Những (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam usually eats one bowl of phở for breakfast, but this morning he was very hungry.

Sáng nay, Nam ăn những hai tô phở.
(This morning, Nam ate as many as two bowls of phở.)

Những is used here to emphasize the large amount of something (two bowls) according to the speaker.

S2: Thu's boyfriend is working far away. She waits for his letters every day and writes in her diary:

Mình những mong thư của anh ấy. Nhưng sao cả tuần vẫn chưa có?
(I'm all but waiting for his letters every day, but why has none come for a whole week?)

In this situation, những is used to express a high degree of expectation.

Definition

Những, as a particle, is used before a numeral to indicate a very great amount based on the speaker's estimation (S1). It is also placed before an adjective or verb referring to a psychological state (e.g., to remember, to wait for, to believe) to emphasize that state (S2).

  • những and đến / tới: We can also use đến / tới + numeral instead of những to indicate a very great amount.
[1] Cái áo này đến / tới / những 200.000 đồng.
    (This shirt costs 200,000 VND!) (Stress on the high price.)
  • những and lận: In the Southern dialect, the particle lận is used at the end of the sentence to express a very great amount.
[2] Ông ấy có hai căn nhà ở Đà Lạt lận.
    (He has as many as two houses in Đà Lạt.)
  • những and chỉ / chỉ có / có: The antonyms of những are chỉ, chỉ có, and có.
[3a] Nó ăn những 5 bát cơm.
     (He eats as many as 5 bowls of rice.)
[3b] Nó ăn có / chỉ có / chỉ 5 bát cơm.
     (He only eats 5 bowls of rice.)

Cf. chỉ (p. 45), có (p. 77).

Combinations

  • những... là...: This construction indicates a very large amount or prevalence of something.
Đêm Noel, trung tâm Sài Gòn những người là người.
(On Christmas Eve, the center of Sài Gòn is nothing but people.)