the word cho or xin cho. This is
followed by either a name or a kinship term (or both).
Example:
Cho Lan! Hello Lan!
Xin cho c Lin! Hello Ms. Lin!
Cho ng! Hello Sir!
However, you can use cho only in formal cases for example with close friends.
In Vietnam, cho means both hello and goodbye; therefore the above
examples also mean Goodbye Lan, Good bye Ms. Lien, Goodbye sir.
There is no Vietnamese equivalent for Good morning, Good afternoon, Good
evening, etc. thats why cho can be used at any time of the day.

3.3. L: To be
* L in Vietnamese has function as to be in English. It forms a simple
sentence with the logical word order of Subject-Verb.
Form:
S + L

Example:
Ti l Nam

I to be Nam I am Nam

Tn ti l David

My name to be David My name is David

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 * Ngha ph nh Negative form: khng phi l-> to be not

To express the negation, Vietnamese put the word khng phi before l to
make the form. See the below form and example for detail.

Mu cu-(form):
S + khng phi + l + danh t
(noun)

* Note: The noun can be a personal name, name of job, country.

V d- Example:
- Tn ti khng phi l David -> My name is not David.
- David khng phi l ngi Anh -> David is not an American
- y khng phi l David -> This is not David.

2. 20-12-2011 03:41 PM#4

Introducing someone

0. Hi thoi (Dialogue):
On the way to class, David and Nam meet Lan, after greeting Nam introduce
David to Lan.
Nam: Cho Lan!
Lan: Cho Nam!
Nam: Bn th no? c khe khng?
Lan: Cm n! mnh khe. Cn bn?
Nam: Cm n!mnh cng vy.
! mnh gii thiu nh, y l David, thnh vin mi ca lp mnh.
Lan: Cho bn! mnh l Lan
David: Cho bn! tn mnh l David.
Lan: Bn n t nc Anh, phi khng?
David: Khng phi! Mnh n t nc M.
Nam: n gi ri, chng ta vo hc thi.

Nam: Hi!
Lan: Hi!
Nam: How are you?
Lan: Im fine. Thanks! And you?
Nam: Thank you! Me too!
Ah! Let me introduce, this is David, a new member of our class.
Lan: Hello! I am Lan.
David: Hello! My name is David.
Lan: You come from England. Arent you?
David: No! I come from America.
Nam: Its time for the lesson. Lets go to class.

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 1. T mi (New word)
Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

cm n Thanks

khe fine/ healthy

mnh cng vy me too

gii thiu introduce

y this

thnh vin member

mi new

ca of

lp/ lp hc / class

n t come from

nc/ t nc / country

nc Anh England

nc M America

gi time

vo/ i vo / go to

chng ta we

2. Ng php (Grammar):

t nc v quc tch (Country

and nationality)

In vietnamese, stating country and nationality is very simple.

For stating country, the word nc is used followed by the countrys name and
for stating nationality as well, we state the word ngi before the countrys
name. See the below for the detail:

t nc (Country) Quc tch (Nationality)

Nc + Tn nc (name of country) Ngi + Tn nc (Name of country)

Tn mt s t nc v quc tch (List of

country and nationality)

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Country Nationality

Vietnamese English Vietnamese English

Nc Anh England Ngi Anh English

Nc Vit Nam Vietnam Ngi Vit Nam Vietnamese

Nc php France Ngi Php French

Nc M America Ngi M American

Nc c Germany Ngi c German

Nc Nht Japan Ngi Nht Japanese

Nc Thi Lan Thailand Ngi Thi Lan Thai

Nc Canada Canada Ngi Canada Canadian

Nc Nga Russia Ngi Nga Russian

Nc Trung Quc China Ngi Trung Quc / Ngi Chinese

Tu

Note: Sometimes, Vietnamese use ngi
Tu replacing for ngi Trung Quc
3.1.1. When asking for country, Vietnamese often use:
Mu cu 1- (form 1)- Tag question
S + n t + tn nc (1), (c) phi khng?
+) Vng/ phi, S + n t + tn nc (1)
-) Khng (phi), S + n t + tn nc (2)

Example:
- Bn n t nc M, phi khng? -> You come from America, arent you?
- Vng, ti n t nc M. -> Yes, I come from America.
- Khng, ti n t nc Anh. -> No, I come from England.
Besides, there is another way to ask for someone which country he/she is from.
You can follow the below form:

Mu cu 2 (Form 2)
S + n t + nc + no?
+) S + n t + tn nc

Example:
- Anh n t nc no? -> Which country are you from?/ Where are you from?
- Ti n t nc Anh. -> I am from England.

3.1.2. Asking for nationality.

There are several ways to ask for someones nationality. Here, we would like to
mention two common ways.

Mu cu 1 (form 1):

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S + l + ngi + nc + no?
+) S + l + ngi + nc + tn nc

Example:
- Ch l ngi nc no? -> What is your nationality?
- Ti l ngi (nc) Anh. -> I am an English
Mu cu 2 (form 2)- Tag question
S + l + ngi + tn nc (1), (c) phi khng?
+) Vng/phi, S + l + ngi + tn nc (1).
-) Khng phi, S + l + ngi + tn nc (2).

Example:
- Anh y l ngi Php, c phi khng? -> He is a French, isnt he?
- Vng/ phi, anh y l ngi Php. -> Yes, He is a French
Hoc Or
- Khng phi, anh y l ngi Anh -> No, he is an English
* Note:
In Vietnamese, the difference between the way to ask for country and for
nationality is not so clear. You can use these aboves to ask for others country or
nationality.

: Let
Vietnamese use when request someone to do something or offer to do
something. It is used as an imperative (order clause or offer clause).
+ S + ng t (verb)

Example:
- ti gii thiu -> Let me introduce.
- anh y lm -> Let him does it.
- ti n -> Let me eat.

Demonstratives: y l (this is)

y l is used as a demonstrative pronoun. Besides, there are several
demonstratives which are listed below:
Vietnamese Sound English Usage

y This Refers to something or somebody near the speaker and far

from the person being spoken to.

Ny This Also refers to something or somebody near and infront of the

speaker.

That Refers to something or somebody near the person being spoken

to but far from the speaker.

Kia That over there Refers to something or somebody located far from both the
speaker and the person being spoken to.

18
Ka That over there Refers to something located very far from both the speaker and
the person being spoken to.

y That refers to something that is far from the speaker but near to the
person being spoken to.

y That Also refers to something that is far from the speaker but near to
the person being spoken to.

For example:
Khch sn ny -> This hotel
Khch sn kia -> That hotel over there
Khch sn y -> That hotel

These demontratives can follow two word orders depend on which are used as
demonstrative pronoun or not.

* When introducing something or someone to others.

i t ch nh + l + tn ngi / vt
(Demonstrative) + (to be) + (Noun)

Example:
y l Nam -> This is Nam
l nh ti -> That is my house
* When describing something or someone look like, we use:
Tn ngi / vt + i t ch nh + tnh t
(Noun) + (Demonstrative) + (Adjective)

Example:
Ngi nh ny p -> This house is beautiful
Chic xe y t -> That car is expensive
Introducing yourself

8. Hi thoi (Dialogue):

In short break time, David and Lan are talking to each other, they are talking
about themselves.

Lan: Nm nay David bao nhiu tui ri?

David: Mnh 22 tui.
Lan: Th th bng tui mnh. Mnh cng 22 tui. David n Vit Nam lu cha?
David: Mnh n Vit Nam c 2 tun ri.
Lan: By gi bn ang sng u?
David: Mnh sng s nh 109, ng Nguyn Tri, qun Thanh Xun, H Ni.
Lan: Bn sng mt mnh ?
David: , mnh c mt mnh thi. y l ln u tin mnh xa nh, li sng
mt mnh na nn thy nh nh lm.
Lan: Th nh bn c my ngi?
David: Nh mnh c 6 ngi. Bn c mun xem nh khng?
Lan: ! c ch.
David: y l nh gia nh mnh. y l b m mnh, ngi ng bn cnh l anh
trai mnh, cn 2 ngi ngi trc l ng b mnh.
Lan: l ng b ni ca bn ?
David: ng b ni ngha l g?

19
Lan: ! ng b ni l ngi sinh ra b, cn ng b ngoi l ngi sinh ra m.
David: ! ra th, mnh hiu ri. Cn nh bn?
Lan: Nh mnh t ngi hn nh David. Khi no rnh David n nh mnh chi
nh, b m mnh mn khch lm, chc chn bn s thy thch.
David: Th nh bn u?
Lan: Nh mnh gn y thi, ng Xun Thy, qun Cu Giy, H Ni.
David: Nht nh mnh s n.
Lan: Nht nh nh!

Lan: How old are you, David?

David: I am 22 years old.
Lan: The same to me. I am also 22 years old.
How long have you been here?
David: I have been here for 2 weeks.
Lan: Where are you living now?
David:I am living at No.109, Nguyen Trai street, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi.
Lan: you live there alone, arent you?
David: Yes, I live alone.It is the first time I live alone and also the first time I live
far from my home so I miss my family very much.
Lan: How many people are there in your family?
David: There are six people in my family. Do you want to see my family photo?
Lan: Yes, of course.
David: Here are my parents, the person stands next to me is my older brother.
Sitting in front of us are my grandparents.
Lan: They are your ng b ni?
David: What is ng b ni?
Lan: Ah! ng b ni are the people who born your father, and ng b ngoi
are the people who born your mother.
David: Ah! I see. How about your family?
Lan: My family has less people than yours. When you have free time, please
come to my house, my parents are so hospitable, you will like them.
David: Where is your house?
Lan: My house is quite near here. It is on Xuan Thuy Street, Cau Giay district,
Hanoi.
David:I will come to visit your house.
Lan: You are sure!

* Note:
- ng b ni means paternal grandparents
- ng b ngoi means maternal grandparents.

2. T mi (New word)
Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

bao nhiu how many

tui year old

bng Equal / the same

cng also

lu long

bao lu how long

20
tun week

by gi now

ang be + Ving

sng live

u where

s number

ng street

qun / huyn district

mt mnh alone

ln u tin the first time

xa nh far from home

nn so, therefore

nh (nh nh) Miss (homesick)

my how many

ngi people

mun want

xem see/ look

nh photo

gia nh family

bn cnh next to

ngi to sit

trc/ (ng trc) in front of

ng b ni paternal grandparents

ng b ngoi maternal grandparents

sinh ( sinh ra) to bear

t hn less than

khi no when

rnh (rnh ri) free

21
mn khch hospitable

chc chn to be sure

s will

thch like

gn near

3. Ng php (Grammar):
3.1. S m (Cardinal number):
Number Vietnamese Sound English

0 Khng Zero

1 Mt One

2 Hai Two

3 Ba Three

4 Bn Four

5 Nm Five

6 Su Six

7 By Seven

8 Tm Eight

9 Chn Nine

10 Mi Ten

11 Mi mt Eleven

12 Mi hai Twelve

13 Mi ba Thirteen

14 Mi bn Fourteen

15 Mi lm Fifteen

16 Mi su Sixteen

17 Mi by Seventeen

18 Mi tm Eighteen

19 Mi chn Nineteen

22
20 Hai mi Twenty

21 Hai (mi) mt Twenty-one

30 Ba mi Thirty

31 Ba (mi) mt Thirty- one

40 Bn mi Forty

50 Nm mi Fifty

60 Su mi Sixty

70 By mi Seventy

80 Tm mi Eighty

90 Chn mi Ninety

100 Mt trm One hundred

101 Mt trm linh mt One hundred and one

1000 Mt nghn/ mt ngn One thousand

1001 Mt nghn khng trm linh mt One thousand and one

2000 Hai nghn/ hai ngn Two thousand

3.2. Cu so snh (comparative clause):

* So snh ngang bng: bng= to be equal
To express that something or somebody is equal to something or somebody else,
the Vietnamese use the word bng = to be equal:
Mu cu (form):
S1 + (Tnh t) + bng + S2
(Adjective)

V d (example):
- Lan bng tui David means Lan has the same age with David so we can say:
Lan tr bng Daivid -> Lan is as young as David.
- M ti gi bng b ti. -> My mother is as old as my father.
- Nam cao bng David -> Nam is as tall as David.
* So snh hn: (comparative: more than)
Vietnamese use hn to form the comparative clause, it follows the word order
as below:

Mu cu (form):
S1 + (Tnh t) + hn + S2
(Adjective)

V d (example):

23
Nam tr hn Peter -> Nam is younger than Peter
David cao hn Peter -> David is taller than Peter
Nh Lan t ngi hn nh David -> Lans family has less people than Davids
family

* So snh bc nht (Superlative):

To form the superlative clause, the word nht is used and it also places after
the adjective.

Mu cu (form):
S + (l) + (danh t) + tnh t + nht + phm vi so snh
(noun) (adjective) (place, org, group)

V d: (example)
H Ch Minh l thnh ph ln nht Vit Nam.
(S) (l) (Noun) (adj) (nht) (country)
Ho Chi Minh is the largest city in Vietnam.
Lan tr nht trong lp hc.
(S) (adj) (nht) (class)
Lan is the youngest in the class.

3.3. Cu hi (Question): c . khng?

The most common way to form a question in Vietnamese is to follow the below
construction:
Mu cu (form):
S + c + ng t + khng?
(verb)

V d: (example)
David c hc ting Vit khng? -> Does David study Vietnamese?
Lan c sng H Ni khng? -> Does Lan live in Hanoi?
And the answer can be possitive or nagative. For example:
For the first question the answer can be:
- Vng, David hc ting Vit. -> Yes, David studies Vietnamese.
Hoc Or
- Khng, David khng hc ting Vit. -> No, David does not study Vietnamese.
Sometimes, we can use the word l in the question. Let see some examples:
David c phi l sinh vin khng? -> Is David a student?
Bn c phi l nh bo khng? -> Are you a journalist?

After these questions, we can have the form as:

S + c phi l + danh t + khng?
(noun)

The way to answer these questions is also as the way we mentioned above. For
example:
David c phi l sinh vin khng? -> Is David a student?
+ Vng, David l sinh vin -> + Yes, David is a student
Hoc Or
- Khng, David khng phi l sinh vin. -> No, David is not a student.

1.1. L means To be

24
The most simple sentence in Vietnamese is formed by l.
Form:
S + L

Example:
- y l Nam -> This is Nam
- Nam l mt sinh vin -> Nam is a student
1.2. Ngha ph nh Negative form: khng phi l-> to be not
Only add khng phi before l we have negative meaning.
Form:
S + khng phi + l + danh t
(noun)

Example:
- y khng phi l Nam -> This is not Nam
- Nam khng phi l sinh vin -> Nam is not a student.
1.3. Country and Nationality
In order to state country, the word nc is used followed by the countrys name
and to state nationality as well, we state the word ngi before the countrys
name as below:
t nc (Country) Quc tch (Nationality)

Nc + Tn nc (name of country) Ngi + Tn nc (Name of country)

Example:
- Nc Vit Nam -> Vietnam
- Ngi Vit Nam -> Vietnamese
* To ask for others their country, we use the below structures
Form 1- Tag question
S + n t + tn nc (1), (c) phi khng?
+) Vng/ phi, S + n t + tn nc (1)
-) Khng (phi), S + n t + tn nc (2)

Example:
- Bn n t nc Anh, phi khng? -> You come from America, arent you?
- Vng, ti n t nc Anh. -> Yes, I come from America.
- Khng, ti n t nc M. -> No, I come from England.
Form 2:
S + n t + nc + no?
+) S + n t + tn nc

Example:
- Anh n t nc no? -> Which country are you from?/ Where are you from?
- Ti n t nc Anh. -> I am from England.
* Asking for nationality.
The most common way to ask for someone his/ her nationality is to follow:
Form 1:
S + l + ngi + nc + no?
+) S + l + ngi + nc + tn nc

25
Example:
- Anh ngi nc no? -> What is your nationality?
- Ti l ngi (nc) Anh. -> I am English
Form 2- Tag question
S + l + ngi + tn nc (1), (c) phi khng?
+) Vng/phi, S + l + ngi + tn nc (1).
-) Khng phi, S + l + ngi + tn nc (2).

Example:
- C y l ngi Php, c phi khng? -> She is French, isnt he?
- Vng/ phi, c y l ngi Php. -> Yes, she is French
Hoc Or
- Khng phi, c y l ngi Anh -> No, she is English
* Note:
In Vietnamese, the difference between the way to ask for country and for
nationality is not so clear. You can use these aboves to ask for others country or
nationality.
9.
0. : Let
Vietnamese use when request someone to do something or offer to do
something. It is used as an imperative (order clause or offer clause).
+ S + ng t (verb)

Example:
- ti gii thiu -> Let me introduce.
- anh y lm -> Let him does it.
- ti yn -> Let me alone.
10.
0. Demonstratives: y l (this is)
y l is one of demonstrative pronoun. Besides, there are several
demonstratives which are listed below:
Vietnamese English Sound Usage

y This Refers to something or somebody near the speaker

and far from the person being spoken to.

Ny This Also refers to something or somebody near and

infront of the speaker.

That Refers to something or somebody near the person

being spoken to but far from the speaker.

Kia That over Refers to something or somebody located far from

there both the speaker and the person being spoken to.

Ka That over Refers to something located very far from both

there the speaker and the person being spoken to.

y That refers to something that is far from the speaker but

near to the person being spoken to.

y That Also refers to something that is far from the

26
 speaker but near to the person being spoken to.

For example:
Khch sn ny -> This hotel
Khch sn kia -> That hotel over there
Khch sn y -> That hotel
The usage of demonstrative pronouns is as below:
* When introducing something or someone to other people:
i t ch nh + l + tn ngi / vt
(Demonstrative) + (to be) + (Noun)

Example:
y l Nam -> This is Nam
l nh ti -> That is my house
* When describing something or someone:
Tn ngi / vt + i t ch nh + tnh t
(Noun) + (Demonstrative) + (Adjective)

Example:
Ngi nh ny p -> This house is beautiful
Chic xe y t -> That car is expensive
1.6. S m (Cardinal number):
Number Sound Vietnamese English

0 Khng Zero

1 Mt One

2 Hai Two

3 Ba Three

4 Bn Four

5 Nm Five

6 Su Six

7 By Seven

8 Tm Eight

9 Chn Nine

10 Mi Ten

11 Mi mt Eleven

12 Mi hai Twelve

13 Mi ba Thirteen

14 Mi bn Fourteen

27
15 Mi lm Fifteen

16 Mi su Sixteen

17 Mi by Seventeen

18 Mi tm Eighteen

19 Mi chn Nineteen

20 Hai mi / hai chc Twenty

30 Ba mi / ba chc Thirty

40 Bn mi / bn chc Forty

50 Nm mi / nm chc Fifty

60 Su mi / su chc Sixty

70 By mi / by chc Seventy

80 Tm mi / tm chc Eighty

90 Chn mi / chn chc Ninety

100 Mt trm One hundred

101 Mt trm linh mt / mt trm l One hundred and

mt one

1000 Mt nghn/ mt ngn One thousand

1001 Mt nghn khng trm linh mt One thousand and

one

The power of ten:

Number Sound Vietnamese English

10 Mi Ten

100 Mt trm One hundred

1 000 Mt nghn / mt One thousand

ngn

10 000 Mt nghn / mt vn Ten thousand

100 000 Mt trm nghn One hundred thousand

1 000 000 Mt triu One million

10 000 000 Mi triu Ten million

100 000 000 Mt trm triu One hundred million

28
1 000 000 000 Mt t One billion

10 000 000 000 Mi t Ten billion

100 000 000 000 Mt trm t One hundred billion

1 000 000 000 000 Mt nghn t One thousand billion

10 000 000 000 000 Mi nghn t Ten thousand billion

100 000 000 000 000 Mt trm nghn t One hundred

thousandbillion

1 000 000 000 000 000 Mt triu t One million billion

1 000 000 000 000 000 Mt t t One billion billion

000

1.7. Cu so snh (comparative clause):

* So snh ngang bng: bng= to be equal
To express the equality between two things two people, Vietnamese uses the
word bng = to be equal:
Form:
S1 + (Tnh t) + bng + S2
(Adjective)

V d (example):
- Lan bng tui David means Lan has the same age with David so we can say:
Lan tr bng Daivid -> Lan is as young as David.
- M ti gi bng b ti. -> My mother is as old as my father.
- Nam cao bng David -> Nam is as tall as David.
* So snh hn: (more than)
Vietnamese uses hn to form the comparative clause, it follows the word order
as below:
Form:
S1 + (Tnh t) + hn + S2
(Adjective)

V d (example):
Nam tr hn Peter -> Nam is younger than Peter
David cao hn Peter -> David is taller than Peter
Nh Lan t ngi hn nh David -> Lans family has less people than Davids
family
* So snh bc nht (Superlative):
To form the superlative clause, the word nht is used and it also places after
the adjective.
Mu cu (form):
S + (l) + (danh t) + tnh t + nht + phm vi so snh
(noun) (adjective) (place, org, group)

V d: (example)
H Ch Minh l thnh ph ln nht Vit Nam.
(S) (l) (Noun) (adj) (nht) (country)

29
-> Ho Chi Minh is the largest city in Vietnam.
Lan tr nht trong lp hc.
(S) (adj) (nht) (class)
-> Lan is the youngest in the class.
1.8. Question: c . khng?
The most common way to form a question in Vietnamese is to follow the below
structure:
Form 1:
S + c + ng t + khng?
(verb)

Example:
David c hc ting Vit khng? -> Does David study Vietnamese?
It can be answer as
- Vng, David hc ting Vit. Yes, David studies Vietnamese.
Hoc Or
- Khng, David khng hc ting Vit. No, David does not study Vietnamese.
Lan c sng H Ni khng? -> Does Lan live in Hanoi?
Khng, Lan khng sng H Ni. -> No, Lan doesnt live in Hanoi.
Sometimes, we can use the word l in the question. Let see below structure:
S + c phi l + danh t + khng?
(noun)

Example:
David c phi l sinh vin khng? -> Is David a student?
And the answer can be
+ Vng, David l sinh vin. -> + Yes, David is a student.
Hoc Or
- Khng, David khng phi l sinh vin. -> - No, David is not a student.
Bn c phi l nh bo khng? -> Are you a journalist?
+ Vng, ti l nh bo. -> Yes, I am a journalist.
hoc or
- Khng, ti khng phi l nh bo -> No, I am not a journalist.

Asking the time

11. Hi thoi (Dialogue)

To day is Wednesday, David and Nam are going to visit Quoc Tu Giam with
Vietnamese class, they gather at the main gate of Quoc Tu Giam at 7:30, but it is
7:20 am, Nam is so anxious waiting for David.
Nam: A David! Sao n mun th? bn mt ?
David: Cho Nam! mnh khng sao. Th by gi l my gi ri?
Nam: By gi l 7 gi 20 ri, nhanh ln khng mnh mun mt.
David: 7 gi 30 mi vo lp hc m.
Nam: Bn khng nh sao? hm nay l th t, lp mnh c bui i thm quan
Quc T Gim m.
David: ! xin li mnh qun mt, mnh c ngh hm nay mi l th ba thi.
Nam: Ti th 7 tun ny bn c ri khng?
David: mnh xem , nhng m c vic g khng?
Nam: Mnh c 2 v i xem phim, mnh mun mi David i cng.
David: ! hay qu nh, nhng m sng th 7 mnh phi i hc thm ting Vit,
bui chiu cn phi ln th vin na.
Nam: Th cn bui ti?

30
David: Bui ti th mnh ri.
Nam: Th th tt ri, 7 gi ti th 7 tun ny bn mnh gp nhau rp chiu
phim Quc Gia nh.
David: !Th nh.
(see the translation)
Nam: Ah! David! Why did you come late? Are you tired?
David: Hi Nam! I am ok. What time is it now?
Nam: It is 7:20 am, be quick we will be late.
David: The lesson starts at 7:30 am.
Nam: Do you remember? Today is Wednesday, and our class are going to visit
Quoc Tu Giam.
David: Ah! Sorry, I forgot, I still think today is Tuesday.
Nam: Are you free on this Saturday?
David: Let me see, but is there any thing?
Nam: I have two cinema tickets, I would like to invite you to go with me.
David: Oh! thats great. But, on Saturday morning I have an extra-Vietnamese
lesson and on the afternoon I need to go to library.
Nam: How about Saturday night?
David: I am free on Saturday night?
Nam: Thats ok, so at 7:00 this Saturday night we gather at Quoc Gia cinema
David: Thats ok.
12. T mi (New word)
Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

mun to be late

mt to be tired

my how many (use for question)

gi time

nhanh quick

nh remember

hm nay today

th t Wednesday

i thm quan go to visit

xin li sorry

qun to forget

ngh think

th ba Tuesday

ti (bui ti) night

th by Saturday

tun ny this week

31
ri (rnh ri) to be free

mnh xem let me see!

nhng but

v ticket

phim film

v i xem phim cinema ticket

mi to invite

i cng to go with

hay qu thats great

sng (bui sng) morning

phi have to

hc thm extra-class

chiu (bui chiu) afternoon

th vin library

gp to meet (in this lesson: to gather)

rp chiu phim cinema

13. Ng php (Grammar):

3.1. To tell the time
Vietnamese uses three units to express the time, which are shown below:
Gi -> hour
Pht -> minute
Giy -> second
* How to state the time: (need a clock)
Depending on the exact time, we have several ways to state the time.
+) Even hour: the word gi is added after the number referring the time.
Example:
11:00 -> 11 gi -> 11 oclock
8:00 -> 8 gi -> 8 oclock
+) Other cases:
14. Vietnamese often use the word qua,
km to express the time.
Example:
8: 15 -> 8 gi (qua) 15 (pht)
10: 20 -> 10 gi (qua) 20 (pht)
- The word qua and pht can be omit, but in this case
7: 45 -> 7 gi 45 (pht) or we can say 8 gi km 15 (pht), and Vietnamese
prefer the later to the former and only the word pht can be omit. When the
time past over 30 minutes, Vietnamese often use the word km to express
time.
Example:

32
8:50 -> 9 gi km 10 -> ten to nine
11:35 -> 12 gi km 25 -> twenty five to twelve
15. Besides, Vietnamese often use the word
ri to stand for the time which past 30
minutes.
Example:
9:30 -> 9 ri -> half past nine
10: 30 -> 10 ri -> half past ten
16. To express the time in which period of day,
Vietnamese use the below words, which
refer to the period of day, to add after the
time.
Period of time Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

1:00am~11:00am sng morning

11:00am~1:00pm tra at noon

1:00pm~7:00pm chiu afternoon

7:00pm~11:00pm ti evening

11:00pm~1:00am m night

Example:
2: 15 pm -> 2 gi 15 chiu
9:20 am -> 9 gi 20 sng
12:00 pm -> 12 gi tra
1:00 am -> 2 gi m
* Asking and answering about time.
When asking for the time, Vietnamese use the question:
By gi l my gi ri?
(Now) (to be) (how many) (time) (interjection)

To answer this question, we replace the word my by the exact time as below:
By gi + l + thi gian + gi + (ri)
(Now) (to be) (time) (hour)

Example:
A: By gi l my gi?
B: By gi l 8 gi (ri).
* To ask someone what time he/she does something we use:
Form:
CN + T + lc/ vo lc my gi?
S+V

Example:
Nam i hc vo lc my gi? -> What time does Nam go to school?
And the answer is
Nam i hc vo lc 7 gi. -> Nam goes to school at 7 oclock
3.2. Parts of a day
The main distinction between the day time and night-time is expressed by the
word ban, so we have ban ngy (daytime) and ban m (night-time). To
express the part of the day, the word bui is made use of. See the list for more
detail.

33
Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

bui sng (sng) morning

bui tra (tra) at noon

bui chiu (chiu) Afternoon

bui ti (ti) evening

ban m (m) night

3.3. Days in a week

* S th t (Ordinal number)
Ordinal number is formed from cardinal number by adding the ordinal designator
th. This element precedes the cardinal number.
-Th nh is
Vietnamese Sound English
sometime
Th nht The first used instead
of th hai
Th hai* The second - Th t is
sometime
Th ba The third replaced by
th bn, but
Th t* The fourth Vietnamese
prefer the
Th nm The fifth former to the
later.
Th su The sixth * Days in a
week:
Th by The seventh In Vietnamese
the terms
Th tm The eightth denoting the
days of the
Th chn The nineth week are
ordinal
Th mi The tenth numbers
except
Th mi mt The eleventh Sunday. The
week starts
Th mi hai The twelveth from Sunday,
therefore
Th mi ba The thirteenth Monday is the
second day in
Th mi bn The forteenth the week,
Tuesday is the
Th mi lm The fifteenth third day,
Wednesday is
Th mi su The sixteenth the fourth
day, etc.
Vietnamese Sound English

Ch nht Sunday

Th hai Monday

34
Th ba Tuesday

Th t Wednesday

Th nm Thursday

Th su Friday

Th by Saturday

* Asking and answering for the day in a week.

When asking for what the day today is, Vietnamese often use the below question:
Hm nay l th my?
(today) (to be) (ordinal designator)(how many)

The answer is to replace my by the day in the week.

Example:
A: Hm nay l th my? What day is it today?
B: Hm nay l th t. Today is Wednesday.
If we want to ask the day of tomorrow, replacing hm nay by ngy mai in the
question and the answer is also follow the above form.
Examle:
A: Ngy mai l th my? What day is it tomorrow?
B: Ngy mai l Ch nht. Tomorrow is Sunday
Accordingly, using that form we can ask for other days base on the below
suggestion:
Vietnamese Sound English

hm nay today

ngy mai tomorrow

ngy kia the day after tomorrow

hm qua yesterday

hm kia the day before yesterday

Example:
A: Hm kia l th my? What day is it the day before yesterday?
B: Hm kia l th hai. The day before yesterday is Monday
(See Vietnamese calendar)
Vietnamese calendar
Vietnamese use a solar calendar (dng lch) for official purposes but religious
activities and celebrations are governed by the lunar calendar (m lch) formed
by a sixty-year cycle divided into five twelve-year groups. Each year is associated
with an animal. (The names of the animals are traditionally referred to using, a
Sino-Vietnamese expression.) The following table lists one twelve-year cycle and
the Sino-Vietnamese terms together with their Vietnamese and English
equivalents.
Sino-Vietnamese Vietnamese English

T Chut Mouse rat

Su Tru Buffalo
Dn H Tiger
Mo Mo Cat

35
Thn Rng Dragon
T Rn Snake
Ng Nga Horse
Mi D Goat
Thn Kh Monkey
Du G Rooster
Tut Ch Dog
Hi Ln Pig

The new year festival

The Vietnamese have many festivals and celebrations but without doubt the
biggest one is the new year festival (Tt Nguyn n). The Vietnamese celebrate
the new year according to the lunar calendar. Tt Nguyn n is an opportunity
for the whole family to meet together. It is a festival which marks the beginning
of the spring and it is filled with hopes and expectations that the new year will be
happier and better than the previous one. Tt Nguyn n is rich in customs
and traditions and many special dishes are prepared. Traditionally ,firecrackers
(Pho) are set off to welcome the new year.
Vietnamese folk prints are used to decorate houses on the occasion of Tt. These
are ng H prints made in a village of the same name.

Asking for and Giving Directions

17. Hi thoi (Dialogue)

This Friday, Mary wants to go to British Embassy to completel procedure, but she
is not sure how to get there, she is asking Lan for the way to get there.
Mary: Cho Lan!
Lan: Cho Mary!
Mary: Xin li cho mnh hi mt cht.
Lan: C g Mary c ni
Mary: Chiu nay mnh cn n i S Qun Anh hon tt mt s th tc,
nhng m mnh li khng r ng i ti lm, Lan ch gip mnh vi.
Lan: Bn c a ch ch cha?
Mary: Mnh c ri, s 31 ph Hai B Trng.
Lan: Th th tt ri, bn nhn ln bn ny nh. By gi bn ang trn ng
Xun Thy, c i thng vo ng Kim M, n cui ng r phi vo ng
Nguyn Thi Hc, n ng t n xanh n bn r tri, l ng Hai B
Trng, i theo ng bn s nhn thy i S Qun bn phi ng.
Mary: ! Xa nh, t y n khong bao xa?
Lan: ! Cng kh xa, chc khong 12 km . Th bn nh i n bng g?
Mary: Mnh cng cha bit na, theo bn mnh nn n bng phng tin g
th tin nht?
Lan: Hnh nh bn cng cha r ng ph H Ni lm, mnh ngh bn nn bt
taxi i l hay nht.
Mary: ! C l mnh s i taxi, cm n Lan nhiu nh.
Lan: Khng c g.
(see the translation)
Mary: Hi Lan!
Lan: Hi Mary!
Mary: Excuse me! Could I ask you a question?
Lan: please!
Mary: This afternoon I need to go to British Embassy for completing procedure,
but I am not sure about the way, could you tell me how to get there?
Lan: Do you have address?

36
Mary: Yes, I have, it is at 31 Hai Ba Trung Street.
Lan: Thats good. Look at the map, now you are on Xuan Thuy street, to the end
of this road you turn left to Kim Ma street, keep straight to the end of Kim Ma
road then turn right to Nguyen Thai Hoc street, at the end of the road you will
see the red-blue light you turn right to Le Duan street, when you see the first
cross road turn right that is Hai Ba Trung street, follow this road until you see the
British Embassy on your right hand side.
Mary: Oh! That is so far; how far is it from here?
Lan: Yes, it is about 12 km. How do you intend to get there?
Mary: I also dont know, do you think what transportation should I use to get
there?
Lan: You seem to be not so clear about Hanoi street arent you? So I just think
Taxi is the best choice for you.
Mary: Yes, maybe I will take a taxi to get there, thank you very much.
Lan: Youre welcome.
i s qun Anh nm ti im c du sao .

i s qun Anh, Tng 4-5, To nh Trung tm, 31 Hai B Trng, H Ni. T: ++ (84) (4) 936
0500 Fax: ++ (84) (4) 936 0561 / 9360562 Email: emyeukhoahoc@gmail.com

18. T mi (New word)

Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

hi to ask

hi ng to ask for the way

ni to tell/ say/ speak

cn need

i s qun Embassy

hon tt to complete

mt s some

th tc procedure

r clear

ng way

ch (ng) to draw a map/ to show the way

gip to help

a ch address

tt good

nhn to look

bn map

37
trn on

cui the end

r tri to turn left

i thng to keep straight

r phi to turn right

n xanh n red-blue light (traffic light)

ng t cross-road

i theo to follow

pha bn phi at the right hand side

khong about

bao xa how far

nh / nh to intend

bng by

cng also

nn should

phng tin transportation

hnh nh seem to be

ng ph street

bt (xe) to take

hay nht / tt nht the best

c l maybe

s will

cm n bn nhiu thank you very much

19. Ng php (Grammar)

3.1. Talking about distance:
* T n:
The preposition .t n means from (place). to(place).
Form 1
t + a im 1 + n + a im 2
from + place 1 + to + place 2

38
This form is to express the movement from one place to another place.
Example:
- t nh ti n trng -> from my house to school
- t sn bay n khch sn -> from the airport to the hotel
These prepositions also express a period of time
Form 2
t + thi gian + n + thi gian
from + time + to/ until + time

Example:
- t 8 gi sng n 5 gi chiu -> From 8 oclock in the morning
to 5 oclock in the afternoon
- t sng n ti -> from dawn till dusk
* Cch* v Bao xa
+) In order to state the distance between two places, the word cch is made
use of. See the form:
Form 3
a im 1 + cch + a im 2 + s km
place 1 + distance + place 2 + No. of km

Example:
- Sn bay cch khch sn 5 km -> The airport is five km from the hotel.
- Nh ti cch trng hc 8 km -> My house is eight km from school.
- H ni cch Hu kh xa -> Hanoi is quite far away from Hue.
+) when asking for the distance, Vietnamese often use the question:
Form 4
a im 1 + cch + a im 2 + bao xa?
place 1 + cch + place 2 + (how far)?

Example:
- H Ni cch Hu bao xa? -> How far is it from Hanoi to Hue?
- Sn bay cch nh ga bao xa? -> How far is it from the airport to the station?
Besides, we can use the question which is combined with the prepositon t
n.
Let take an example to see how it is formed
- T H Ni n Hu khong* bao xa?
(Place 1) (place 2) (about) (how far)?
This question can be translated as: How far is it from Hanoi to Hue?
and the answer can be:
- T H Ni n Hu khong 500 km. -> It is about 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
Or we can answer by using the form 3 above as below:
- H Ni cch Hu khong 500 km. -> Hanoi is about 500km from Hue.
* Note:
- The word khong can be replace by the word l and cch.
Example:
T H Ni n Hu l 500 km -> It is 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
hoc
T H Ni n Hu cch 500 km -> It is 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
- cch can also be used to state the period of time. It is to describe how long
ago something happened.
Example:
Ti n Vit Nam cch y hai tun

39
-> I arrived Vietnam two week ago.
Ti bt u hc ting Vit cch y mt thng.
-> I started to learn Vietnamese a month ago.
3.2. Hnh nh: seem to be
In Vietnamese, when talking about something that is not so clear or may cause a
doubt, the word hnh nh is used and it often state at the beginning of the
sentence.
Example:
- Hnh nh bn cha quen ng ph H Ni lm.
-> You seem to be not so familiar to Hanoi Street.
- Hnh nh ti cha tng n ni ny.
-> It seems to be that I have ever been here.
3.3. Nn: should
Vietnamese use the word nn to give suggestion or advice to someone. It often
stands after the Subject. See below form for detail.
Form 5
CN + nn + T + VN
S + should + V + O

Example:
- Bn nn n bng taxi -> You should get there by taxi.
- Bn nn th gin mt cht -> You should relax.

Re: Vietnamese for foreigners - Ting Vit cho ngi nc ngoi

How to Take a Taxi

Hi thoi (Dialogue)
On the afternoon Mary is going to British Embassy, now she is calling to Hanoi
taxi agency to reserve a taxi.
Agency: D! H Ni taxi xin nghe!
Mary: Al! cho anh ! anh c th gi cho em mt xe taxi bn ch ti a ch s
27 ng Xun Thy, Cu Giy c khng ?
Agency: D vng ! ch vui lng ch mt lt, taxi s n ngay
Mary: Cm n anh nhiu, cho anh!
Agency: D khng c g , cho ch!
Some minutes later, Mary sees a four-seat taxi is coming; she waves her hand as
a sign.
Taxi driver: Xin li, c phi ch gi taxi khng ?
Mary: Vng! ng ri , anh c phi t bn H Ni taxi khng ?
Taxi driver: Vng! Tha ch, mi ch ln xe .
Mary: Cm n anh!
Taxi driver: By gi ch mun i n a im no ?
Mary: Anh a ti n i s qun Anh s 31 Hai B Trng.
Taxi driver: Vng! Phin ch tht dy an ton chng ta c th khi hnh .
Mary: Vng! ti sn sng, anh c th cho ti hi mt cht c khng ?
Taxi driver: Vng ch c ni .
Mary: T y n i s qun mt bao lu ?
Taxi driver: By gi ng khng ng lm nn khong 30 pht na chng ta s
n i s Qun.
Mary: Vng! vy l ti yn tm ri. Cm n anh!
Taxi driver: D! khng c g .
Thirty minutes later, Mary gets to British Embassy; she gets off the taxi and
makes the payment.
Taxi driver: Tha ch! i s qun y ri

40
Mary: Vng! cm n anh nh, xin hi ht bao nhiu tin ?
Taxi driver: D! ht 90.000 ng chn .
Mary: y tha anh, cm n anh nhiu .
Taxi driver: D! khng c g , ch c mun ti i khng ?
Mary: Khng cn u, cho anh!
Taxi driver: Cm n ch! Cho ch!
(See the translation)
Dialogue 1:
Agency: Hello! Thank you for calling to Hanoi taxi, can I help you?
Mary: Hello! Could you arrange one four-seat taxi to pick me up at No.27 Xuan
Thuy Street, Cau Giay Dist.?
Agency: Yes, Madam. Could you please wait for some minutes, our taxi will come
now.
Mary: Thank you very much and goodbye!
Agency: Youre welcome, goodbye!
Dialogue 2:
Taxi driver: Excuse me! Did you call for a taxi?
Mary: yes, I did. You are from Hanoi taxi, arent you?
Taxi driver: Yes, I am. Please get in the car.
Mary: Thanks you!
Taxi driver: Where would you go to now?
Mary: Please take me to British Embassy at No.31 Hai Ba Trung Street.
Taxi driver: yes, could you please wear seatbelt and we can departure.
Mary: Yes, I am ready, may I have a question?
Taxi driver: yes, please!
Mary: How long does it take from here to British Embassy?
Taxi driver: At the moment, the street is not so crowded, so it may take about 30
minutes.
Mary: Yes, Its good, thank you!
Taxi driver: Not at all!
Dialogue 3:
Taxi driver: Here is British Embassy.
Mary: Yes, thank you! How much is it?
Taxi driver: It is 90.000 VND.
Mary: Here you are!
Taxi driver: Thank you! Do you need me to wait for you?
Mary: No, thanks! Goodbye!
Taxi driver: Thank you and goodbye!
(make a list of Taxi agency in Hanoi and its phone number) see as reference of
the lesson)
Vietnamese Sound English equivalent

Ch (ch ngi) seat

vui lng please

ch to wait

mt lt a little (in this lesson: some minutes)

gi to call

ln xe to get in

a im place

41
a/ a n to take, to pick up

tht to tie

dy an ton seatbelt

c th can, could, might, may

sn sng ready

ng crowed

nn so

bao nhiu tin how much

T mi (New word)
*Note:
- The word vui lng is used when offering someone to do something politely.
Example:
Bn vui lng m ca gip mnh c khng?
-> Could you open the door please?
- In the dialogue you see so many word , but we can not translate it into
English because there is no equivalent meaning in English. It is used to show the
politeness and respect of the speaker to the person being spoken. For example,
before going to class children have to say goodbye to their parents Tha b m!
Con i hc as well as when they come back home they have to say hello to
their parents tha b m con v . It does not only convey the meaning of
informing but also expressing the respect to the olders.
Ng php (Grammar)
3.1. Bao lu: How long.
When asking for how long something done, Vietnamese use the question which is
formed by the word bao lu.
Form 1
CN + T + VN + (mt) bao lu?
S + V + O + how long?

Let analyse the example for futher detail:

- (S) i t y n i s qun mt bao lu?
- S (Verb) (Object) how long?
The subject is not appeared here but we still can understand that there is
someone moves to Embassy; therefore this sentence can be translated into
English as below:
-> How long does it take from here to Embassy?
See more examples:
- Bn i t nh n trng mt bao lu?
-> How long does it take you from your house to your school?
- i t H Ni vo Hu mt bao lu?
- > How long does it take from Hanoi to Hue?
* Note:
- The word mt can be replaced by trong or khong. Mt refers to the
exact time, trong refers to the approximate time but not over the time given,
and khong also refers to the approximate time and it can be less or more than
the time given. Therefore, Vietnamese applied this meaning of these words to
give clear answer. See the answer for these above questions:
Question 1

42
 Q: i t y n i s qun mt bao lu?
A: i t y n i s qun mt 30 pht. (Exactly it takes 30 minutes)
Question 2:
Q: Bn i t nh n trng mt bao lu?
A: Mnh i t nh n trng trong 15 pht. (It takes less than 15 minutes)
Question 3:
Q: i t H Ni vo Hu mt bao lu?
A: i t H Ni vo Hu khong 4 ting. (It may take less than or more than 4
hour)
- In the question, the word bao lu can be replaced by the word bao nhiu
thi gian. The question and answer form as well as the meaning is the same with
the word bao lu. Vietnamese prefers using bao lu to using bao nhiu thi
gian.
3.2. Conjunction: nn means so
The conjunction nn is used to combine two clauses that have cause and
effect relationship. The first clause often shows the meaning of cause and the
second one has the meaning of effect.
To make you easy to remember we provide the form as below:
Cause clause + nn + effect clause
See the example for detail:
- By gi ng khng ng lm// nn // khong 30 pht na chng ta s n
i s qun.
(Cause clause) nn (Effect clause)
->Now the street is not so crowed so we can get to Embassy about 30 minutes
later.
In order to emphasize the reason we add the word vat the very beginning of
the cause clause.
Example:
- V // tri ma // nn // chng ti khng i chi.
v (cause) nn (effect)
-> Because it rains so we do not go out.
- V // Lan b m // nn // c y khng n lp.
-> Because Lan is ill so she does not come to class.
Similiar with English, the position of these two clauses can be exchanged, and in
this case the word nn can be omittied, and replaced by v.
See example:
- Chng ti khng i chi // v // tri ma.
(Effect) v (cause)
-> We do not go out because it rains.
- Lan khng n lp // v // c y b m
-> Lan does not come to class because she is ill.
* Note:
- If the subject in two clauses is the same, it can be omitted in one of these two
clauses.
Example:
- (V) b m nn Lan khng n lp
(v) (S) V nn S V
-> Because of being ill so Lan does not come to class.
Or
- Lan b m nn khng n lp.
S V nn (S) V
This sentence can be translated into English as:
-> Lan is ill so not come to class.
Tr li km Trch dn
3. 21-12-2011 11:07 AM#10

43
Family relationships in Vietnamese Culture

Family structure

The family is the basic instituation in society; it perpetuates society and protects
the individual. Generally speaking, Vietnamese family structure is more complex
than that of the American family, which is essentially nuclear in nature and which
excludes relatives and in-laws. In the Vietnamese family roles are more
numerous and more fined than in its American counterpart.
Vietnamese people distinguish between the immediate family (tiu gia-nh) and
the extended family (i gia-nh). The Vietnamese immediate family includes
not only the husband, wife, and their unmarried children, but but also the
husbands parents and the sons wives and children, The extended family consists
of the immediate family and close relatiVes who share the same family name and
ancestors and who live in the same community.

Family relationships in Vietnamese Culture

The complexity of the Vietnamese concept oF family is reflected in the rather

complex terminology designating kinship. Each member of the extended family
has a particular designation according to his/her relative position and his/her role
in the family structure. People are often referred to by the kinship term rather
than by given name.
In Vietnamese society, the father is the head of the family. However, unlike the
father in traditional Chinese society, who is empowered, at least theoretically,
with absolute rights over his children and wife, the Vietnamese father shares with
his wife and children collective and bilateral responsibility, legally, morally, and
spiritually.
In the relationship between parents and chilren, as well as between husband and
wife, the Vietnamese people retain much of their own custom and tradition,
despite the great influence of Chinese culture and Confucian doctrine. In the eyes
of the children, the Vietnamese mother has the same status as the father. She is
also the embodiment of love and the spirit of self-denial and sacrifice.
Parent-child relationship
Vietnamese parents consider it a most important responsibility to train their
children. By virtue of the principle of collective responsibility, the parents will bear
the disgrace brought about by the activities of children who dishonor themselves
just as they share the honor and fame of their virtuous and talented children.
At an early age, children are taught by their parents to behave according to the
principle of filial piety. The family is the school in which the child learns the
respect rules in both behavior and linguistic response. Filial piety consists of
loving, respecting, and obeying ones parents. Talking back or acting contrary to
the wishes of ones parents is evidence of lack of filial piety. For the Vietnamese,
the obligation to obey his parents does not end with coming of age or marriage.
Filial piety also means solicitude and support to ones parents, chiefly in their old
age. Vietnamese elderly people never live by themselves or in nursing homes but
with one of their children, usually their eldest son. This obligation is not
discontinued by the parents death. It survives in the form of ancestral cult and
the maintenance of ancestral tombs. Ancestor worship is practised in most, if not
all, Vietnamese homes even in the homes of Viettnamese people living overseas.
The child who lacks filial piety is rejected and ostracized by other members of the
family and comnlunity. The worst insult which a Vietnamese can receive and by
which he is deeply wounded is the ex- pression lack filial piety (con bt hiu).

44
Sibling relationships

In Vietnamese culture, the relationship between siblings is determined by the

principle of seniority, which requires younger siblings to respect and obey older
ones. The eldest brother is entrusted with a heavy responsibility that of
substituting for the parents in case of emergency. He is considered by his siblings
as their leader. Concord and love among siblings is a token of happy and virtuous
family.
Attitude towards relatives
As with members of the immediate family, members of the extended family are
boud together by a strong sense of collective responsibility and mutual obligation.
The notion of blood relalionship is always present in the mind of the Vietnamese.
In honor or in disgrace, members of the extended family will share the same fate
as if they were members of the immediate family. They are expected to give one
another moral and material assistance, especially in time of stress. On the social
and political planes, this strong sense of loyalty to the extended family tends to
encourage the spirit of sectarianism and nepotism.
The notion of family ties is imprinted in the mind of the Vietnamese because of
the importance of filial piety. Respect and love are demanded of young people to
members of the parental generation and above. Uncles and aunts must be
treated with respect as if they were ones own parents. In addition to the
consciousness of blood relationships and the linguistic ties that reinforce kinship
relationships and age seniority, members of the Vietnamese extended family are
closely bound by the common veneration of the dead. Ancestor worship is a
hyphen between the dead and the living and a strong tie between members
sharing the same ancestry. Through such rites as the cleaning of the ancestral
tombs and celebration of ancestral death anniversaries, which all members of the
extended family are expected to attend, the ties which bind the Vietnamese to
other members of his family are reinforced.

In the last decades the Vietnamese family insitution has been attacked on all
fronts. The Western doctrine of individualism advocated the liberation of the
individual from the encroachment of the family upon his personal freedom. Under
the communist regime, the state replaced parents in the filial piety relationship,
and children were taught to spy on their own parents and report to the Party any
subversive talk or behavior. The war devastated the countryside and brought
people to the cities where narrow spaces were not suitable to the pattern of the
extended family. Since 1975, with the communist takeover of the whole country
and the tragic exodus of the Vietnamese people throughout the world to search
for freedom, the Vietnamese family has become increasingly broken and
separated by distance. Husbands and wives, fathers and sons, mothers and
daughters live thousands and thousands of miles apart. But despite of all this,
deep family feelings and ties are still strong and the Vietnamese family concept
still survives through time and change

Going shopping

Hi thoi (Dialogue)
At the weekend, Mary goes shopping; she wants to buy a shirt, a
Vietnamese dictionary and then some fruit.
1. Mary is at a clothes shop

45
Saller: Cho em! Ch c th gip g cho em?
Mary: Cho ch! Em c th xem chic o mu hng kia khng ?
Saller: y! Em xem th i.
Mary: Ch i! Em c th mc th c khng ?
Saller: Em mc th i.
Mary: Trng c v hi cht mt cht, ch c c no rng hn khng?
Saller: Em ang mc th c S phi khng?
Mary: em xem , vng ng ri ch .
Saller: Th th em mc c M l va y, em th li o ny i.
Mary: Vng!
Saller: Em thy th no? C va khng?
Mary: Va ch . Bao nhiu tin chic o ny?
Saller: Chic o 110.000 em .
Mary: i! Hnh nh hi t, ch c th bt cho em mt cht c
khng?
Saller: Thi c! Ch bn m hng, bt cho em 10.000.
Mary: Cm n ch!
Saller: Em c mua thm g na khng?
Mary: D khng , cho ch nh!
2. Mary is in the book shop
Seller: Em ang tm sch g th?
Mary: Ch i y c bn t in ting Vit khng ?
Seller: C, pha bn ny c, ch ly cho.
Mary: Em mi bt u hc ting Vit th nn dng quyn no ch
nh?
Seller: Th th em nn dng quyn ny, ton nhng t thng dng
thi.
Mary: Vng! Cm n ch nhiu nh. Quyn ny gi bao nhiu th
ch?
Seller: Quyn ny gi 45.000 thi em .
Mary: Cm n ch . Cho ch!
Seller: Cho em!
3. Mary is at the market.
Seller: Chu i! Vo y mua hoa qu cho c.
Mary: C i! Bao nhiu tin mt cn nho ?
Seller: Nho 25.000 mt cn chu . Chu mua i nho ti v ngt
lm.
Mary: C bn gim cho chu nh, 20.000 mt cn thi .
Seller: Thi c bn 22.000 chu mua gip c nh?
Mary: Vng! Th c cn gip chu .
Seller: Chu mua g na khng?
Mary: D! khng . Chu cho c.
Seller: cho chu! Ln sau li vo mua hoa qu cho c nh.

Dialogue 1:
Saller: Hello! Can I help you?

46
Mary: Hello! Can I see that pink shirt?
Saller: Here you are.
Mary: Can I try it on?
Saller: Yes, you can.
Mary: It looks a little bit small. Do you have a bigger size?
Saller: You are trying on S size, arent you?
Mary: Let me see, yes it is.
Saller: So the M size is fit to you, can you try on this one?
Mary: Yes,
Saller: How about it? Is it fit to you?
Mary: Yes, it is. How does it cost?
Saller: It cost 110.000 VND.
Mary: Oh! It is expensive. Could you cut the price down?
Saller: Alright! It is the first purchase of day for you; I reduce
10.000 VND for you.
Mary: Thank you!
Saller: Would you like to buy more?
Mary: No, thanks and goodbye!
Dialogue 2:
Saller: Which book are you looking for?
Mary: Is there any Vietnamese dictionary here?
Saller: Yes, it is over there; let me take it for you.
Mary: I just started to learn Vietnamse, so which Dictionary should
I use?
Saller: Oh! You should use this book; it is contain almost common
words.
Mary: Yes, thank you very much. How much is it?
Saller: It is only 45.000 VND.
Mary: Thank you and goodbye!
Saller: Goodbye!
Dialogue 3:
Saller: Hey girl! Come to buy my fruit!
Mary: How much does a kilo of grapefruit cost?
Saller: One kilo grapefruit costs 25.000 VND. It is very fresh and
sweet, you should buy it.
Mary: Could you reduce the price? 20.000 a kilo?
Saller: Alright! I wil sell it with the price of 22.000 VND, let buy it.
Mary: Yes, could you give me a kilo.
Saller: Do you need anything else?
Mary: No, thanks and goodbye!
Saller: Goodbye! Shall you come to my shop next time?
4. T mi (New word)
Vietnamese English equivalent

gip to help

xem to look, to see

47
chic a classifier

o (o s mi) Shirt

o phng T-Shirt

o vt Jacket

mu hng pink

mc th to try it on

hi a little bit

cht small

c size

rng Big/ large

va fit

tin money

t expensive

bt = gim gi sale off / ct the price off

bn to sale

mua to buy

bn/ mua m hng to make the first purchase

tm to search, to look for

sch ( quyn sch) book

t in dictionary

ly to take

bt u to begin

hc to learn

dng = s dng to use

quyn a classifier

48
Ton (ton b) all

thng dng common

gi price

qu fruit

cn Kilo

qu nho (nho) grapefruit

ti fresh

ngt sweet

ln sau next time

* Note:
1. Shopping
In Vietnam, the most popular place for doing shopping is the
market. There are many things available here and you can buy
anything you need from food to electrical goods. The market is not
only the place for doing shopping but also the place for meeting to
exchange information, and especially, it is a place for young people
who want to find the other part of their life, the popular market like
this are Sapa love market, Khau vai love market. It is popular that
Vietnameses largest markets are ng Xun in Hanoi, ng Ba in
Hue and Bn Thnh in Sai Gon. Market is the most useful place for
foreigners who want to learn Vietnamese language and to practice.
2. Vietnamese currency
The currency of Vietnam is named as ng, in the past there
existed smaller monetary units called xu and ho, but they are
no longer used. At the present, the smallest banknote denomination
is 100 ng, and the biggest one is 500.000 ng. Beside that,
there are some coins in Vietnamese circulation including 200 ng,
500 ng, 1000 ng, 2000 ng and 5000 ng.
See the below system (range from the smallest to the biggest)
Paper money Coin

100 ng

200 ng 200 ng

500 ng 500 ng

1000 ng 1000 ng

49
2000 ng 2000 ng

5000 ng 5000 ng

10 000 ng

20 000 ng

50 000 ng

100 000 ng

200 000 ng

500 000 ng

3. Ng php (Grammar)
5. Classifier
Vietnamese uses a system of classifiers to indicate word classes of
nouns. It sounds slightly complecated at first but the below
examples show that it is not too difficult.
* Usage of classifiers:
- Use to specify an object, a person, an animal, etc. in specific case.
Example:
Specific reference General reference
Con ch ca ti rt p Ch l loi ng vt thng minh
-> My dog is very beautiful -> Dog is an intelligent animal
This statement refers to a specific This statement there is no specific dog is
dog, i.e. my dog;therefore the refered to, dog here is refered as a
classifier con is used. species; therefore no classifier is used.

6. Classifiers stand before the noun they classify classifier +

noun
E.g.
Con mo -> a cat
Ci bn -> a table
i giy -> a pair of shoes
7. When the statement refers to the certain number of object,
animal, etc. the classifiers is used normally and placed after
the number.
E.g.
Ba con mo -> three cats
Nm ci bn -> five tables
Hai i giy -> two pair of shoes
Sometimes, classifiers can stand without nouns, but it occurs in

50
clear context in which they refer to.
Example:
- Quyn sch ny rt hay, cho t mn quyn ny nh.
Classifier noun classifier
-> This book is very interesting, may I borrow it?
The below are the most common classifiers:
Classifiers Usage Examples

Ci Used for most ainanimate ci (umbrella), ci ba (hammer),

objects ci inh (srew), etc

Con Usually for animals, but can con dao (knife), con ng (street),
be used to describe some con mo (cat), etc.
inanimate object

Bi Used for copositions like bi ht (song), bi th (poem), etc.

songs, drawings, poems,
essays, etc.

Cy Used for stick like objects cy tre ( bamboo), cay ma (cane),

cy sng (gun), etc

Chic Object that are worn or chic gh (chair), chic xe (car),

moved by people chic o (shirt), etc.

Ta Building of authority ta n (court), ta nh (hall), ta

thp (tower)

Qu/ tri Used for globular objects qu/ tri t (the Earth), qu xoi
(Earth, fruit) (mango)(fruits)

quyn/ Used for book-like object quyn sch (book), quyn v

cun (notebook), quyn nht k (diary),
etc.

T Used for sheets and other t bo (newspaper), t giy

thin objects made of paper (paper), t lch (calendar), etc.

Vic an event or an ongoing vic ci xin (wedding ceremony)

process

Cuc Used for process, activity cuc chin tranh (war), cuc thi hoa
like sport, contests, hu (beauty contest), cuc cch
meetings, parties, struggles... mng (revolution), etc.

i Used for objects always i giy ( pair of shoes) i a (

come in set of two pair of chopstick), etc.

B Used for a set of group b bn gh (set of table and chair),

51
 objects b m chn (tea-set)

Tm Rectangular flat piece of tm vi (cloth), tm g (wood), etc.

material, with cloth, boards,
etc.

Bc Flat and rectangular objects Bc th (letter), bc tranh

(picture), etc.

- Besides, the classifier ci has a special role in that it can extend

all other classifiers e.g. ci con mo ny (this cat), ci chic o ny
(this shirt), etc.
- Many other words can fulfil the role of a classifier:
~ Containers: hp (box), chai (bottle), bt (bowl), m (kettle), cc
(glass)
~ Unit of language: t (word), cu (sentence), ting (sound).
~ Spartial unit: ch (place), lp (class), phng (room), nc
(country).
~ Time unit: ba (meal), ln (time), gi (hour), pht (minute),
ngy (day), ma (season), thng (month), nm (year).
8. Bao nhiu tin? How much?
To ask for price of thing, Vietnamese often uses the question which
forms of the word bao nhiu tin. See the form below:
CN + (gi) + bao nhiu (tin)?
S + (cost) + how much?

Example:
- Chic o ny bao nhiu tin? -> How much is this shirt?
- Quyn sch ny bao nhiu tin? -> How much is this book?
- Bao nhiu tin mt cn nho? -> How much is a kilo of grapefruit?
It can be placed at the beginning or at the very end of the question,
but do not change the meaning of question.
See below examples:
- Chic o ny bao nhiu tin? -> How much is this shirt?
- Bao nhiu tin chic o ny? -> How much is this shirt?
Sometimes, the word gi is added before bao nhiu tin, or the
word tin can be omitted.
Example:
- Chic o ny gi bao nhiu (tin)? -> How much does this shirt
cost?
- Quyn sch ny gi bao nhiu (tin)? -> How much does this
book cost?
Have you relize how to answer this question, look again the
dialogue and you will see the way to answer. It is very simple if
follow these below order:

52
CN + gi + s tin
S + cost + money

Example: See the answer of these above questions.

- Chic o ny gi 110.000 ng. -> This shirt costs 110.000 VND.
- Quyn sch ny gi 45.000 ng -> this book costs 45.000 VND.
- Mt cn nho gi 25.000 ng -> One kilo grapefruit costs 25.000
VND.
* Note:
In some case, the word gi can be omitted, e.g. Chic o
110.000 ng.
It is not necessary that the answer has to follow the above order, it
can be changed or shortened as shown in the below examples:
- 25.000 ng mt cn nho. -> 25.000 VND for one kilo grapefruit.
- 110.000 chic o . -> 110.000 VND for that shirt.
- 45.000 quyn sch . -> 45.000 VND for that book.
Short answer like:
A: Nho bao nhiu tin mt cn?
B: 25.000 ng.
A: How much is one kilo grapefruit?
B: 25.000 VND.
In this case the both seller and buyer all know exactly thing, but it
occurs in spoken language.
9. Quantifier: mt cht, mt t (a) few, (a) little.
The using of quantifier in Vietnamese is not so different from that in
English, there are two types of quantifiers, one is used for count
noun and the other is used for non-count noun.
The most common quantifiers are:
Used with count noun Used with non-count noun

Mt vi Mt lt (used for time only)

Mt lc (used for time only)
Mt cht
Mt t
Mt t

The position of the quantifiers is before the nouns

Example:
- Mt vi ci bnh -> A few cakes
- Vi ci ko -> some sweets
- Mt cht ng -> a little sugar
- Mt t mui -> a little salt
- Mt t kem -> a little cream
Exceptionally, mt lt, mt lc are the quantifiers for time only
therefore they are no longer need the existence of the noun time,
Example:
53
- i ti mt lt -> wait me for some minutes.
- Ti i bn c mt lc ri -> I am waiting for you for some
minutes.
In the clear context when the conversation attendants all know the
thing they refer to, the quantifiers can stand alone without the noun
Example:
- Mary points to a pack of sweet and says to Lan: cho t vi ci
nh Can I have some?. In this case, Mary does not need to refer to
sweet, but Lan can understand Mary wants some sweets.

1.
1.1. S th t (Ordinal number)
Ordinal number is formed from cardinal number by adding the
ordinal designator th. This element precedes the cardinal
number.
Vietnamese English

Th nht The first

Th hai* The second

Th ba The third

Th t* The fourth

Th nm The fifth

Th su The sixth

Th by The seventh

Th tm The eightth

Th chn The nineth

Th mi The tenth

Th mi mt The eleventh

Th mi hai The twelveth

Th mi ba The thirteenth

Th mi bn The forteenth

Th mi lm The fifteenth

Th mi su The sixteenth

54
1.2. Talking about time
* To tell the time
There are three words to express the time in Vietnamese are
gi hour, pht minute and giy second.
* To state the time:
In Vietnamese, the way to state the time is various.
In even hour we say
11:00 -> 11 gi -> 11 oclock
8:00 -> 8 gi -> 8 oclock
In other cases, Vietnamese uses qua and km to express.
Example:
9:15 -> 9 gi (qua) 15 (pht) -> a quarter past nine / nine fifteen.
11: 20 -> 11 gi (qua) 20 (pht) -> eleven twenty
And use km
8: 45 = 9 gi km 15 (pht) -> a quarter to nine / fifteen to nine
9:50 -> 10 gi km 10 -> ten to ten
To express the time past 30 minutes we use ri.
Example:
8:30 -> 9 ri -> half past eight
10:30 -> 10 ri -> half past ten
10. To express the time in which period of day,
Vietnamese use the below words, which refer to the period of
day, to add after the time.
Period of time Vietnamese English equivalent

1:00am~11:00am sng morning

11:00am~1:00pm tra at noon

1:00pm~7:00pm chiu afternoon

7:00pm~11:00pm ti evening

11:00pm~1:00am m night

Example:
2: 15 pm -> 2 gi 15 chiu
9:20 am -> 9 gi 20 sng
12:00pm -> 12 gi tra
1:00 am -> 2 gi m
* Ask and answer about time.
When asking for the time, Vietnamese use the question:
By gi l my gi (ri)?
And the answer is by gi l (time) gi (ri).
Example:
A: By gi l my gi?

55
B: By gi l 9 gi (ri).
* To ask someone what time he/she does something we use:
S + V + lc/ vo lc my gi?
Example:
Nam i hc vo lc my gi? -> What time does Nam go to school?
And the answer is
Nam i hc vo lc 7 gi. -> Nam goes to school at 7 oclock
* Days in a week:
When denoting the day in a week we use the ordinal number to
express except Sunday. The week starts from Sunday, so we have:
Vietnamese English equivalence

Ch nht Sunday

Th hai Monday

Th ba Tuesday

Th t Wednesday

Th nm Thursday

Th su Friday

Th by Saturday

* Ask and answer about the day in a week.

We use the question: Hm nay l th my?
The answer is to replace my by the day in the week.
Example:
A: Hm nay l th my? -> What day is it today?
B: Hm nay l th t. -> Today is Wednesday.
If we want to ask for other days we use these terms to make
question:
Vietnamese English equivalence

hm nay today

ngy mai tomorrow

ngy kia the day after tomorrow

hm qua yesterday

hm kia the day before yesterday

Example:

56
A: Hm kia l th my? -> What day is it the day before yesterday?
B: Hm kia l th hai. -> The day before yesterday is Monday
2. Talking about distance:
2.1. Preposition: T...... nmeans ..from....to...
+)Used to express the movement from one place to another place.
...t + place 1 + n + place 2
Example:
- t nh ti n trng -> from my house to school
- t sn bay n khch sn -> from the airport to the hotel
+) To express a period of time: t + time 1 + n + time 2
Example:
- t 8 gi sng n 5 gi chiu -> From 8 oclock in the morning
to 5 oclock in the afternoon
- t sng n ti -> from dawn till dusk
2.2. Cch v Bao xa
- We use the word cch and bao xa to state the distance
between two places. it follow the form:
Question form: Place 1 + cch + place 2 + bao xa (how far)?
Answer form is Place 1 + cch + place 2 + s km (number of
km).
Example:
Sn bay cch nh ga bao xa? -> How far is it from the airport to the
station?
Sn bay cch nh ga 20 km -> The airport is 20 km from the
station.
Besides, we can use the question which is combined with the
prepositon t... n.
Example:
- T H Ni n Hu khong* bao xa?
(Place 1) (place 2) (about) (how far)?
This question can be translated as: How far is it from Hanoi to Hue?
and the answer can be:
- T H Ni n Hu khong 500 km. -> It is about 500km from
Hanoi to Hue.
Or we can answer by using the form 3 above as below:
- H Ni cch Hu khong 500 km. -> Hanoi is about 500km from
Hue.
* Note:
+) The word khong can be replace by the word l and cch.
Example:
T H Ni n Hu l 500 km. -> It is 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
hoc
T H Ni n Hu cch 500 km. -> It is 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
+) cch can also be used to state the period of time. It is to
describe how long ago something happened.
Example:
Ti n Vit Nam cch y hai tun

57
-> I arrived Vietnam two week ago.
Ti bt u hc ting Vit cch y mt thng.
-> I started to learn Vietnamese a month ago.
3. Bao lu: How long.
To ask for how long something done we use the question: S + V +
(mt) bao lu? and the answer is S + V + (mt) time
Example:
A: Bn i t nh n trng mt bao lu?
-> How long does it take you from your house to school?
B: Ti i t nh n trng mt 30 pht.
-> It takes me 30 mintes from my house to school.
C: i t H Ni vo Hu mt bao lu?
- > How long does it take from Hanoi to Hue?
D: i t H Ni n Hu mt khong 6 ting.
-> It takes about 6 hours from Hanoi to Hue.
4. Conjunction:
4.1. nn means so
We use the conjunction nn to combine two clauses that have
cause and effect meaning.
See the example for detail:
- Tri ma// nn // chng ti s khng i ra ngoi na.
(Cause) nn (Effect)
It rains so we will not go out.
To emphasize the reason we add the word vat the very beginning
of the cause clause.
Example:
- V // tri ma // nn // chng ti s khng i ra ngoi na.
v (cause) nn (effect)
-> Because it rains so we will not go out.
The position of these two clauses can be exchanged, and in this
case the word nn can be omittied, and replaced by v.
See example:
- Chng ti s khng i ra ngoi na // v // tri ma.
(Effect) v (cause)
-> We will not go out because it rains.
* Note:
- When both two clauses refer to the same subject, it can be
omitted in one of these two clauses.
Example:
- (V) b m nn Lan khng n lp.
(v) (S) V nn S V
-> Because of being ill so Lan does not come to class.
Or
- Lan b m nn khng n lp.
S V nn (S) V
This sentence can be translated into English as:
-> Lan is ill so not come to class.

58
4.2. Hnh nh: seem to be
In Vietnamese, when talking about something that is not so clear or
may cause a doubt, the word hnh nh is used and it often state
at the beginning of the sentence.
Example:
- Hnh nh bn cha quen ng ph H Ni lm.
-> You seem to be not so familiar to Hanoi Street.
- Hnh nh ti cha tng n ni ny.
-> It seems to be that I have ever been here.
4.3. Nn: should
Vietnamese use the word nn to give suggestion or advice to
someone. It often stands after the subject S + nn + V
Example:
- Bn nn n bng taxi -> You should get there by taxi.
- Bn nn th gin mt cht -> You should relax.
11. Classifier
Vietnamese uses a system of classifiers to indicate word classes of
nouns. It sounds slightly complecated at first but the below
examples show that it is not too difficult.
- Classifiers are used to specify an object, a person, an animal, etc.
in specific case.
- Classifiers stand before the noun they classify classifier +
noun
E.g.
Con mo -> a cat
Ci bn -> a table
i giy -> a pair of shoes
- When the statement refers to the certain number of object,
animal, etc. the classifiers is used normally and placed after the
number.
E.g.
Ba con mo -> three cats
Nm ci bn -> five tables
Hai i giy -> two pair of shoes
Sometimes, classifiers can stand without nouns, but it occurs in
clear context in which they refer to.
Example:
- Bnh ny ngon lm, mnh mua my ci nh.
noun classifier
-> This cake is very delicious, shall we buy some?
The below are the most common classifiers:
Classifiers Usage Examples

Ci Used for most ainanimate ci (umbrella), ci ba (hammer),

objects ci inh (srew), etc

Con Usually for animals, but can con dao (knife), con ng (street),

59
 be used to describe some con mo (cat), etc.
inanimate object

Bi Used for copositions like bi ht (song), bi th (poem), etc.

songs, drawings, poems,
essays, etc.

Cy Used for stick like objects cy tre ( bamboo), cay ma (cane),

cy sng (gun), etc

Chic Object that are worn or chic gh (chair), chic xe (car),

moved by people chic o (shirt), etc.

Ta Building of authority ta n (court), ta nh (hall), ta

thp (tower)

Qu/ tri Used for globular objects qu/ tri t (the Earth), qu xoi
(Earth, fruit) (mango)(fruits)

quyn/ Used for book-like object quyn sch (book), quyn v

cun (notebook), quyn nht k (diary),
etc.

T Used for sheets and other t bo (newspaper), t giy (paper),

thin objects made of paper t lch (calendar), etc.

Vic an event or an ongoing vic ci xin (wedding ceremony)

process

Cuc Used for process, activity cuc chin tranh (war), cuc thi hoa
like sport, contests, hu (beauty contest), cuc cch
meetings, parties, struggles... mng (revolution), etc.

i Used for objects always i giy ( pair of shoes) i a (

come in set of two pair of chopstick), etc.

B Used for a set of group b bn gh (set of table and chair),

objects b m chn (tea-set)

Tm Rectangular flat piece of tm vi (cloth), tm g (wood), etc.

material, with cloth, boards,
etc.

Bc Flat and rectangular objects Bc th (letter), bc tranh

(picture), etc.

- Besides, the classifier ci has a special role in that it can extend

all other classifiers e.g. ci con mo ny (this cat), ci chic o ny
(this shirt), etc.

60
6. Bao nhiu tin? How much?
+) To ask for price of thing, Vietnamese uses the question: S +
(gi) bao nhiu (tin)? and the answer is S + (gi) + money
Example:
A: Chic o ny (gi) bao nhiu tin? -> How much is this shirt?
B: Chic o ny (gi) 100.000 ng. -> This shirt costs 100.000
VND.
C: Quyn sch ny (gi) bao nhiu tin? -> How much is this book?
D: Quyn sch ny gi 45.000 ng. -> This book costs 45.000
VND.
+) The word order in the question can be changed but do not affect
the meaning of question.
Examples:
- Chic o ny bao nhiu? -> How much is this shirt?
- Bao nhiu tin chic o ny? -> How much is this shirt?
+) Sometimes, tin can be omitted but we still understand the
meaning of sentence.
- Chic o ny gi bao nhiu (tin)? -> How much does this shirt
cost?
7. Quantifier: mt cht, mt t (a) few, (a) little.
The using of quantifier in Vietnamese is not so different from that in
English, there are two types of quantifiers, one is used for count
noun and the other is used for non-count noun.
The most common quantifiers are:
Used with count noun Used with non-count noun

Mt vi Mt lt (used for time only)

Mt lc (used for time only)
Mt cht
Mt t
Mt t

The position of the quantifiers is before the nouns

Example:
- Mt vi ci bnh -> A few cakes
- Vi ci ko -> some sweets
- Mt cht ng -> a little sugar
- Mt t mui -> a little salt
- Mt t kem -> a little cream
Exceptionally, mt lt, mt lc are the quantifiers for time only
therefore they are no longer need the existence of the noun time,
Example:
- i ti mt lt -> wait me for some minutes.
- Ti i bn c mt lc ri -> I am waiting for you for some
minutes.
In the clear context when the conversation attendants all know the
thing they refer to, the quantifiers can stand alone without the noun

61
Example:
- Mary points to a pack of sweet and says to Lan: cho t vi ci
nh Can I have some?. In this case, Mary does not need to refer to
sweet, but Lan can understand Mary wants some sweets.

62