Dictionary of Vietnamese Grammar

Source: Từ điển ngữ pháp Tiếng Việt cơ bản by Nguyễn Văn Huệ (2003).

For educational & non-commercial purposes only.

GUIDE TO THE DICTIONARY

In general, each word item includes:

1. Word
2. Part of speech
3. Situation(s)
4. Word definition
5. RELATED EXPRESSION(S): To compare or to indicate the differences of meaning with related words.
6. COMBINATION(S): To indicate combinations of the concerned word and other words.
7. Other related entries it may be useful to look up

ABREVIATIONS

1. Adj. Adjective
2. Adv. Adverb
3. Art. Article
4. Cf Compare
5. Cn. Classifying noun
6. De. Demonstrative
7. De. Pro. Demonstrative pronoun
8. Em. Emphasizer
9. Ex. For example
10. Exclam. Exclamatory word

A (Exclam.)

Situations

S1: When seeing his mother back home from the market, the child exclaims:

A! Mẹ đã về!
(Oh! Mom is back!)

In this situation, the child expresses his joy.

S2: Lan's husband usually comes home late on Saturday. But today he arrives home early. Lan says:

A, hôm nay anh về sớm quá!
(Oh, you are home early today!)

In this situation, Lan expresses her surprise.

S3: Nam made an appointment with Bình to return his money. At the coffee shop, they talked a lot. He didn't remember to return the money until he was about to leave. He said:

A! Tôi quên, tôi chưa trả tiền cho anh.
(Oh! I forgot. I didn't return your money yet.)

In this situation, a is used to indicate that the speaker remembers something.

Definition

A, as an exclamatory word, is used at the beginning of the sentence to show joy, surprise, or to indicate that the speaker remembers something.

Related Expressions

A! is an exclamatory sentence in S1 and S3, and a used at the beginning of the sentence is an exclamatory word in S2.

Both a and à, used interchangeably, express that the speaker is surprised or just figures out something. However, a is not used to express joy.

[1] — À, mẹ về!
(Yeah! Mom is back!)

We use thảo nào / hèn chi / hèn gì to express surprise when we suddenly remember or realize something. But thảo nào is used to express a conclusion or new discovery about something. Cf:

Hoa tells Lan that Mrs. Ba has just won the lottery. Lan says:

[2] Thảo nào dạo này trông bà ấy trẻ ra.
(That is why she looks younger these days.)

Lan suddenly remembers that Mrs. Ba still owes her money. Lan asks:

[3] À, chị có nghe bà ấy nói khi nào bà ấy trả tiền cho tôi không?
(Oh, did you hear her say when she will return my money?)

Combinations

À, ra vậy! (Cf. thảo nào), is used to express that we realize or understand something after hearing some news or an explanation. This expression is like a conclusion.

John speaks Vietnamese very well. Hà tells Nam that John's mother is Vietnamese. Nam says:

[1] — À, ra vậy!
(Oh, now I understand!)

À is also used in combination with thảo nào / hèn chi / hèn gì to express surprise and sudden understanding.

[2] — À, thảo nào!
(Oh, that is why!)

À (Par.)

Situations

S1: Nam and Hà have been swimming for an hour. Hà looks tired. Nam says:

Anh mệt rồi à?
(You are tired, aren't you?)

In this situation, Nam wants to verify his observation (that Hà is tired), so he uses à at the end of the question.

S2: Every morning, when seeing Tom get on his bike to go to work, the hostess asks:

Anh đi làm à?
(You are going to work, right?)

In this situation, the hostess does not wait for an answer from Tom. She just wants to express interest in Tom.

Definition

À, as a particle, placed at the end of a question, is used to ask for more information about something that the speaker is observing (based on certain evidence). This particle is also often used in spoken language to express concern for or interest in the listener.

Related Expressions

• À and hả can be used interchangeably. However, hả is particularly used to ask for more information about something that is unclear to the speaker.
• À, nhỉ, nhé, chứ, ư, etc., belong to the final sentence particle group, but they connote different meanings.

Ấy (De. Pro.)

Situations

S1: Lan, pointing at a young lady standing at the door, asked Nam: "Who is that?", Nam answered:

Ấy là cô thư ký mới.
(That is the new secretary.)

Ấy here is a pronoun indicating a person at a distance from both speaker and listener.

S2: Hung's mother punished him because he was lazy in schoolwork. After punishment, she said:

Ấy là mẹ muốn con chăm chỉ hơn.
(That is because I want you to be more studious.)

The pronoun ấy refers to the mother's punishment.

Definition

Ấy, as a demonstrative pronoun, is used to refer to a person or thing far from both speaker and listener, or to refer to something which has just been mentioned.

As a subject, the pronoun ấy occurs only at the beginning of the sentence and goes only with the copula là. Note that ấy cannot be used as an object.

Related Expressions

In fact, ấy is not often used as a subject, but đó / đấy are used instead to indicate a person or thing which is far from the speaker and the listener, or which has just been mentioned.

[1] — Ấy / Đó / Đấy là tôi muốn giúp anh.
(It is that I want to help you.)

Đó / đấy can occur as a complement of place, but ấy cannot.

[2] — Tôi đã sống ở đấy / đó / *ấy 10 năm.
(I had been living there for 10 years.)

Note: Đó is often used in the Southern dialect.

The pronouns đây, này refer to a person or thing close to both the speaker and the listener. Cf:

[3a] — Ấy là em gái tôi.
(That is my younger sister.)

[3b] — Đây là em gái tôi.
(This is my younger sister.)

[3c] — Này là chị ruột, này là em dâu.
(This is my blood elder sister, and this is my sister-in-law.)

Note: The pronoun này is rarely used as a subject of the sentence.

Ấy (De. Adj.)

Situations

S1: Mr. Thu received a call from someone. Afterward, his wife asked him:

Người ấy là bạn cũ của ông có phải không?
(That person is your old friend, isn't it?)

Ấy here is a demonstrative adjective, used to indicate the person who has just been mentioned or known about.

S2: Mr. Lam is already old. He always thinks that the people of his time were all good, and the people of today are all bad. He says:

Cái thời ấy, ai cũng tốt cả!
(In those days, everybody was good!)

In this situation, ấy goes with a noun of time to express past time. It can also go with a noun of place to refer to a place far from the speaker.

Definition

Ấy, as a demonstrative adjective, placed after a noun (concrete noun, abstract noun, noun indicating time, noun indicating place), is used to indicate a person, thing, or event which has just been mentioned or known about.

Related Expressions

• Ấy belongs to the demonstrative adjective group of này, đấy, đó, and kia.
• Ấy (as a demonstrative adjective) can often be replaced with đó, especially in the Southern dialect.

Combinations

In the Vietnamese language, many nouns indicating kinship (family relationships) may go with ấy to form personal pronouns of the third person, such as: ông ấy, bà ấy, anh ấy, chị ấy, etc.

Vợ anh tên gì? Chị ấy làm nghề gì?
(What is your wife's name? What is her job?)

Bị (V.)

Situations

S1: Nam was driving too fast. He was stopped and fined by the police. Cf:

[1a] Cảnh sát phạt Nam.
(The police fined Nam)
[1b] Nam bị cảnh sát phạt.
(Nam was fined by the police.)

In [1b], Nam is the object that undergoes the punishment; in [1a], Nam is the subject receiving punishment from the police.

S2: Nam went to work late. The director decided to dock his salary. Cf:

[2a] Ông giám đốc giảm lương của Nam.
(The director docked Nam's salary.)
[2b] Nam bị (ông giám đốc) giảm lương.
(Nam's salary was docked (by the director).)

In [2b] lương (salary) is the object of the action giảm (to dock), and Nam is the person that undergoes this action. In many cases, the person who does the action may go unmentioned if it is not necessary to complete the meaning (See [1b], [2b]).

S3: Nam has just received his girlfriend's letter. His classmates read it before he did. Cf:

[3a] Bạn cùng lớp đọc thư của Nam.
(Nam's classmates read his letter.)
[3b] Nam bị bạn cùng lớp đọc thư.
(Nam's letter was read by his classmates.)

S4: Only one Vietnamese language dictionary is still in the bookshop. Nam wanted to buy it, but a man took it before he did. He said:

[4] Tôi bị người ta mua sách trước mất rồi.
(The book I wanted to buy had been bought by someone else.)

In the situations S3 and S4, the actions đọc (to read) and mua (to buy) cause unfavorable things for Nam. Thư (letter) is his letter, and sách (book) is a thing in which he is interested. Complementary example:

Tôi bị con khóc suốt đêm nên không ngủ được.
(I could not sleep because my baby cried all night long.)

Tôi đi trễ nên bị người khác chiếm chỗ.
(I was late so my place was occupied by another person.)

S5: Nam is running a 40° C temperature.

[5] Nam bị sốt.
(Nam has a fever.)

S6: Nam was late to buy a first-class ticket. So he had to get a second-class one.

[6] Nam bị ngồi ghế hạng hai.
(Nam had to go second class.)

In the situations S5 and S6, bị is used to express a negative or unfavorable thing that the subject undergoes. In many cases (such as bị bệnh, bị đau, bị chết...), bị can be omitted without changing the main meaning of the sentence.

Definition

Bị, as a verb, is used to express that the subject undergoes something which is done/caused by the object (as an agent), and which is unfavourable to the subject.

Related Expressions

• Bị belongs to the verb group of được, bị, phải that expresses receiving or undergoing something favorable or unfavorable.
• Cf: được1 (p. 139), phải2 (p. 309), mất (p. 243).

Combinations

• ... bị + verb + bởi ...: This construction is often used in press and official written texts. Ex.:

[1] Ông ta bị giết bởi ba kẻ lạ mặt.
(He was killed by three strange men.)
[2] Nó bị trừng phạt bởi những lỗi lầm của mình.
(He is punished for his mistakes.)

In the Vietnamese language, a sentence with the verb bị must not always be regarded as a passive sentence. Rather, it is a subject-predicate structure sentence that indicates that the subject undergoes something by someone / something else.

• For some action verbs the agent and the receiver are reversed when the verb is accompanied with bị: bị giết / giết, bị đánh / đánh, bị phạt / phạt... In this case the sentence structure is changed, with the agent always placed after bị and before the verb.

[3] Anh ấy giết con gấu.
(He killed a bear.)
[4] Anh ấy bị con gấu giết.
(He was killed by a bear.)

• Some words always preceded by bị, form idiomatic groups, such as: bị đạn, bị tên, bị thương (be wounded)....

Cả (Adj.)

Situations

S1: Tomorrow, Mầm Non school will go to Vũng Tàu, everybody will go.

Ngày mai, cả trường đi Vũng Tàu.
(Tomorrow, the whole school will go to Vũng Tàu.)

In this situation, trường is considered as a unit (though it is a group of many parts, like teachers, schoolchildren, office employees). So it can go with the adjective cả.

S2: Bình was on the street when it suddenly rained. He was wet from head to toe.

Bình bị ướt cả người.
(Bình is all wet / soaked all over / wet to the skin.)

Người here is considered as a unit (the body), so it can be combined with cả.

Definition

Cả, as an adjective, is placed before unit nouns (such as chiếc, quyển, nước, tỉnh, etc.) to indicate the whole of the unit.

Related Expressions

• Cả and tất cả are both used to indicate the whole of a unit / a group, but they have different nuances. Cf. tất cả (p. 355).

• Cả and toàn: Toàn is also used to indicate all of the parts of a group. Furthermore, toàn means of the same nature, not a mixture of different kinds of things. Toàn and cả can be interchanged in some situations but not all. Cf:

[1] Toàn / Cả khu vực này bị cúp điện.
(There is no electricity in this whole area.)
[2] Cả / *Toàn nhà nó bị ngộ độc thức ăn.
(His whole family got food poisoning.)

Cf. toàn (p. 377).

• Toàn bộ, toàn thể, etc. also used to indicate all of the parts, all of the members of a group; but when they are combined with nouns, they imply a subtle difference: cả can go only with unit nouns, whereas toàn bộ can go not only with unit nouns but also with nouns of general meaning, such as cuộc đời (life), quyển sách (book)....

• Toàn thể goes with unit nouns of at least two syllables (usually referring to people) such as giáo viên, bác sĩ, dân tộc. Cf:

[3] Cả / *Toàn bộ / *Toàn thể nhà đi vắng.
(The whole family is out.)

(Nhà, a monosyllabic word, here is considered as one unit.)

[4] Cả / Toàn thể / Toàn bộ công ty được nghỉ 3 ngày.
(The whole company has a three-day holiday.)

(Công ty is understood as one unit or one group.)

[5] Tôi đã đọc cả / toàn bộ / *toàn thể quyển sách ấy rồi.
(I read that whole book.)

(Quyển sách is a noun phrase that consists of two syllables, in which quyển is a unit noun.)

Cả (Par.)

Situations

S1: Nam was drunk and hit many people, one of whom was his elder brother.

Nam say rượu, đánh cả anh của mình.
(Nam was drunk and hit many people, even his elder brother.)

Normally, Nam respects his elder brother very much; the action đánh (hit) here is not normal, it exceeds the moral limit.

S2: Mr. Ba won the lottery. Even though he bought a house and appliances, he still has enough money to purchase a car.

Ông Ba mua nhà, mua đồ đạc và mua cả xe hơi.
(Mr. Ba bought a house, appliances, and even a car.)

The event mua xe hơi (buy a car) exceeds the imagination of the speaker.

Definition

Cả, as a particle, is used to express a degree that exceeds a scope or limit.

Combinations

[1a] Họ muốn gặp cả anh và tôi.
(They want to see both you and me.)
[1b] Họ muốn gặp cả anh cả tôi.
(They want to see both you and me.)
[1c] Họ muốn gặp cả anh lẫn tôi.
(They want to see both you and me.)

• cả ... cũng ...; kể cả ... cũng ... (Mọi người đều được đi. Còn tôi, tôi có được đi không? / Everybody can go. As for me, could I go?)

[2a] Cả anh cũng được đi.
(You also can go.)
[2b] Kể cả anh cũng được đi.
(Even you / you also can go.)

Các (Art.)

Situations

S1: There are 15 students in a class. The teacher steps in and greets them:

Chào các bạn. Các bạn có khỏe không?
(Hello. How are you?)

In this situation, the female teacher says hello to all 15 students who are present in the class.

S2: Lâm has just graduated from a university. He went to apply for a job at all the companies in the town, but he hasn't found a job yet.

Lâm đi khắp các công ty ở thành phố để tìm việc làm.
(Lâm went to all the companies in the town to apply for a job.)

Definition

Các, as an article, is used to indicate the whole definite group.

Related Expressions

• Các and những: Các and những refer to plurality.
  • Những: indefinite article, always followed by a noun with (required) a determinative phrase.
  • Các: definite article, always followed by a noun with or without (not required) a determinative phrase. Cf:

[1a] Các sinh viên đều muốn đi Vũng Tàu.
(All the students want to go to Vũng Tàu.)
[1b] *Những sinh viên đều muốn đi Vũng Tàu.

A modifier must occur in [1b], for instance: foreign students, second-year students, good students ...

[2a] Các sinh viên này rất thông minh.
(These students are very intelligent.)
[2b] Những sinh viên học giỏi sẽ được lĩnh học bổng.
(Good students will receive scholarships.)

Các in [2a] refers to the definite group of students who are near to both the speaker and the listener. Những in [2b] refers to a group of good students. This group is indefinite (because we don't know exactly who are good students). Cf. những1 (p. 295).

• Các and mấy (mấy is used in spoken language):

[3a] Mấy anh dùng gì?
(Lit. What will you (plural) have?)
[3b] Anh có biết mấy sinh viên đó không?
(Do you know those students?)

In [3b], mấy is used similarly to những.

Cái (Cn)

Situations

S1: Lan is talking to Thu about a friend (male) she has recently become acquainted with:

Anh ấy có ba cái nhà, một cái ở Đà Lạt, một cái ở Vũng Tàu và một cái ở Nha Trang.
(He has got three houses, one in Đà Lạt, one in Vũng Tàu and one in Nha Trang.)

In this situation, cái, classifying noun, used after a number, unitizes the mass noun referring to things. If the prior context defines the mass noun, then in subsequent uses the mass noun following cái can be omitted.

S2: Hearing that Tâm wants to buy a camera, Hải says:

Tôi thấy cửa hàng T. đang bán mấy cái máy ảnh rất hiện đại.
(I saw a few modern cameras in the T. shop.)

Cái usually appears after the quantifiers like mấy, vài, một số, nửa, etc., or after the articles like một, những, các.

S3: In the clothes shop, Lan pointed at a shirt and said to the owner:

[1] Cho em xem cái áo kia đi, chị.
(Show me that shirt, please.)
[2] Cái nào? Cái này cô mặc hợp lắm đấy.
(Which one? This one goes well with you.)

In [1] and [2], the classifying noun cái is used to unitize the noun phrases defined by the demonstratives like này, kia, or the interrogative nào.

S4: Lan's mother just came to the door when it started pouring. She called Lan:

[4] Lan ơi! Lấy cho mẹ cái áo mưa.
(Lan! Give me the raincoat.)

In this situation, it is not necessary for cái to be used with a number, quantifier or demonstrative like in S1, S2 and S3. The noun phrase cái áo mưa is understood when the listener (Lan) knows which one it is. In other words, the noun phrase cái áo mưa is singular and defined in the specific context.

S5: Hoa and Lan are talking about a film which has just been shown on TV:

[5] Cái hay của đạo diễn là để người xem tự tưởng tượng ra đoạn kết của bộ phim.
(The creative talent of the director was that he gave the viewers the chance to imagine the end of his film.)

Cái is used in this situation to nominalize a quality expressed by an adjective.

S6: Hải and Hùng are talking about their lives. Hải complains:

[6] Tôi còn rất vất vả. Phải lo cái ăn, cái mặc cho cả gia đình.
(I must still work very hard. I have to take care of food and clothes for my family.)

In this situation, cái is used to nominalize the verb, or in other words, to transform an action into a thing. Here, it is understood that cái ăn, cái mặc, etc. is something to eat or something to put on (food, clothing, etc.).

Definition

Cái, as a unit noun, is used before a mass noun to unitize the thing expressed by the mass noun which follows it. Cái is also used to nominalize a verb or an adjective.

Related Expressions

• Cái and chiếc, cây, bức, tờ, căn, etc.: In many cases, cái can be used in place of the other unit nouns such as chiếc, cây, bức, etc. especially in spoken Vietnamese. Ex.:

[1] Anh tôi cho tôi cây / cái bút này.
(My older brother gave me this pen.)
[2] Bức / cái bản đồ này chi tiết hơn bức / cái bản đồ kia.
(This map is more detailed than that map.)
[3] Chiếc / cái xe này tôi mua năm ngoái.
(I bought this motorbike last year.)

NOTE: Cái is only used in place of unit nouns referring to things (inanimate), but it is not used in place of con, a unit noun referring to animals (except for very small animals like cái sâu (a worm), cái kiến (an ant), etc.

On the other hand, cái cannot be used in place of classifying nouns referring to substances like viên gạch (a brick), cục đá (a stone), tờ giấy (a sheet of paper), giọt nước (a drop of water), tấm vải (a piece of cloth), etc. Cf:

[4a] Cục / *cái xà phòng này giá 6.000 đồng.
(This bar of soap costs six thousand dong.)
[4b] Anh chở đến nhà tôi 2.000 viên / *cái gạch.
(Take 2,000 bricks to my house.)
[4c] Anh có giấy không? Cho tôi một tờ / *cái.
(Do you have some paper? Give me one sheet.)

Combinations

• cái + restrictive noun phrase Cf:

[1] Chiều nay tôi đi mua áo đầm.
(I am going to buy robes this afternoon.)

(We cannot say ... cái áo đầm)

[2] Tôi mua cái áo đầm ấy ở tiệm TiTi.
(I bought that robe at the TiTi shop.)

(We cannot say ... áo đầm ấy) The noun phrase áo đầm in [1] is the generic noun phrase that serves to indicate that this is not a shirt or áo dài, etc. That is why it does not require the presence of the classifying noun cái, while the phrase áo đầm ấy in [2] is a restrictive noun phrase that indicates a defined thing, therefore, it does require the classifying noun cái to precede it.

• cái thì... cái thì... This construction is used to express a relationship of contrast between things of the same category. Ex.:

[3] Sáng nay tôi đã đi tìm mua vài cái quần jean, nhưng chẳng mua được cái nào cả. Cái thì quá rộng, cái thì quá hẹp.
(This morning I looked for some jeans to buy, but I did not get any. One was too big, the others were too small.)

Cf. thì (p. 361).

Cái (Em)

Situations

S1: Nam asked Hùng to get the mathematics book for him. Hùng didn't know which one. Nam said:

Cái quyển sách ở trên bàn ấy.
(It is the book on the table.)

S2: Hùng and Lan recall the first days when they started going to the university. Lan exclaims:

Mình làm sao quên được cái ngày đầu tiên chúng mình vào đại học.
(How could I forget the very first days when we started going to university!)

In both of the above situations, cái is used freely in front of noun phrases which have a restrictive / determinative attribute that aim to point out, bring up a thing which distinguishes it from the rest / remaining ones.

S3: Hùng and Lan are talking to each other about a classmate. Lan praises that person because he studies well and is intelligent. Hùng doesn't agree and says:

Cái thằng ấy mà học giỏi gì!
(Someone like him couldn't study well!)

S4: Mr. Hòa has a pet dog. This dog doesn't obey him. He says to his wife:

Cái con chó này ngu lắm.
(This dog is so stupid.)

In S3 and S4, cái is used in front of nouns which refer to people or animals having distinctive attributes in order to express a despising or critical idea.

Definition

Cái, as an emphasizer, is used in front of nouns which have restrictive / determinative attributes that aim to point out, bring up a thing which distinguishes it from the rest / remaining ones or expresses a despising or critical idea.

Related Expressions

• Cái1 and cái2: Although it has the same origin as the classifying noun cái1, the emphasizer cái2 differs from cái1 in that cái2 only has an emphatic function. It points out a certain thing but doesn't aim to individualize that thing, as does the classifying noun cái1 and other unit nouns such as con, quyển, chiếc....

Combinations

• cái2 + classifying noun / substantive noun: Cái2 can be placed in front of unit nouns such as con, chiếc, tờ, bức..., or in front of nouns that indicate materials / substances such as nước (water), sắt (iron), đất (earth)..., or in front of abstract nouns such as ý kiến (idea), kết luận (conclusion), chính sách (policy)....

Chỉ (Adv)

Situations

S1: Nam buys a pen for 10,000 VND, not more. He says:

Cây bút này giá chỉ 10.000 đồng.
(This pen costs only 10,000 VND.)

In this situation, chỉ is used to express the meaning that the price of the pen is limited to the level of 10,000 đồng and such a price is cheap.

S2: Nam says to Lan that he loves only her, not anyone else:

[1] Anh chỉ yêu em.
(I love only you.)
[2] Anh yêu chỉ một mình em.
(You are the only one I love.)

In this situation, Nam wants to say that Lan is his unique girlfriend. He does not love anyone else.

Definition

Chỉ, as an adverb, is used to express the limited extent of a thing, characteristic, or action.

Related Expressions

• Chỉ is the most important word among the group of words expressing restriction: chỉ, có, thôi, mới... These words are opposite to the group of những, đến, mãi... expressing the meaning: much, high, far, expensive, etc. Cf. có (p. 77), thôi (p. 369), mới (p. 257).

Combinations

• chỉ có...

[1] Lớp này chỉ có 2 sinh viên.
(There are only two students in this class.)

• chỉ... (có)... thôi

[2] Anh ấy chỉ viết có một trang thôi.
(He wrote only one page.)

• chỉ... mới...

[3] Chỉ tôi mới có thể thuyết phục anh ta.
(I am the only one who can persuade him.)

Chính (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam points at a photo of a man and says to Hà:

Đây chính là bố tôi.
(This is my father, himself.)

Chính here is used to emphasize là bố tôi.

S2: When entering Nam's house, Hà saw a very beautiful picture. He asked: "Who painted this picture?"

[1a] Chính tôi vẽ bức tranh đó.
(I painted it myself.)
[1b] Bức tranh đó do chính tôi vẽ.
(The picture was painted by me, myself.)

Chính here is used to define more clearly and emphasize the idea that Nam painted it, not anybody else.

Definition

Chính, as a particle, is used to define clearly the noun which follows it.

Related Expressions

• Chính, ngay and đúng: Chính, ngay, đúng, placed before expressions of time or place, can be interchangeably used, even if their meanings are slightly different. Cf:

[1a] Trận đánh đó xảy ra chính nơi đây.
(The battle took place right here.)

(To emphasize "here".)

[1b] Trận đánh đó xảy ra ngay nơi đây.
(The battle took place right here.)

(Nowhere else.)

[1c] Trận đánh đó xảy ra đúng nơi đây.
(The battle took place here, right in this place.)

(Unmistakably, exactly.)

In [1a], the speaker wants to define nơi đây (this place), to emphasize the importance of nơi đây (this place), rather than to assert the exact location of nơi đây. If the speaker is an historian who looks for vestiges of a battle, he would say [1b]. Cf:

[2a] Chính giáo sư Lâm đã mời tôi.
(Prof. Lâm himself invited me.)

(Prof. Lâm being an important person, no one else invited me.)

[2b] Ngay giáo sư Lâm mời tôi.
[2c] Ngay (cả) giáo sư Lâm cũng mời tôi.
(Even Prof. Lâm invited me.)

(Many people, including Prof. Lâm, invited me.)

[2d] Đúng giáo sư Lâm mời tôi.
(It is true that Prof. Lâm invited me.)

(That is the truth.)

Cf. ngay1 (p. 273).

Cho (Prep)

Situations

S1: Lan lives in Hà Nội. Nam writes a letter to ask about her:

Nam viết thư cho Lan.
(Nam writes a letter to Lan.)

In this situation, Nam is the subject of the action of writing the letter (Nam does the action of writing the letter), meanwhile, Lan is the receiver of the letter.

S2: Nam wrote Lan a letter. He was busy so he asked Hà to post it:

Nhờ anh gửi thư cho tôi.
(Could you post the letter for me?)
(Lit.: Nam asked Hà to help him post the letter.)

In this situation, Hà is the subject of the action of posting the letter (Hà gives help to Nam). Nam benefits from this action, and he does not receive the letter (but Lan).

S3: If we exercise everyday, our health will improve.

Tập thể dục tốt cho sức khỏe.
(Physical exercise is good for (your) health.)

In this situation, the action tập thể dục (physical exercise) has its effect upon sức khỏe (health).

[1] Cuốn sách này rất bổ ích cho các sinh viên.
(This book is very useful for students.)
[2] Ông Tân làm giám đốc thì thật là không may cho công ty chúng ta.
(It will be bad for our company if Mr. Tân becomes the director.)

S4: Tâm is going to the United States to study. His mother advises Tâm:

Con phải cố gắng học cho tốt nhé!
(You will do your best at school, right?)
(Lit.: You must try to study well, right?)

In this situation, the state tốt (good) is the purpose, the degree or the requirement that the action học (to study) has to meet. Complementary examples:

[3] Học cho xong bài này mới nghỉ.
(Finish this lesson first, then rest!)
[4] Anh tôi dạy tiếng Anh cho tôi.
(My elder brother is teaching English to me.)
[5] Ăn đi cho nóng.
(Eat it while it is hot.)

Definition

Cho, as a preposition, is used to indicate the object that receives the effects (S1) or benefits from an action (S2). Also, cho indicates the object that undergoes the effects from an action (S3) or it indicates the purpose, the degree or the requirement that an action has to meet (S4).

Related Expressions

• Cho and đến: In S1, the preposition cho can be replaced with đến. However, đến expresses the target / direction of the action but not its object. Cf:

[1a] Anh ấy gửi tiền cho tôi vào ngày 15.
(He sends money to me on the 15th.)
[1b] Anh ấy gửi tiền đến tôi vào ngày 15.
(He sends money to me on the 15th.)

• Cho and giùm / giúp / hộ: Cho, when followed by a beneficiary, can be replaced by giúp / giùm / hộ.

[2a] Anh ấy sửa xe hơi cho tôi.
(He repaired the car for me.)
[2b] Anh ấy sửa xe hơi giúp / giùm / hộ tôi.
(He repaired the car for me.)

NOTE: When following some verbs (such as trao, gửi, giao, đưa, mang, mua, bán), cho can introduce a recipient (a receiver) (S1) or a beneficiary (S2). However, when cho comes after many others (giữ, lau, đánh, đập, nấu...) the object usually receives a benefit / disadvantage from the action of the agent (S3). Cf:

[3] Anh ấy mang áo mưa cho tôi.
(He brought his raincoat to me so that I could wear it.)
[4] Anh giữ xe cho tôi nhé!
(Watch my bike, OK?)
(The fact that you watch my bike is helpful to me.)

In [3], tôi (I) can be understood as the recipient (the receiver) of something or the beneficiary. In sentence [4], tôi (I) can only be understood as the beneficiary.

Combinations

• cho / làm cho / khiến cho + X: Used to express a result. X is a proposition that indicates a result that happened due to what has just been mentioned. Ex.:

[1] Nó ăn ở thế cho người ta ghét.
(His conduct fills everybody with hate.)
[2] Nó lười học làm cho bố mẹ buồn.
(His laziness in schoolwork fills his parents with sadness.)
[3] Nó cười đùa to tiếng khiến cho mọi người khó chịu.
(His boisterous laughing makes everybody uncomfortable.)

• cho nên / nên:

[4] Hà làm việc chăm chỉ cho nên được khen.
(Hà worked hard, therefore she won praise.)

• cho được / cho bằng được: These clusters are used to indicate a requirement of something that must produce a good result, must be successful, especially to show high determination / effort.

[5] Phải gặp cho được anh ấy tôi mới yên tâm.
(I will feel assured only if I meet him.)
[6] Cô ấy đã thích cái gì là cô ấy mua cho bằng được.
(She likes it so much she will buy it at any cost.)

• cho rồi / cho xong / cho qua: These clusters express a reluctant attitude of acceptance of an action or state just mentioned in order to avoid a difficult or worse situation. The speaker doesn't need to know what real result will happen (or not happen).

[7] Nếu biết phim dở thế này thì tôi ở nhà cho xong.
(If I had known the film was so boring, I would have stayed home.)
[8] Anh nên đi cho rồi, (đừng đợi anh ấy nữa!)
(You should go right away (now)! (Don't wait for him any more.))
[9] (Đứa bé hỏi mẹ nó gì đó). Vì đang bận nên bà trả lời cho qua.
(The child asked his mother something. Because she was busy, she answered with indifference / hurriedly.)

(She did not care much how she answered.)

Cho (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam and Bình have been drinking coffee. Nam wants to pay the bill (for both of them). He said:

Để tôi trả tiền cho.
(Let me pay the bill!)

In this situation, Nam used cho to suggest that he will pay the bill and hopes that Bình will agree with him.

S2: It is time to pay the house rent, but Hà is still waiting for her salary. Hà entreated her hostess:

Tôi chưa có lương. Xin chị thông cảm cho.
(I haven't received my salary yet. I beg your pardon.)

In this situation, Hà hoped that the hostess would sympathize with her. So she used cho.

S3: When seeing Lan with a very short skirt, her mother said:

Con mặc như thế người ta cười cho đấy!
(If you wear that, you will be laughed at!)

In this situation, Lan's mother wanted to warn Lan (the listener) that a bad thing could happen to her.

S4: Nam drives too fast. Hà says:

Đi chậm chậm thôi, cảnh sát phạt cho đây.
(Drive slowly or you will be fined.)

In this situation, Hà warns Nam of a bad thing that may happen: being fined by the police.

Definition

Cho, as a particle, is used to suggest or to express hope that the speaker wants to do something himself instead of the listener doing it (S1). It is also used to indicate an unfavorable consequence, caused by the listener himself, that may happen to him (S3, S4).

Combinations

• không X cho lắm: This construction is used to lighten a negative evaluation expressed by X. Cf:

[1a] Phim này không hay.
(This film is not exciting.)
[1b] Phim này không hay cho lắm.
(This film is not so exciting.)

This negative is lighter than in [1a].

Notes

• Cho2 is used in spoken language.
• Cho as used in S3 and S4 usually occurs after only some verbs like: mắng, chửi, đánh, đập, giết, cười... + cho.

Chứ (Conj)

Situations

S1: Nam lost a shirt. Hà asked him: "You lost your yellow shirt, right?". Nam replied:

Không, cái áo đó màu trắng chứ không phải màu vàng.
(No, that shirt is white, not yellow.)

In this situation, Nam asserted that it was the white shirt (cái áo màu trắng) he had lost and, at the same time, he rejected the yellow one (cái áo màu vàng).

S2: Nam thought that Paul was from France, then asked: "Where is your hometown, Paris or Lyon?" Paul answered:

Tôi là người Anh chứ không phải người Pháp đâu!
(I am English, not French.)

In this situation, Paul knows that Nam thinks that he is French. Paul used chứ to assert that he is English, and at the same time to refute that he is French.

Definition

Chứ, as a conjunction, is used to confirm something which has just been said, and at the same time, to reject the contrary idea. (That idea may be stated explicitly, or implicitly.)

Related Expressions

• Chứ and mà: Cf:

[1a] Tôi học tiếng Hoa chứ không học tiếng Thái.
(I study Chinese language, not Thai language.)
[1b] Tôi học tiếng Hoa mà không học tiếng Thái.
(I study Chinese language, and not Thai language.)

Cf:

[2a] Chiều hôm qua tôi ở nhà chứ không đi chơi.
(I stayed at home yesterday afternoon, did not go out.)
[2b] Chiều hôm qua tôi ở nhà mà không đi chơi.
(I stayed at home yesterday afternoon and did not go out.)

The sentences [1b] and [2b] are used to explain, to justify, or to bring out a matter. That is why [1b] may be continued with: "... because Chinese is easier / is widely spoken." And [2b] can be continued with: "... because I had a bad headache." Cf. mà1 (p. 229).

Combinations

• In conversations, a pronoun can occur after chứ: chứ (+ noun +) gì, chứ gì, chứ ai, chứ sao, chứ làm sao, chứ mấy, chứ đâu... to assert that something is certain and it must not be otherwise.

[1] A: Cái áo đó màu gì?
    (What color is that shirt?)
    B: Cái áo đó màu trắng chứ màu gì!
    (That shirt is white!)

(For sure the shirt is white.)

[2] A: Người ta làm gì mà đông thế?
    (What happened to cause this crowd?)
    B: Đụng xe chứ gì! / Tai nạn giao thông chứ gì!
    (A traffic accident, of course!)

[3] A: Ông Nam lên làm giám đốc à?
    (Mr. Nam was promoted to be the director?)
    B: Ông ta chứ ai!
    (Him! Who else?)

(Lit. Him and nobody else!)

[4] A: Nó giỏi tiếng Pháp thật!
    (He speaks French really well!)
    B: Chứ sao! Nó sống ở Pháp ba năm thì phải giỏi chứ sao!
    (Of course! He lived in France 3 years, so he must be good!)

[5] A: Anh còn nhớ cô Lan không?
    (Do you still remember Ms. Lan?)
    B: Tôi vẫn nhớ chứ làm sao quên được!
    (I still remember (her). How can I forget!)

(For certain I remember.)

[6] A: Cái áo này bao nhiêu?
    (How much is this shirt?)
    B: Mười ngàn chứ mấy!
    (Only 10,000 dong!)

(= only 10,000 dong, not more)

[7] A: Anh tìm thấy ông ta ở đâu thế?
    (Where did you find him?)
    B: Tôi tìm ở quán bia chứ đâu!
    (I found him at a bar!)

(Nowhere else.)

When combined with nữa, the above-mentioned combinations will retain their same meanings.

• ... chứ sao lại ...?

[8] Anh phải cố gắng nhiều hơn chứ sao lại chán nản như thế?
    (You must try harder; why are you so disappointed / upset?)

(Advice for a disappointed person to take action and do something about his situation.)

• ... chứ không phải ...

[9a] Anh ta làm việc đó chứ không phải tôi.
     (He did that work, not me.)

(Rejection of an idea.)

[9b] Anh ta chứ không phải tôi làm việc đó.
     (He, not me, did that work.)

• ... chứ còn gì nữa!

[10] (Chúng tôi về được chưa?)
     Hết giờ thì về chứ còn gì nữa!
     (May we go home now?)
     (It goes without saying, the time is over, so just go home!)

• ... chứ không ...

[11] Tôi biết tiếng Anh chứ không biết tiếng Pháp.
     (I know English, not French.)

• ... chứ không (...) thì ... (= nếu không (...) thì ...)

[12] Nhanh lên, chứ không thì trễ đấy!
     (Hurry up, otherwise you will be late!)

• thà (A) chứ không (B)

[13] Tôi thà ở nhà một mình chứ không đi chơi với anh ta.
     (I will stay at home alone rather than go out with him.)
     (I'd rather stay home alone than go out with him.)

• ... chứ thật ra ... Chứ in some situations can combine with or be replaced with thật ra. Cf:

[14] Ông ấy ra vẻ nghiêm khắc chứ / chứ thật ra / thật ra ông ấy rất thương nó.
     (He makes believe that he is strict. But in fact, he is very fond of his son.)

(This expresses contrast.) In this situation, chứ / chứ thật ra express the reality of what is really true, despite the fact that it seems in contrast to what was mentioned before, or seems opposite to what everybody usually thinks.

Chứ (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam and Bình haven't met for a long time. Nam asks Bình about things:

Anh vẫn khỏe chứ? Công việc tốt chứ? Gia đình của anh ở chỗ cũ chứ?
(You are still fine, right? The work is good, right? Your family is still at the same place, right?)

In this situation, Nam thinks that Bình is fine, that his work is OK, and his family is still at the same place. In order to verify what Nam thinks, he used questions with chứ.

S2: This morning Hoa looked tired when she came to the office. Lan asked anxiously:

Em khỏe chứ? Em không bị bệnh chứ?
(Are you sure you are alright? You aren't sick, are you?)

In this situation, Lan wants to hear from Hoa that she is vẫn khỏe (still fine), that she is không bị bệnh (not sick). NOTE: This use of chứ in a question must not be used with superiors who are older or in higher social position (with superiors we must use chứ ạ).

S3: Bình borrowed a book from Nam for a long time. Nam asked:

Anh có nhớ anh còn mượn tôi một cuốn sách không?
(Do you remember that you are still borrowing my book?)
Nhớ chứ! Tôi sẽ trả khi nào tôi đọc xong. Đừng lo!
(Of course I remember! I will return it when I am finished with it. Don't worry!)

In this situation, chứ is used to emphasize what has just been affirmed.

S4: Hà and Nam are speaking negatively about the director. When seeing him approaching, Hà says:

Nói khẽ chứ!
(Will you lower your voice / tone down?)

S5: Entering a clock shop, Nam asked Hà:

Đồng hồ Seiko của Thụy Sĩ tốt lắm, phải không?
(The Seiko watch from Switzerland is very good, isn't it?)
Đồng hồ Seiko là của Nhật chứ!
(Seiko is a Japanese watch!)

In this situation, chứ is used to assert that Hà is right, and, at the same time, to reject the wrong sentence from Nam.

Definition

Chứ, as a sentence final particle, is used when the speaker wants to confirm his thought, or wish that something will happen (S1, S2), to lay stress on what has just been asserted (S3), to require or remind something (S4), or to reject / object to something (S5).

Related Expressions

• Chứ and mà: Cf:

[1a] Cây bút này của anh Nam chứ?
     (This pen belongs to Nam, doesn't it?)

(Assertion / question.)

[1b] Cây bút này của anh Nam chứ!
     (No. This pen surely belongs to Nam!)

(Rejects what was spoken before.)

[1c] Cây bút này của anh Nam mà!
     (No. This pen surely belongs to Nam!)

(An explanation.)

Cf:

[2a] Cô ấy là người Mỹ chứ?
     (She is an American, isn't she?)

(Assertion / question.)

[2b] Cô ấy là người Mỹ chứ!
     (No. She is an American!)

(Rejection of what was spoken before.)

[2c] Cô ấy là người Mỹ mà!
     (No. She is an American!)

(An explanation.)

The sentences [1a] and [2a] have the meaning of asking a question in order to confirm that what the speaker thinks is correct. The sentences [1b] and [2b] express rejection of what was spoken before. The sentences [1c] and [2c] have the meaning of explaining / justifying something or persuading someone. Cf. mà1 (p. 241).

Combinations

• ... đi chứ!

[1] Nói đi chứ!
    (Speak! / Speak up!)

• ... được chứ?

[2] Tôi làm như thế được chứ?
    (Can I do it that way?)

• ... chứ ạ?

[3] Ông khỏe chứ ạ?
    (Sir! Are you well?)

(When speaking with a superior.)

Có (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam bought a pen for 10,000 VND, and thought it was cheap. He said:

Cây bút này giá có 10.000 đồng.
(This pen costs only 10,000 VND.)

In this situation, the price of the pen is fixed at 10,000 VND. Not much.

Definition

Có, as a particle, is used to express a small quantity or low cost of something (according to the speaker).

Related Expressions

• Có as a particle and có as a verb: Cf:

[1a] Tôi gặp anh ấy có một vài lần.
     (I met him only several times.)
[1b] Tôi có gặp anh ấy một vài lần.
     (I did meet him several times.)

In [1a], có, as a particle, expresses a fixed level (limited), while có, as a verb, in [1b] expresses the existence of an action or state.

• Có and chỉ: Chỉ can be used to express a limited field and in many cases it can be interchanged with có. Cf:

[2a] Nó ăn chỉ một bát cơm.
     (He ate only one bowl of rice.)

(No more.)

[2b] Nó ăn có một bát cơm.
     (He ate only one bowl of rice.)

(Not much, according to the speaker.)

[2c] Nó chỉ ăn cơm.
     (He only eats rice.)

(Not anything else.)

[2d] Chỉ / *Có nó ăn cơm.
     (Only he eats rice.)

(Nobody else.)

[3] Suốt ngày nó chỉ / *có học.
    (All day long he only studies.)

Cf. chỉ (p. 45), thôi (p. 369).

Combinations

• chỉ... có... (thôi)

[1a] Anh ta chỉ biết có công việc.
     (He is interested only in his work.)

(Nothing else.)

[1b] Anh ta chỉ biết có công việc thôi.
     (He is interested only in his work.)

(Nothing else.)

[2] Suốt ngày nó chỉ có đi học.
    (All day long he only studies.)

(He does only one thing.)

• có... thôi

[3] Tết tôi được nghỉ có ba ngày thôi.
    (I have only three days off for Tết holiday.)

(Not many days.)

• có... chứ mấy! / chứ bao nhiêu!

[4] Bài kiểm tra toán, tôi được có năm điểm chứ mấy!
    (On the math test, I got only five points!)

Con (Cn)

Situations

S1: Hà and Nam were talking about animals. Hà said to Nam:

Tôi rất thích chó. Nhà tôi có nuôi ba con chó.
(I like dogs very much. My family has three dogs.)

As Hà said so, Nam said:

Tôi đang muốn mua mấy con để giữ rẫy cà phê.
(I want to buy some (dogs) that will watch over my coffee farm.)

Similar to other unit nouns (cái, chiếc, bức...), con is used after cardinal numbers (một, hai, ba, bốn...) or quantifiers (mấy, vài, cả...) in order to unitize the mass nouns that refer to animate things mentioned later.

S2: Nam and Hà went to the zoo. They were watching the monkeys eating fruit. Hà pointed at a monkey and said to Nam:

Con khỉ đang ăn trái chuối ở đằng kia trông dễ thương quá. Mình thích con khỉ đó.
(The monkey over there that is eating bananas looks very cute. I like that monkey.)

In S2, con occurs before the mass noun (which indicates an animal) defined by a distinctive modifier đang ăn chuối (eating bananas) or a demonstrative word (này, kia, đó...).

S3: Hoa and her mother are sitting in the house. Suddenly, Hoa's mother hears the dog barking. She says to Hoa:

Con ra ngoài xem sao mà con chó sủa dữ thế.
(Hoa, go out to see why the dog is barking so much.)

In this situation, con appears before the noun chó without the corresponding conditions mentioned in the situations S1 and S2 because, in this context, Hoa knows which dog her mother refers to, that is to say, the noun phrase con chó (the dog) is defined by the communicative context.

Definition

Con, as a classifying noun, placed before a noun indicating animals, refers to each individual member of that group of animals.

Related Expressions

• Classifying noun con and other words with the same origin. Cf:

[1] Tôi có hai con: một gái, một trai. Năm nay con chị 10 tuổi còn thằng em 6 tuổi.
    (I have two children: one daughter and one son. This year, the older sister is ten years old and her brother is six years old.)

In the example above, the first con is understood as "child" in relation to his / her parents, whereas the second con is a noun which refers to the female gender irrespective of the attitude of the speaker. (Similarly, thằng refers to the male gender irrespective of the attitude of the speaker.)

[2] Nhà tôi có hai con chó con.
    (My family has two puppies.)

In this example, the first con is a unit noun, and the second con is a common noun; it refers to an animal which was born directly by another animal.

• con and cái: Con and cái are classifying nouns; con refers to each individual member of a group of animals. But cái refers to each individual member of a group of inanimate things. Cf. cái1 (p. 35).

Combinations

• cái + con: To indicate clearly and to show (at the same time) the idea of not being pleased with the animal mentioned before, the speaker can use the demonstrative cái in front of the unit noun con. Ex.:

[1] Cái con chó nhà anh đã cắn con mèo của tôi.
    (Your dog has bitten my cat.)

Cf. cái2 (p. 43).

• con + mắt / tim / đường ...: The classifying noun con also refers to an individual unit of some inanimate things which are seen as "animals" because their activity or forms are similar to those of animals. For example: con mắt (an eye), con tim (a heart), con tàu (a ship), con đường (a road, a way), con sông (a river), con thuyền (a boat), etc. Ex.:

[2] Con sông này bắt nguồn từ đâu vậy?
    (Where does this river originate?)
[3] Tôi bị đau mắt. Con mắt phải của tôi sưng húp lên.
    (I have sore eyes. My right eye is swollen.)

Còn (V)

Situations

S1: After the war, among Bình's friends, some live in Hà Nội, some in Huế, and some are dead. He says:

Sau chiến tranh, bạn tôi kẻ còn người mất.
(After the war, of all my friends, some are still alive, others have died.)

S2: After receiving his salary, Nam went to drink beer with his friend. Back home, he says to his wife:

Xin lỗi, anh chỉ còn 100.000 đồng!
(I apologize. I have only 100,000 VND left.)

Definition

Còn, as a verb, expresses a state or action still in process (S1) or expresses a continuous state in which something is not yet finished (S2).

Related Expressions

• Có is a verb that generally indicates the existence of a state or action. The difference between có and còn is that có does not imply continuation of a previous state or action.

• Còn is the opposite of hết (as a verb). Còn hết is the diminutive / shortened form of the construction còn hay hết.

Tiền còn hết?
(Is any money left, or is it all gone?)

• nữa indicates the continuation of a state or action, but it is an adverb placed after a verb.

Combinations

• ... còn hết? (còn hay hết)

[1] Báo Tuổi Trẻ hôm nay còn hết?
    (Are any of today's "Tuổi Trẻ" newspapers left?)

• ... còn lại ...

[2] Con cái đã đi làm xa, nhà chỉ còn lại hai vợ chồng già.
    (All the children are away at work; only this old couple remains at home.)

• còn nữa ...

[3] Anh ta gửi cái này cho chị. Còn nữa, anh ta nói sẽ gọi điện cho chị.
    (He gives you this. Another thing, he says that he will call you.)
[4] Tôi không còn tiền nữa.
    (I do not have money anymore.)

• ngoài (...) ra, còn ...

[5] Ngoài số tiền này ra, nó còn một số vàng rất lớn.
    (Besides this amount of money, he also has a great deal of gold.)

Cf. ngoài (p. 283).

Còn (Adv)

Situations

S1: Nam made an appointment with Lâm at 9 a.m. at his home. When Lâm arrived, Nam was sleeping.

Khi Lâm đến, Nam còn ngủ.
(When Lâm arrived, Nam was still asleep.)

S2: Nam tells Hà that Mrs. Mai is 50 years old, but Hà thinks that she looks as young as a 30-year-old woman. Hà says:

Bà Mai trông còn trẻ.
(Mrs. Mai still looks young.)

S3: Mrs. Mai has just opened a "phở" restaurant. After one month, there weren't many customers. She said hopefully:

Khách còn ít, có lẽ vì người ta chưa biết. Không sao!
(There are as yet very few customers. Maybe people don't know about it yet. It doesn't matter!)

Definition

Còn, as an adverb, placed before a verb / adjective expresses continuation of an action, a state or a quality (that is not finished yet, or does not come up to standard / does not meet the requirements).

Related Expressions

• Còn, vẫn, and cứ: Cf:

[1a] Đã 12 giờ đêm, anh ấy còn thức.
     (It's already midnight. He is still awake.)
[1b] Đã 12 giờ đêm, anh ấy vẫn thức.
     (It's already midnight. He is still awake.)
[1c] Đã 12 giờ đêm, anh ấy cứ thức.
     (It's already midnight. He keeps being awake.)

All three of these sentences express continuation of the state "awake" (thức), but they imply different meanings:

• [1a] denotes only that he did not go to bed yet, that the state thức (awake) is in process and will end.
• In [1b], the state thức (awake) continues although it is already late (he should have gone to bed).
• In [1c], the state thức (awake) continues, and he is still awake without, for example, taking his doctor's advice.

Còn and vẫn can be interchangeably used. However, còn indicates the continuation of an action / state, whereas vẫn indicates the same state / action that is repeated despite a change in the circumstances. Cf. vẫn (p. 396), cứ (p. 102).

Combinations

• còn (...) chưa / không ...

[1] Bà ấy còn chưa về.
    (She still hasn't returned.)

• vẫn còn ...

[2] Tôi vẫn còn yêu cô ấy.
    (I still love her.)

• còn (...) (thêm)... (nữa) (Thêm and nữa usually go together, but not necessarily.)

[3] (Anh chưa đi à?)
    Chưa, tôi còn ở đây thêm ba ngày nữa.
    (Didn't you go yet? - Not yet. I am still here for three more days.)

• ngoài (...) còn ... / ngoài ra, còn ...

[4a] Ngoài uống bia, nó còn uống rượu (nữa).
     (Besides beer, he also drinks alcohol.)
[4b] Nó uống bia rất nhiều. Ngoài ra, nó còn uống rượu (nữa).
     (He drinks too much beer. Besides that, he also drinks alcohol.)

Còn (Conj)

Situations

S1: There are three people in Vân's family. Her father is a doctor, her mother is a housewife.

Bố Vân là bác sĩ, còn mẹ Vân là nội trợ.
(Vân's father is a doctor, and Vân's mother is a housewife.)

S2: On Sunday, Lan's family went out, but she had to stay at home to prepare for her examination.

Cả nhà đi chơi còn Lan thì phải ở nhà học thi.
(All of Lan's family went out, but as for Lan, she had to stay at home to prepare for her examination.)

Definition

Còn, as a conjunction, indicates that after còn is a different situation opposite to (or different from) what has just been said before.

Related Expressions

• Còn and và: Cf:

[1] Tôi học tiếng Nga và /*còn tiếng Hoa.
    (I study Russian and Chinese.)
[2] Cảm ơn anh, tôi khỏe. Còn /*Và anh?
    (Thank you, I am fine, and you?)
[3] Nghỉ hè, tôi đi Đà Lạt còn / *và vợ tôi đi Nha Trang.
    (For summer vacation, I go to Đà Lạt, but my wife goes to Nha Trang.)

Và is used to link two things or objects of the same nature. Còn is used to indicate a different situation in contrast to the previous situation. Thus, còn and và are not interchangeable. However, in the following situation còn and và are interchanged, and the meaning, subsequently, is also changed.

[4a] Tôi học ở Đại học Kinh tế và vợ tôi học ở Đại học Mỹ thuật. nhưng chúng tôi quen nhau ở hồ bơi.
     (I studied at the Economics College, and my wife at the Fine Arts College. But we met at a swimming pool.)
[4b] Tôi học ở Đại học Kinh tế còn vợ tôi học ở Đại học Mỹ thuật. Chúng tôi quen nhau ở hồ bơi.
     (I studied at the Economics College. As for my wife, she studied at the Fine Arts College. But we met at a swimming pool.)

In [4a], the speaker uses và because he wanted to tell about his wife and himself, without implying any contrast. However, in spoken Vietnamese, this is not a common expression.

• Còn and nhưng: Cf:

[5] Trời mưa, nhưng / *còn nó đi chơi.
    (It rains, but he goes out.)

Nhưng is used to connect two clauses that are opposite in meaning. Còn indicates two clauses of different content.

Combinations

• còn (...) thì ...

[1] Tôi thích bóng đá, còn cô ấy thì thích âm nhạc.
    (I like football, but she likes music.)

• thì (...) còn ... / (...) còn ... thì ...

[2] Sáng nay thì trời đẹp, còn bây giờ thì trời mưa.
    (This morning the weather was fine, but now it rains.)

• ai (...) còn (...) nấy / người nào (...) còn người nấy

[3] Ai lo việc nấy, còn tôi thì lo việc của tôi.
    (Everyone takes care of their own business, as for me, I take care of mine.)

Cũng (Adv)

Situations

S1: Nam confides to a friend:

Mẹ tôi nói, năm nay, tôi phải lập gia đình. Tôi yêu Lan, anh biết rồi. Nhưng tôi cũng yêu Xuân. Thật tình, hiện giờ, tôi không biết phải làm sao?
(My mom said that this year I have to get married. As you know, I love Lan. But I also love Xuân. Truthfully, now, I don't know what to do?)

In this situation, there is the same action of a subject towards two different objects.

S2: At a party, Nam saw Bình, his friend, preparing to go home. Nam said to Bình:

Anh đi về, tôi cũng đi về.
(If you're going, I'll go too.)

In this situation, there is a similarity between an activity of the subject compared with the activity of another subject.

S3: Bình confides to a friend:

Tôi chỉ muốn mua hàng của cô Lan thôi. Bán mắc tôi cũng mua.
(I only want to buy goods from Miss Lan. Even if they are expensive, I'll still buy them.)

In this situation, the condition which is brought up isn't typical (selling at a high price), but everything still occurs normally.

S4: Thu and Lan talk to each other about little Hùng:

Chị nói là nó không hề giống ba nó à? Tôi thấy nó cũng giống đấy chứ!
(Did you say that he doesn't resemble his father at all? I think he is quite like him!)

In this situation, Thu thinks that little Hùng rather resembles his father.

S5: Lan is going to get married. She confides to a friend:

Sắp lập gia đình, mình thấy vui nhưng cũng thấy buồn.
(Being about to get married, I feel happy but also sad.)

In this situation, the state of happy and sad feelings of Lan occurs at the same time.

Definition

Cũng, as an adverb, indicates an action of a subject oriented towards many different objects that are identical (S1); indicates the similarity of an activity, state, property... of a subject compared with another subject (S2); indicates a normal action, even though the situation is not normal (S3); cũng also indicates the relative properties of a state / activity / ability (S4) or indicates the properties of different states / activities which occur at the same time (S5).

Combinations

• cũng vậy: Used to talk about the similarity in comparison with something which had been mentioned or known before. Ex.:

[1] Các bạn tôi ở đây đều thích bia. Tôi cũng vậy.
    (All my friends like beer. So do I.)

• cũng được: Used to express relative agreement. (It is not the first preference, but it is OK.) Ex.:

[2] A: Hôm nay đi Đà Lạt là tốt nhất nhưng tôi không thể thu xếp công việc được. Ngày mai chúng ta đi nhé!
    (It's best to go to Đà Lạt today but I can't arrange my work. We'll go tomorrow, right?)
    B: Ừ, ngày mai cũng được.
    (Yes, tomorrow is also alright.)

• cũng như... / cũng ... như ...: Used to talk about the similarity of something when comparing it with another thing. Ex.:

[3] Cô em dễ thương cũng như cô chị.
    (The younger sister is as lovely as the older sister is.)
[4] Cô em cũng dễ thương như cô chị.
    (The younger sister is lovely, as is the older sister.)

• cũng nên: Used to express a guess about something which could possibly happen.

Cứ (Adv)

Situations

S1: Lan always goes to bed at 9 o'clock, whether in summer or winter, whether she is tired or fine.

Cứ 9 giờ tối cô ấy đi ngủ.
(She goes to bed at 9 o'clock, as a rule.)
(Lit. Always at 9 o'clock, she goes to bed.)

In this situation, 9 o'clock is always the definite point of time at which Lan goes to bed, and she does not change under any circumstance.

S2: Nam and Hà ride to Vũng Tàu by bicycle, leaving at 6 a.m. They intend to arrive in Vũng Tàu at 6 p.m. But after 2 hours, they had already gone 40 kilometers (a speed of 20 km/h). Nam says:

Cứ tốc độ này, 12 giờ trưa chúng ta sẽ đến Vũng Tàu.
(Continuing at this speed, we will arrive at noon.)

Ho Chi Minh City is 120 km from Vũng Tàu. At a speed of 20 km/h, Nam can be sure that it will take six hours to arrive in Vũng Tàu. In other words, the speed of 20 km/h is a condition that must be maintained in order for them to arrive in Vũng Tàu at noon. Complementary example:

Anh cứ đi thẳng đường Nguyễn Huệ, anh sẽ thấy công ty Fahasa.
(Keep going straight on this street, and you will see Fahasa Co.)

(You follow Nguyễn Huệ street + neither turn left nor turn right + don't worry + don't concern yourself about anything else.)

S3: It was raining, and Nam was ill. So Hà recommended that Nam not go to school, but Nam still went. Hà says:

[1a] Tôi khuyên Nam nghỉ học, nhưng Nam cứ đi học.
     (I advised him to stay home, but Nam still went to school.)
[1b] Trời mưa mà Nam cứ đi học.
     (It was raining but Nam still went to school.)
[1c] Nam bị bệnh, nhưng Nam cứ đi học.
     (Nam was ill, but he still went to school.)

In this situation, Nam went to school under unfavorable circumstances (it was raining, Nam was ill). But for Nam that doesn't matter.

S4: Nam came to the office to ask Mr. Thu about his salary. Mr. Thu invites him:

Anh cứ ngồi! Cứ tự nhiên! Có gì cần anh cứ nói!
(Please sit down, make yourself at home, and don't hesitate to say what you want!)

In this situation, the director Thu encourages Nam to speak, and not to be shy or worry. Complementary examples:

[1] (Có tiếng gõ cửa) - Ai đó? - Cứ vào!... Anh cứ ngồi!
    (Someone knocks at the door. Who's that? - Please come in! Please sit down!)
    (Invitation.)
[2] Những em nào chưa hiểu cứ hỏi, đừng ngại gì cả!
    (Those who don't understand yet can go ahead and ask a question. Don't hesitate!)
    (Encouragement.)
[3] Ông không đồng ý à? Ông không đồng ý, tôi cũng cứ làm!
    (You don't agree? I will do it anyway!)
    (Defying someone.)

Definition

Cứ, as an adverb, is used to indicate a certain condition (an action or state) that, if met, will accomplish a particular result (regardless of any other factor) (S1, S2) or to express the continuation of an action or state under any circumstance (S3). Cứ is also used to invite (friendly), to give an order, to propose, to encourage or to defy (S4).

Related Expressions

• Cứ and hễ: Cf.

[1a] Cứ 9 giờ là tôi đi ngủ.
     (Always at 9 o'clock I go to bed regardless of other factors.)
[1b] Hễ 9 giờ là tôi đi ngủ.
     (Always at 9 o'clock I go to bed. It is a habit but sometimes there are exceptions.)

Hễ also expresses the absolute relationship (cause-effect), but it does not imply an action regardless of other factors.

• Cứ and vẫn: Cf:

[2a] Nam bị ho, bác sĩ cấm Nam hút thuốc, nhưng Nam cứ hút.
     (Nam has a cough. The doctor prohibits him from smoking, but Nam smokes anyway.)
[2b] Bác sĩ cấm hút thuốc, nhưng Nam vẫn hút.
[2c] Nam bị ho nhưng Nam vẫn hút thuốc.

In [2a], Nam continues to smoke in spite of the advice of the doctor. In [2b] and [2c], Nam keeps smoking although this action is not good for his health. Vẫn expresses the idea of continuation without any change, but it also implies regardless of any situation, the same as cứ in [2a]. Cf. vẫn (p. 397).

Combinations

• cứ... là ...: Expresses an absolute cause-effect relationship.

[1] Cứ trời mưa là con đường này ngập nước.
    (Whenever it rains, this road gets flooded.)

Besides expressing an absolute cause-effect relationship, cứ... là... can be used to express habit or repetition.

[2] Cứ có tiền là nó uống rượu.
    (Whenever he has money, he drinks alcohol.)

• cứ ngày ngày / chiều chiều / đêm đêm: Every day / afternoon / night.

[3] Cứ chiều chiều cô ấy lại ra cửa chờ chồng về.
    (Every afternoon, she stands at the door waiting for her husband.)

• ... vẫn cứ ... / cứ ... vẫn ...:

[4] Tôi khuyên Nam nghỉ học, Nam vẫn cứ đi học.
    (I advised Nam to take off from school; Nam goes anyway.)

• nhưng / mà (...) vẫn cứ ...:

[5] Tôi đã nói rồi mà cô ấy vẫn cứ không nghe.
    (I told her, but she would not listen to me.)

Cf. **vẫn** (p. 397).

Đã (Adv)

Situations

S1: Hoa saw a beautiful hat. She wanted to buy it. Her husband said:

Mũ à? Tuần trước em đã mua một cái rồi mà!
(A hat? You bought one last week!)

In this situation, đã is used to indicate that the action mua (buy / bought) is completed.

S2: Mr. Năm had been a driver. This year he is 80 years old and cannot drive anymore.

Ông Năm đã già, không lái xe được nữa.
(Mr. Năm is already old and cannot drive anymore.)

Đã here indicates that the state of being già (old) exists from before the time of speaking, and the fact is that Mr. Năm is now an old man.

S3: John is going back to his homeland. He is very homesick, he says:

Giờ này tuần sau tôi đã ở nhà rồi.
(I will have arrived home by this time next week.)

Đã here indicates the event which is completed before the point of "by this time next week".

Definition

Đã, as an adverb, is used to indicate what happened before a certain point of time. (Normally, this point of time, if not marked by a specific time, will be considered as the present time.)

Related Expressions

• Đã and rồi: Đã, rồi both indicate an event, a state or an action that is completed before a certain point of time. They can be used interchangeably or as a combination đã ... rồi. However, their meaning is different:
  • Rồi is used to emphasize the completion of an event that seems farther away in the past.
  • Cf:

[1a] Ăn cơm chưa? - Ăn rồi.
     (Have you eaten? - I have.)
     (The action of eating came to an end.)
[1b] Ăn cơm chưa? - Đã ăn.
     (Did you eat? - I did.)
     (The action of eating is done.)

• Rồi usually goes with certain adjectives (đẹp, ốm, già, ngon...) to indicate a quality or state.
• Cf:

[2a] Nấu như thế này ngon rồi.
     (Cooking like this is tasty already.)
[2b] *Nấu như thế này đã ngon.

• Đã can also be combined with these adjectives, but this way of speaking expresses a different meaning from the construction adjective + rồi:
• Cf:

[3a] Nấu như thế này, đối với tôi đã là ngon lắm!
     (Cooking like this, according to me, is very good!)
     (No further additions or requirements.)
[3b] Nấu như thế này, đối với tôi là ngon lắm rồi!
     (Cooking like this, according to me, is very good!)
     (The requirements are satisfied.)

Cf. rồi1 (p. 327).

• Đã, đang: Because đã expresses the reality of the event, in many cases it can be replaced with đang. Cf:

[4a] Bây giờ đang là mùa mưa.
     (It is now the rainy season.)
[4b] Bây giờ đã là mùa mưa.
     (It is already the rainy season.)

Cf. đang (p. 119).

Combinations

• đã (...) còn (...):

[1] Bà ấy đã già, lại còn hay bệnh nữa.
    (She is already old and, furthermore, she often falls sick.)

• đã ... lại càng ...:

[2] Trời đã mưa, lại càng lạnh thêm.
    (It was already raining and, moreover, it became even colder.)

• chưa ... đã ...:

[3] Anh ta chưa học đã muốn đi làm.
    (He hasn't studied yet but already wants to work.)

• ... đã ... lại ...:

[4] Nó đã nghèo, lại còn lười nữa.
    (He is already poor and, furthermore, he is lazy too.)

• ... xong (...) đã: Done / finished ... first.

[5] Ăn xong đã rồi hãy nói chuyện.
    (Finish your dinner first, then talk later.)

The particle đã here is placed at the end of the first clause to indicate the requirement that the first action must be done before the following action starts.

Notes

• In the Vietnamese language, đã is not used to express past time (tense). Therefore, it is necessary to choose carefully when to use (or not to use) đã when translating from Vietnamese to English or vice-versa. Cf:

[5a] Anh khỏe không? - Cảm ơn, tôi khỏe.
     (How are you? - Thanks, I'm fine.)
[5b] Anh đã khỏe chưa? - Cảm ơn, tôi đã khỏe.
     (Are you feeling better? - Thanks, I feel better.)

(Before I was not well, but now I am no longer ill.)

[6a] Ông ấy là giám đốc.
     (He is a director.)
[6b] Ông ấy đã là giám đốc.
     (He became (and now is) a director.)

• To determine time, we often use words indicating time like hôm qua (yesterday), tuần trước (last week)... (especially when the context is not clear) without using đã. Cf:

[7a] Tối hôm qua, tôi đã gọi cho cô ấy.
     (I did call her yesterday evening.)
[7b] Tối hôm qua tôi gọi cho cô ấy.
     (I called her yesterday evening.)
[7c] (Anh gọi cho cô ấy chưa?) - Tôi đã gọi, nhưng không có ai trả lời.
     ((Did you call her yet?) - Yes, I did, but nobody answered.)

Đã is used to indicate the reality / status quo, while the words indicating time cannot be substituted for đã. In many situations, đã cannot be exchanged for time words (for example, when đã is followed by a verb indicating a state or quality). Cf:

[8a] Tôi đã yêu anh ấy.
     (I have been / am in love with him.)
[8b] Tháng trước tôi yêu anh ấy.
     (I loved him last month.)
[9a] Bố tôi đã yếu lắm.
     (My father has been / is very weak.)
[9b] Năm ngoái bố tôi yếu lắm.
     (Last year, my father was very weak.)

Đang (Adv)

Situations

S1: Tom came to Vietnam to study Vietnamese for 6 months. He completed 2 months and still has 4 months left to study.

Tom đang học tiếng Việt.
(Tom is studying Vietnamese.)

In this situation, đang indicates an action that began in the past and continues to the moment of speaking.

S2: Last night, Nam went to bed at 10 o'clock. At 12 midnight the phone rang.

Hôm qua, Nam đang ngủ thì điện thoại reo.
(Last night Nam was sleeping when the phone rang.)

In this situation, điện thoại reo (the phone rang) while Nam was sleeping. NOTE: Although the event happened hôm qua (yesterday), we do not say đã đang.

S3: A few days later John goes back to his home country. He is thinking that next week he will be eating dinner with his girlfriend.

Có lẽ giờ này tuần sau mình đang ăn tối với cô ấy.
(Maybe at this time next week I will be eating dinner with her.)

At this time next week the event ăn tối (eating dinner) will be happening, therefore use đang. NOTE: sẽ đang is not used.

Definition

Đang, as an adverb, indicates an event or state that is currently taking place, that is not yet completed at a certain point of time nor during a certain period of time.

Related Expressions

• Đang, đã, sẽ:
  • Đang indicates an event / state in process which is not yet completed at a certain point of time.
  • Đã indicates an event / state that has already begun. Perhaps the event / state is already completed or perhaps it is still in the process and not yet completed at a certain point of time.
  • Sẽ indicates an event / state which will occur in the future or after a referenced / specific point of time. Cf:

[1a] Bây giờ đã là mùa xuân.
     (Now it is springtime.)
     (Spring season has begun, continues and is not yet finished.)
[1b] Bây giờ đang là mùa xuân.
     (Now it is springtime.)
     (Spring season is now occurring.)
[1c] Tháng sau sẽ là mùa xuân.
     (Next month it will be springtime.)

Cf. đã (p. 111), sẽ (p. 343).

• Đang, còn and vẫn: Cf:

[2a] Nó đang ngủ.
     (He is sleeping.)

(The state of sleep continues at the time of speaking.)

[2b] Nó còn ngủ.
     (He is still sleeping.)

(Not yet woken up, or a state of sleeping not yet completed.)

[2c] Nó vẫn ngủ.
     (He is still sleeping.)

(The state of sleep continues in spite of inconvenient conditions or not normal, e.g., very noisy, too late.) Cf. còn2 (p. 89), vẫn (p. 397).

Đây (De Pro)

Situations

S1: Nam introduces Mr. Johnson to his classmates:

Đây là ông Johnson, người Mỹ.
(This is Mr. Johnson, an American.)

Đây, a demonstrative pronoun, is used to show that the person or thing mentioned is near the speaker and the listener.

S2: Nam entered a pub. Seeing an empty chair, he asked a person who was sitting nearby:

Tôi ngồi đây có được không ạ?
(Is it alright if I sit here?)

In this situation, đây is used to indicate a place near both the speaker and the listener.

S3: Nam bought a ticket to go to Nha Trang. The salesperson handed him the ticket and said:

Vé của anh đây!
(Here's your ticket!) (Lit. Your ticket is here!)

Đây in this situation is placed at the end of the sentence and is used to indicate close proximity when the speaker gives / points out something to another person. It can be understood as a syntactic-reversed case. In the sentence "Đây là vé của anh", the speaker focuses on the position đây (here), not kia (there). It can be analyzed as "vé của anh" (your ticket) is the topic, and đây (here) is the comment / explanation.

S4: Tài put a jar of perfume in his pocket. His wife saw it and asked:

Cái gì đây?
(What's this?)

Like in S3, we can understand "Cái gì đây?" as a syntactic-reversed case of the sentence "Đây là cái gì?". This is similar to interrogative questions which have the Wh-question at the beginning of the sentence such as: "Ai đây?" (Who's there?), "Bao nhiêu lâu?" (How long?), "Con gì kia?" (What's that animal?).

Definition

Đây, as a demonstrative pronoun, is used to show that a person / thing / place (which the speaker mentioned) is near both the speaker and the listener.

Related Expressions

• Đây is one of the demonstrative pronouns: đây, đó, kia, đấy, ấy. Cf. đấy1 (p. 131), kia1 (p. 161), ấy1 (p. 11).

The relationship between the speaker, the listener, and the thing which is mentioned is expressed by using the following pronouns:

• đây and này: Both đây and này as pronouns indicate a thing which is near the speaker and the listener. However, này can be used as a subject only when making a list, although this function is seldom used. Cf:

[1] Này / Đây là chị ruột, này / đây là em dâu.
    (This is my blood elder sister, and this is my sister-in-law.)
[2a] Tôi đã từng sống ở đây / *này ba năm.
     (I lived here for three years.)
[2b] Tôi đã từng sống ở nơi này ba năm.
     (I lived at this place for three years.)
[3] Xin giới thiệu với các bạn, đây / *này là anh John.
    (I'd like to introduce to you, here is Mr. John.)

Cf. này2 (p. 271).

Đây (Par)

Situations

S1: Tân went out drinking beer with his friends and spent all his salary. He worries and asks himself:

Bây giờ biết nói làm sao với bà xã đây?
(What can I tell her (my wife) now?)

In this situation, đây, as a particle, is used to express the speaker's anxiety or worry about something he does not know how / what to do.

S2: Tân is frying fish while reading the newspaper. His wife shouts:

Ôi, cá cháy khét hết rồi đây này!
(Oh, no! The fish is burning!)

In this situation, đây is often combined with này (or nè) to emphasize or to indicate clearly the reality of the thing which has just been mentioned. In other situations, it is often used when the speaker wants to remind or to give a warning.

S3: Tân's wife often complains because Tân earns little money. Tân often says to his wife:

Em đừng lo. Rồi đây chúng ta sẽ hết nghèo.
(Don't worry, honey. One day (in the very near future), we won't be poor any longer.)

Đây in this situation is used to emphasize the reality or certainty of the thing (according to the speaker) and is expressed by the proposition that follows đây.

Definition

Đây, as a particle, placed in or at the end of a sentence, is used to emphasize the idea of anxiety or worry about something (S1) or to emphasize the reality or certainty of what has just been mentioned (S2, S3). The particle đây is often used in spoken language.

Related Expressions

• The particle đây has the same root as the demonstrative pronoun đây, but the meaning and use are different. Cf:

[1a] Vé của anh đây!
     (Here's your ticket!)

(Pronoun.)

[1b] Anh Nam đây là bạn cũ của tôi.
     (Mr. Nam here is my old friend.)

(Particle.)

[1c] Thôi, em đi về đây.
     (Well, I'm going home now.)

(Particle.)

Combinations

• Đây as used in S3 is only used in combination with certain phrases: rồi đây, lát nữa đây, mai đây, sau đây... (in the very near future, a few minutes later, as follows...).

Đấy (De Pro)

Situations

S1: Mai's husband brings home many gifts. Mai picks up one of the packages and asks: "What's this, honey?". Mai's husband answers:

Đấy là quà đặc biệt cho em. Em mở ra đi.
(That is a special gift for you. Open it!)

In this situation, đấy is used to indicate something which is far from the speaker (Mai's husband) but near the listener (Mai).

S2: Lan asks Nam: "Which company does that building belong to?". Nam answers:

Đấy là trụ sở của công ty liên doanh VT.
(That is the head office of the VT joint-venture company.)

In this situation, đấy is a demonstrative pronoun used to refer to a thing / person which is far from both speaker and listener.

S3: On Sunday, Ba's family wants to go out for fun, but they don't know where to go. Ba's wife says:

Mình đi Thủ Đức đi! Ở đấy, nghe nói có nhiều trò chơi mới lắm.
(Let's go to Thủ Đức! I've heard that there are many new games there!)

Đấy, in this situation, is used to indicate the place mentioned previously, i.e., Thủ Đức.

S4: After spending time in the hospital, Nam stopped smoking.

Từ đấy anh Nam bỏ thuốc.
(Since then Nam stopped smoking.)

Đấy, in this situation, indicates the point of time mentioned previously, i.e., after spending time in the hospital.

Definition

Đấy, as a demonstrative pronoun, is used to indicate a thing / person which is far from the speaker or mentioned previously. Đấy is also used to indicate the point of time which was mentioned previously.

Related Expressions

• Đấy is one of the demonstrative pronouns: đây, đó, kia, đấy, ấy. Cf:

[1a] Cái gì đây?
     (What's this?)
[1b] Cái gì kia?
     (What's that? / What's that over there?)
[1c] Cái gì đấy?
     (What's that? / What's that over there?)

Cf. đây1 (p. 123), kia1 (p. 161), ấy1 (p. 11).

Đấy (De Adj)

Situations

S1: Mai went to the market to buy a shirt. Lan held up a blue one and asked the price. The salesman answered:

[1] Cái áo đấy giá 100.000 đồng.
    (That shirt costs one hundred thousand đồng.)

In [1], đấy refers to áo which is far from the speaker.

S2: Mai pointed to a white shirt that was far from her and asked the price. The salesman answered:

[2] Cái đấy giá 200.000 đồng.
    (That one costs two hundred thousand đồng.)

In S2, đấy is placed after the pronoun cái to refer to the white shirt which is far from both the speaker and the listener.

Definition

Đấy, as a demonstrative, placed after a noun / pronoun, indicates a concrete thing which is far from the speaker (that thing can be near to or far from the listener).

Related Expressions

• Đấy is one of the demonstratives like này, ấy, kia, nọ. Cf. ấy2 (p. 13), kia2 (p. 165).

• đấy, đó and ấy: Đó, a demonstrative adjective, is similar to ấy, therefore đó can take the place of đấy but ấy cannot completely replace đó. Cf:

[1] A: Cái này giá bao nhiêu?
    B: Cái đấy / đó lấy 20.000 đồng.
    (How much does this cost? - That one costs twenty thousand đồng.)

(Far from the speaker.)

[2] Hôm qua, tôi gặp một người. Người *đấy / đó / ấy là bạn học cũ của tôi.
    (Yesterday, I met a person. That person was my old classmate.)

(Refers to what was mentioned before.)

Đấy (Par)

Situations

S1: Tân is writing a letter. His wife asks him:

Anh viết thư cho ai đấy?
(Who are you writing to?)

Đấy in this situation is used to ask about the thing which is happening at the moment of speaking.

S2: Seeing a very beautiful girl, Nam asked Bình: "Who is she?". Bình answered:

[1] Cô ấy là thư ký mới đấy.
    (She is the new secretary.)
[2] Cô ấy là con gái ông giám đốc đấy.
    (She is the daughter of the director.)

Đấy in [1] is used to emphasize the reality of what is mentioned. In [2] it is used to remind or warn.

S3: Tân had finished washing clothes. His wife looked at the clothes and said:

Anh giặt sạch rồi đấy. Nghỉ tay một chút đi!
(They're clean already. Take a rest!)

Đấy in this situation expresses the reality of the thing which has just been mentioned. It is often used to evaluate or assess something.

Definition

Đấy, as a particle, is placed at the end of the sentence or at the end of a part of the sentence. It is used to express the reality of the thing which has just been mentioned in order to ask (S1), or to remind, warn (S2), or to evaluate or assess (S3).

Related Expressions

• To show the reality of something that is happening, we can use the particles thế, vậy, đó.

[1] Anh đọc gì đấy / đó / thế / vậy?
    (What are you reading?)

(I can see it now. It can be near or far from the speaker.) Cf. thế1 (p. 359), vậy1 (p. 407).

• thế / vậy cannot replace đấy / đó to indicate warning or to assess. Ex.:

[2] Cô ấy có chồng rồi đấy / đó / *thế / *vậy.
    (She is already married.)

(Do not do anything inappropriate to her.)

Được (V)

Situations

S1: Nam studies well, his teacher praises him.

[1a] Thầy giáo khen Nam.
     (The teacher praises Nam.)
[1b] Nam được thầy giáo khen.
     (Nam is praised by his teacher.)

In this situation, Nam receives a good thing (praise) from his teacher. In [1b], the speaker used được to indicate that to be praised by the teacher is a good thing for Nam. Nam is the subject of the praise. In [1a], Nam is the object of the praise.

S2: Nam receives his sweetheart's letter. Nam is very happy. Nam says to Hà:

Tôi được thư của cô ấy.
(I received a letter from my sweetheart.)

In this situation, Nam is the subject who has received a letter, and that is a good thing for him.

S3: Hà asks Nam: "Why are you so happy today?". Nam answers:

Tối nay tôi được đi chơi với cô ấy.
(Tonight, I am lucky enough to go out with her!)

In this situation, Nam is the subject of the action đi chơi, and that is a good thing for Nam.

S4: Hà asked Nam: "Why were you absent this morning?". Nam answers:

Tôi bị bệnh, có giấy của bác sĩ, nên tôi được vắng mặt.
(I was ill. I have a note from the doctor, so I had permission to be absent.)

In this situation, Nam is the subject of being absent, and that is a permissible (favorable) thing for him. NOTE: In S3 and S4, if the speaker does not want to emphasize the good / fortunate nature, được can be omitted. Depending on the context, we can understand được X as having the right or permission to carry it out.

S5: Lan asks Hương about her child: "How old is your child?". Hương answers:

Nó được một tuổi rồi.
(My child is one year old.)

S6: Nam both studies and teaches. Hà asks him how much his monthly salary is. Nam answers:

Mỗi tháng tôi được 500.000 đồng.
(Each month I get 500,000 VND.)

In S5 and S6, được is used to indicate the degree or quantity attained.

Definition

Được, as a verb, indicates the meaning of receiving a good or profitable (according to the speaker) thing. After được is a good or profitable thing (S1, S2) for the person who receives it, or for the person who engages in the activity (S3, S4), or a favorable degree / quantity received (S5, S6).

Related Expressions

• Được belongs to the verb group bị, được, phải that expresses receiving or undergoing something favorable or unfavorable. Cf. bị (p. 17), phải2 (p. 309).

Notes

• Được is also used to express an average or above average degree, or is used to indicate satisfaction or acceptance. Ex.:

[1] Tôi thấy anh ta được đấy.
    (I think he is O.K.)
[2] Được! Tôi sẽ làm theo ý anh.
    (All right! I will do as you wish.)

Combinations

• không / chưa + được ...: Used to deny or refuse mildly.

[1] Cô ấy không được vui lắm.
    (She isn't so happy.)
[2] Làm như vậy chưa được tốt lắm.
    (It is not so good to do it like that.)

• được lòng: Be liked by / win someone's heart.

[3] Ông ấy không được lòng hàng xóm.
    (He isn't liked by his neighbors.)
[4] Bà ấy sống rất được lòng người.
    (The way she lives wins the hearts of the people.)

• được thể: Take advantage of / follow up.

[5] Chúng ta nhân nhượng, được thể hắn càng lấn tới.
    (We made a concession. Taking advantage of this, he infringed even further.)

• được tiếng: Have a good reputation.

[6] Anh ta được tiếng là thông minh.
    (He has a reputation for being intelligent.)
[7] Anh ta làm như vậy là để được tiếng.
    (He did that in order to earn a good reputation.)

Được (Adv)

Situations

S1: The teacher gives a difficult exercise and asks who has the ability to do it. Only Nam raises his hand:

Mọi người không làm được, chỉ có Nam làm được.
(No one can do it. Only Nam is able to do it.)

In this situation, được indicates his potential ability: Nam can do it.

S2: The class is taking a test. After half an hour, Hà asks Nam: "Have you finished it yet?". Nam says:

Chưa, tôi mới làm được ba câu thôi.
(Not yet. I have only completed three questions.)

In this situation, in which Nam has finished 3 questions, được expresses the result Nam has attained, not his ability.

S3: Hoa has a headache. Nga gives Hoa some medicine. A while later, Nga asks: "How are you now? Are you better?". Hoa answers:

Cám ơn chị. Tôi khỏe được một chút rồi.
(Thank you. I feel a little better.)

In this situation, được indicates the state "khỏe" which the speaker has obtained.

Definition

Được, as an adverb, is used to express ability (S1), the result of an action (S2), or the result of a state that has been attained (S3).

Related Expressions

• được and nổi / xuể: To express ability, nổi / xuể can replace được. But xuể relates to large quantities, and nổi is often used to refer to things that are difficult to do. Cf:

[1] Cái túi này nặng quá, tôi không xách được / nổi / *xuể.
    (This bag is too heavy; I can't lift it.)

Sometimes, được / nổi / xuể can be used to indicate the same thing or the same phenomenon according to the viewpoint of the speaker. Cf:

[2a] Chim nhiều quá, tôi đếm không được.
     (There are so many birds that I can't count them.) (No ability.)
[2b] Chim nhiều quá, tôi đếm không nổi.
     (There are so many birds; I can't count them because it's too difficult.)
[2c] Chim nhiều quá, tôi đếm không xuể.
     (There are so many birds; I can't count them because they're too numerous.)

• According to the situation, it is necessary to distinguish between the adverb of ability and the adverb of result. Cf:

[3a] (Ai có thể làm được việc này?) - Tôi, tôi làm được.
     (Who can do this? - I can. I can do it.) (Ability.)
[3b] (Ai làm được việc này rồi?) - Tôi, tôi làm được rồi.
     (Who has done this work? - I did. I did it.) (Result.)

• It is necessary to distinguish the meaning of goodness / luck in the two following cases. Cf:

[4a] Hôm qua Nam được gặp ông Tân.
     (Nam fortunately got to meet Mr. Tân yesterday.)
[4b] Hôm qua Nam gặp được ông Tân.
     (Nam managed to meet Mr. Tân at last yesterday.)

[4a] expresses that the event of meeting Mr. Tân (a certain important person) is a pleasure and an honor for Nam. [4b] expresses that the event of meeting Mr. Tân is also a good, lucky thing for Nam but this is the result of an action: Nam looked for Mr. Tân (perhaps for a very long time), and finally met him.

Combinations

• ... cho được / ... cho bằng được:

[1] Tôi phải tìm cho bằng được chiếc chìa khóa.
    (I have to find the key at any cost.)
[2] Giành cho được chiến thắng nhé!
    (Win it at any cost!)

• không thể được / không thể ... được:

[3] Ông ấy nói gì tôi không thể hiểu được.
    (What he says, I can't understand it.)
[4] (Cô ấy có chồng rồi à?) - Không thể được, không thể như thế được!
    (She is married? - It can't be! It's impossible!)

• ... lấy được: Indicates a resolution, attempt or action without regard to the result (often implies competition or lack of responsibility).

[5] Anh ta chẳng hiểu gì mà cũng cố nói lấy được.
    (He doesn't understand anything yet still tries hard to speak anyway.)

Hàng / Hằng (Quan.)

Situations

S1: I get up at 6 o'clock every day.

Hàng ngày tôi thức dậy lúc 6 giờ.
(I get up at 6 o'clock every day.)

S2: My mother goes to the pagoda on the 15th of every month.

Mẹ tôi đi chùa vào ngày 15 hàng tháng.
(My mother goes to the pagoda on the 15th of every month.)

Hàng often expresses something periodic.

Definition

Hàng / Hằng, as a quantifier, is placed before a noun of time (day, week, month) to express the repetition of time (day, week, month) of a certain action or state.

Related Expressions

• To indicate the repetition of a certain action or state according to time, we can use mọi, mỗi. However, these words imply different meanings. Cf:

[1] Hàng / hằng ngày nó đi ngủ lúc 12 giờ đêm.
    (He goes to bed at 12 o'clock every night.)
    (Habit.)
[2] Mỗi ngày nó đi ngủ lúc 12 giờ đêm.
    (Each night he goes to bed at 12 o'clock.)
    (Every night is the same.)
[3] Mọi ngày nó đi ngủ lúc 12 giờ đêm.
    (He usually goes to bed at 12 o'clock.)
    (But today something has changed!)

Cf. mọi (p. 245), mỗi1 (p. 249).

Hàng (Par)

Situations

S1: He had dinner at a restaurant and spent about one to two million VND; this is a lot.

Ông ta ăn tối ở nhà hàng tốn hàng triệu đồng.
(He had dinner at a restaurant and spent millions of đồng.)

S2: She received a lot of letters, perhaps about ten or twenty.

Cô ấy nhận được hàng chục lá thư.
(She received dozens of letters.)

Definition

Hàng, as a particle, is used to express an undefined quantity that is considered to be a lot (the amount is counted by a unit of measure which follows hàng).

Related Expressions

• hàng and cả: In many cases, hàng can be replaced by cả (both express "a lot") but there is a difference:
  • hàng triệu đồng -> millions of đồng -> more than 1 million.
  • cả triệu đồng -> about a million -> about 1 million (more or less).

Combinations

• hàng loạt: In mass / a series of.

[1] Xe hơi được sản xuất hàng loạt nên rẻ.
    (Cars are mass produced, which makes them cheaper.)
[2] Hàng loạt ngôi nhà bị cơn bão phá hủy.
    (Rows of houses were destroyed by the storm.)

Hàng loạt expresses a great quantity of the same type at the same time.

Khi (N)

Situations

S1: At 7 o'clock in the morning, Hà passed by the coffee shop and saw Nam and Lan sitting there.

Hà nhìn thấy họ khi đi ngang qua quán cà phê.
(Hà saw them while passing by the coffee shop.)

In this situation, khi is used to express a point of time in which an action or a state is occurring (nhìn thấy); that point of time goes together with a fact, an action, or a state (đi ngang qua).

S2: Last night, when Tân came back home at 12 o'clock, his wife was sleeping.

Tân về nhà khi vợ đã ngủ.
(Tân came back home as his wife was asleep.)

In this situation, khi vợ đã ngủ is considered as the period of time in which Tân came back home.

S3: Last night, at 12 o'clock when Tân came back home, his wife was sleeping.

Khi Tân về nhà, vợ anh đang ngủ.
(When Tân came back home, his wife was sleeping.)

In this situation, khi Tân về nhà is considered as a point of time in which his wife was sleeping.

Definition

Khi, as a noun, is used to express a point of time which goes together with a fact, an action or state.

Related Expressions

• khi and lúc: Khi and lúc can replace each other to indicate a point of time, but khi can't replace lúc to express a short period of time. Also, lúc can't replace khi to express conditional meaning. Cf:

[1] Khi / Lúc Tân về nhà, vợ anh đang ngủ.
    (When Tân arrived home, his wife was sleeping.)
[2] Đợi một *khi / lúc thì anh ấy về.
    (Wait a moment and he will return.)
[3] Xã hội sẽ tốt hơn khi / *lúc chính phủ biết quan tâm đến dân.
    (Society will be better when the government is more concerned about ordinary people.)

Combinations

• một khi: Can be combined with đã... là / thì... to affirm a habit, a rule, or a certain thing.

[1] Một khi anh ấy (đã) hứa (là) anh ấy sẽ làm.
    (Once he promises something, he does it.)

• mỗi khi... là...:

[2] Mỗi khi nó viết thư về nhà là tôi biết nó hết tiền.
    (Whenever he writes to his family, I know he's broke.)

• có khi / có khi nào... không?: Perhaps, maybe; used to offer a prediction.

[3a] Trễ quá! Có khi anh ấy đã quên rồi.
     (It's so late! Perhaps he has forgotten.)
[3b] Trễ quá! Có khi nào anh ấy quên không?
     (It's so late! Might he by any chance have forgotten?)

• ít khi: Seldom.

[4] Buổi sáng ít khi trời mưa.
    (It seldom rains in the morning.)

• mấy khi: Rarely.

[5] Không cần mang theo áo mưa đâu, buổi sáng mấy khi mưa!
    (It isn't necessary to bring your raincoat; rarely does it rain in the morning!)

• nhiều khi: Often.

[6] Công việc đơn giản quá, nhiều khi tôi cũng chán.
    (The work is so simple; I often get bored.)

• đôi khi: Sometimes.

[7] Buổi tối, tôi thường ở nhà. Đôi khi tôi đến thăm bạn.
    (I usually stay at home in the evening. Sometimes I visit my friends.)

• khi thì..., khi thì...:

[8] Công việc của tôi không đều, khi thì quá nhiều, khi thì quá ít.
    (My work isn't regular; at times it's too much, at other times it's too little.)

Kia (De Pro)

Situations

S1: Mai pointed to a man walking on the street and asked Lan:

Kia là ai?
(Who is that?)

In this situation, kia is a demonstrative pronoun used to indicate people or things that can be seen but are far from both the speaker and listener(s).

S2: Mai saw a crowd in front of her. Mai asked her friend:

Ở kia có chuyện gì thế?
(What's happening over there?)

In this situation, kia is a pronoun which indicates a place that can be seen, but is far from the speaker and listener(s).

Definition

Kia, as a demonstrative pronoun, is used to refer to people / things / places that can be seen but are far from both the speaker and listener(s).

Related Expressions

• Kia belongs to the demonstrative pronoun group: đây, này, đấy, đó, ấy. Cf. ấy1 (p. 11), đây1 (p. 123), đấy1 (p. 131).

• kia and ấy / đấy / đó: Kia differs from ấy / đấy / đó in that kia is used to refer to people / things that are far from the speaker and listener(s) but can be seen, while ấy / đấy / đó is used to refer to people / things in a sphere that may or may not be seen. Cf:

[1a] Kia là con gì?
     (What animal is over there?) (Far from both speaker and listener, but can be seen.)
[1b] Ấy là con gì?
     (What animal is that?) (Far from both speaker and listener, but can be seen.)
[1c] Đấy là con gì?
     (What animal is that?) (Far from both speaker and listener, but can be seen.)
[1d] Đó là con gì?
     (What animal is that?) (Far from speaker but near listener, but can be seen.)

In the above sentences, the animal mentioned is far from both the speaker and listener, but can be seen. Therefore, the words kia, ấy, đấy, đó may be interchanged.

[2] Nghe nói Nam có nhà ở Đà Lạt. *Kia / Ấy / Đấy là nhà riêng của Nam à?
    (I heard that Nam has a house in Đà Lạt. Is that his own house?)

In sentence [2], Nam's house was mentioned but cannot be seen; therefore, we cannot use kia to refer to Nam's house.

Kia (De Adj)

Situations

S1: Little Chi went to the zoo with her mother. She continuously asked her mother:

Mẹ ơi! Con kia là con gì?
(Mother! What animal is that over there?)

In this situation, kia is a demonstrative that refers to people / things that are far from the speaker and the listener but can still be seen.

S2: The couple said good-bye to each other. The girl said:

Em hy vọng một ngày kia anh sẽ hiểu em!
(I hope one of these days you will understand me!)

In this situation, kia indicates a point of time in the future (compared to the time of speaking) which is indefinite, but considered as something that can be imagined.

Definition

Kia, as a demonstrative, is placed after a noun to refer to people / things that are far from the speaker and the listener, but can be seen. Kia also can refer to a point of time which is indefinite (but can be imagined).

Related Expressions

• Kia belongs to the demonstrative group: này, nọ, ấy, đấy, đó. Cf. ấy2 (p. 13), đấy2 (p. 133).

• kia and ấy, này: Kia and ấy are similar in meaning, but they are used differently. Kia correlates with này, but ấy doesn't. Cf:

[1] Cái này của em, còn cái kia của anh.
    (This is mine, and that is yours.)
[2] Trước kia / ấy anh sống ở đâu?
    (Where did you live before?)

Kìa (De Pro)

Situations

S1: Mr. and Mrs. Tân are strolling along Vũng Tàu beach in the morning; the rising sun is very beautiful. Tân's wife exclaims to him:

Anh nhìn kìa! Mặt trời đẹp quá!
(Look at that! The sun is very beautiful!)

S2: Nam's company welcomes a group of foreign visitors. The visitors are getting out of the cars. The secretary says to Nam:

Kìa, khách đến rồi!
(There come the visitors!)

Definition

Kìa, as a pronoun, is used at the beginning or the end of the sentence to indicate a thing far from the speaker that can be seen. At the same time, it draws the attention of the listener to that thing.

Related Expressions

• Kìa belongs to the system of demonstrative nouns: này, nọ, kia, ấy, đấy, đó. These words are distinguished from each other by distance (far / near), visibility (can be seen / can't be seen), and level (concrete / abstract) of the thing mentioned in relation to the position of the speaker and the listener. Cf. ấy1 (p. 11), đây1 (p. 123), đấy1 (p. 131).

Là (V)

Situations

S1: Mai points at the map and says to Mary:

[1] Đây là Hội An.
    (Here is Hội An.)
[2] Hội An là một điểm du lịch nổi tiếng.
    (Hôi An is a well-known tourist site.)

In this situation, là is used to link the subject to the complement of the sentence to show that they are semantically equivalent.

Definition

Là, as a copula (or linking verb), is used to link the two parts of a sentence to show that they are semantically equivalent; in other words, the second part (placed after là) expresses characteristics, properties, origin, quality, quantity... of the first part of the sentence.

Related Expressions

• là and ở: Là, as a copula, is not used to localize an object / thing in a certain place; ở is used instead. For example:

Quyển sách *là / ở trên bàn.
(The book is on the table.)

Cf. ở (p. 303), tại (p. 353).

Combinations

• The copula là is usually followed by a noun, a pronoun, or a numeral. For example:

[1] Anh ấy là người Ấn Độ.
    (He is Indian.)
[2] Giá một tô phở là 8.000 đồng.
    (The price of a bowl of phở is 8,000 VND.)
[3] Ngày tốt nghiệp của chị là ngày nào?
    (What day will you graduate?)
[4] Cái mũ đó là của tôi.
    (That hat is mine.)

• In Vietnamese, an adjective may be a predicate of a sentence. Therefore, using là before an adjective is not correct.

[5] *Cô ấy là thông minh.
    (She is intelligent.)

(Correct: Cô ấy thông minh.)

Là (Conj)

Situations

S1: Nam talks to Mai about Bình:

Anh ấy rất tốt bụng. Nếu có ai nhờ là anh ấy giúp ngay.
(He is very nice. If someone asks him to help, he will do it right away.)

Definition

Là, as a conjunction, is used to express a necessary relationship between the condition / supposition and result.

Related Expressions

• là and thì: In conditional / supposition-result sentences, là can be replaced by thì. For example:

Hễ tôi hỏi vay tiền là / thì anh ấy cho mượn ngay.
(Whenever I ask him to borrow money, he gives it to me right away.)

Combinations

• nếu... là..., hễ... là..., mỗi khi... là..., cứ... là..., đã... là...: These combinations are generally used to express a necessary relationship between condition / supposition and result. For example:

Nếu / hễ / mỗi khi anh gọi là chúng tôi đến ngay.
(Whenever you call, we will come right away.)

Là (Prep)

Situations

S1: Dũng asks Nam about his decision to quit his job. Nam answers:

Tôi nghĩ là anh đã quyết định đúng.
(I think that you've made the right decision.)

In this situation, anh đã quyết định đúng (you've made the right decision) is what Nam thinks about.

S2: Dũng has run into a technical difficulty. Dũng complains to Nam; Nam says:

Ai cũng biết là vấn đề đó rất phức tạp. Nhưng tôi tin là anh sẽ giải quyết được.
(Everyone knows that that problem is very complicated. But I think that you'll be able to solve it.)

In this situation, similar to in S1, the part after là is the content of biết (to know) or tin (to believe).

Definition

Là, as a preposition, is placed after verbs that convey feelings, consciousness, or speaking such as "to think", "to know", "to speak", "to praise", "to criticize", etc., in order to indicate that what follows these verbs is the content the subject wants to talk about.

Related Expressions

• là and rằng: If after là there is a Subject-Verb structure, là can be replaced by rằng.

[1] Ai cũng nghĩ là / *rằng anh ta.
    (Everyone thinks it's him.)
[2] Ai cũng nghĩ là / rằng anh ta có lỗi.
    (Everyone thinks that he is at fault.)

Combinations

• Là as a preposition usually goes after the following terms: có thể, có lẽ, hình như, dường như, nghe đâu, nghe nói, có cái, có điều, hóa ra, chẳng qua, chắc là, ai ngờ, dĩ nhiên, etc. For example:

[1] Hình như là trời mưa.
    (It seems to be raining.)
[2] Lâu rồi tôi không gặp cô ấy. Nghe nói là cô ấy về nước rồi.
    (I haven't seen her for a long time. I heard that she went home already.)
[3] Bề ngoài anh ta như thế, ai ngờ là anh ta ăn cắp.
    (With an appearance like that, no one would expect that he is a thief.)

• ... là ít / ... là nhiều, ... là cùng, etc.: Combinations used to strongly assert something and express the subjective attitude of the speaker.

[4] Lớp này 50 sinh viên là ít.
    (This class has at least 50 students.) (The speaker evaluates the number as likely higher than 50.)
[5] Lớp này 50 sinh viên là nhiều.
    (In this class, there are 50 students at the most.) (The speaker evaluates the number as likely lower than 50.)
[6] Chúng ta nghỉ hè một tháng là cùng.
    (We have one month off at the most.) (The speaker says that one month is the maximum time.)

• toàn là X / toàn X là X: There is only one type (type X), all are X. This combination also has a subjective nuance.

[7] Lớp này toàn là người Hà Nội.
    (This class is completely made up of people from Hà Nội.)
[8] Chung quanh cô toàn hoa là hoa.
    (There are flowers and only flowers around her.)

Là (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam asks Lan about the film that she saw last week. Lan answers:

Phim đó rất là hay. Em rất là thích.
(That film was interesting. I liked it very much.)

Definition

Là, as a particle, is used to stress a subjective assertion of an utterance.

Related Expressions

• là (linking verb) and là (particle): Although là (particle) originated from là (linking verb), it has a different function and meaning. Là (linking verb) is usually used to link two parts of a sentence to express a relationship about the characteristics, origin, quantity, etc. Whereas là (particle) is used to express a subjective assertion of an utterance according to the speaker's judgment. Cf:

- Cô ấy là sinh viên.
  (She is a student.) (Copula linking 'Cô ấy' with 'sinh viên'.)
- Cô ấy rất là thông minh.
  (She is very intelligent.) (Particle used to emphasize 'thông minh'.)

Combinations

• Là can be combined with words that express intensity in order to strongly assert something (carrying the subjective nuance of the speaker).

[1] Cô ấy rất là thông minh.
    (She is very intelligent.)
[2] Cô ấy thật là thông minh.
    (She is very intelligent.)
[3] Cô ấy khá là thông minh.
    (She is rather intelligent.)

Apart from that, there are also cực kỳ là, vô cùng là, hết sức là, hoàn toàn là...

• có là mấy (= bao nhiêu) / không là mấy: Combinations that create the nuance of a subjective evaluation according to the speaker.

[4] Nghỉ ba ngày thì có là mấy!
    (Only three days off!) (Seen as little.)
[5] Đối với cô, 3 triệu không là mấy.
    (For her, 3 million đồng is not very much.) (Seen as little.)

• X ơi là X: Used to connect the feelings of the speaker (this expression is usually used only by women or children) about the high level of X.

[6] Cô ấy đẹp ơi là đẹp.
    (She is so beautiful.)
[7] Bữa tiệc chiều hôm qua vui ơi là vui.
    (The party yesterday afternoon was so much fun.)

Lại (V)

Situations

S1: Tân drinks coffee with his friend. The post office is about 10 meters away. Tân wants to make a call; he says:

Xin lỗi, tôi lại bưu điện một chút.
(Excuse me, I'll go over to the post office for a moment.)

In this situation, the post office is near; therefore, lại is used to replace đi or đến.

S2: Mai and Lan are good friends. Mai invites Lan:

Chủ nhật, Lan lại nhà mình chơi nhé!
(Why don't you come over to my house this Sunday?)

In this situation, Mai's house is perhaps rather far but is considered familiar to Lan.

Definition

Lại, as a verb of movement, indicates movement in a sphere which is considered close, movement towards the speaker, or movement towards a place which is considered as belonging to oneself.

Related Expressions

• Lại belongs to the group of movement verbs: đi, đến, tới, về... It is unique in that it indicates movement within a nearby sphere, towards the speaker, or towards a familiar place.

Combinations

• đi đi lại lại: Walk back and forth a short distance many times.

Nam chờ 15 phút rồi mà Lan chưa đến. Nam sốt ruột cứ đi đi lại lại.
(Nam has been waiting for 15 minutes but Lan hasn't come yet. Nam impatiently paces back and forth.)

Lại (Adv 1)

Situations

S1: Nam got a letter from his girlfriend. He read it, and now he is reading it a second time.

Nam đọc lại thư của bạn gái.
(Nam reads his girlfriend's letter again.)

In this situation, lại is used after the verb to express the idea that both the action and the object are repeated one more time.

S2: Nam finished writing to Lan. Nam had a meal. Then Nam wrote a letter to Thu.

Sau khi ăn cơm xong, Nam lại viết thư.
(After having a meal, Nam resumed writing another letter.)

In this situation, lại is used before the verb to indicate an action which is carried out one more time, but it doesn't absolutely have to be the same object.

S3: Nam read his girlfriend's letter a second time. And now he is reading it a third time.

Nam lại đọc lại thư của bạn gái.
(Nam read and reread his girlfriend's letter.)

In this situation, lại is used both before and after the verb to indicate carrying out an action once more with the same object.

S4: The company works from 8 o'clock to 12 o'clock. From 12 o'clock to 1 o'clock is lunch time.

Buổi chiều, công ty làm việc lại lúc 13 giờ.
(In the afternoon, the company resumes working at 1 o'clock.)

In S3 and S4, lại is used to express the resumption of an action after a period of time in which the action had been interrupted.

Definition

Lại, as an adverb, indicates the resumption or continuation of an action or state.

Related Expressions

• lại and nữa:
  • Cô hát lại đi. (Sing again, please.) (Sing that song one more time.)
  • Cô hát nữa đi. (Keep on singing, please.)
  • Cô ấy lại hát. (She sings again and again.) (Singing many times.) Lại indicates an action which is carried out once more, and nữa indicates an action / state which is continued.

Combinations

• lại... nữa:

[1] Trời nóng quá. Tắm xong, Nam lại tắm nữa.
    (It's so hot! After bathing, Nam takes another bath.)

• ... đi... lại: Do over again and again.

[2] Sửa đi sửa lại mấy lần Tân mới hài lòng về bài viết của mình.
    (Tân corrected his composition over and over until he was satisfied with it.)

• hễ... lại...: Whenever... again.

[3] Nó nghiện rượu, hễ có tiền nó lại đi uống rượu.
    (He is addicted to alcohol. Whenever he has some money, he goes to drink alcohol again.)

Lại (Adv 2)

Situations

S1: John bought a bicycle in order to go to school. Before he went back home, John sold his bicycle to another person.

John đã bán lại chiếc xe trước khi về nước.
(John resold his bicycle before he went back home.)

In this situation, lại is used after certain verbs to indicate a transfer of ownership or the right of usage from one person to another (e.g., bán (sell), mua (buy), nhượng (cede), nhường (surrender), sang (release), để (bequeath)).

S2: Tân drove his car to the middle of the bridge, then met another one coming from the opposite direction.

Tân phải lùi xe lại.
(Tân had to back up his car.)

In this situation, lại indicates movement back to the starting point.

S3: Mrs. Thu came back from the beauty parlor; she looked much younger.

Bà Thu trông trẻ lại như một cô gái 20 tuổi.
(Mrs. Thu looks as young as a 20-year-old girl again.)

S4: Nam had to prepare an entire week for his exam. His face is pale and thin.

Mặt Nam tóp lại.
(Nam's face is gaunt.)

In this situation, lại indicates a change in direction regarding the action, property, or state that was just mentioned.

Definition

Lại, as an adverb, indicates a movement or change in direction.

Related Expressions

• Lại, as an adverb, indicates the direction which relates to: ra, đi, lên.

- Để nước trong tủ đá, nước sẽ đông lại.
  (Put water in the freezer and it will freeze.)
- Để đá ngoài nắng, đá sẽ chảy ra.
  (Put ice in the sunlight and it will melt.)

Lại as used in S1 usually goes together with certain verbs: bán, mua, nhượng, nhường, sang, để, etc.

Verb Combinations with Lại

Lại is often used with the following meanings:

• a. To express the direction of narrowing (action), diminishing (things), or concentration in one place.
• b. To express the direction of an action aimed at limiting, preventing, or inhibiting (especially in requests or commands).

Common Verbs:

• bao: envelop
• bọc: envelop, wrap
• bóp: clench
• cầm: hold
• can: stop, prevent
• chặn: stop, block
• rút: shrink, retract
• cứng: harden
• dồn: gather
• dừng: stop
• ép: compress
• gác: postpone
• giữ: keep, detain
• chai: hard, stale
• kềm: contain
• khô: dry
• khóa: lock
• đặc: thicken
• nén: press together
• ngăn: prevent
• gom: gather together
• săn: firm up

Lại (Adv 3)

Situations

S1: Lan and Mai watched a very sad film. Mai watched and smiled. Lan asked:

Phim buồn, sao chị lại cười?
(The film is sad; why are you smiling?)

In this situation, lại expresses an uncommon action or state.

Definition

Lại, as an adverb, is used to express properties which are opposite to the logic of things or the expectations of the speaker.

Related Expressions

• Lại has a relationship with nhưng. However, lại does not express the cause-effect relationship as does nhưng. Cf:

[1] Ngựa trở về, lại / *nhưng mang theo một con ngựa nữa.
    (The horse returned home, bringing along another one.)
[2] Trời mưa nhưng / *lại tôi muốn đi chơi.
    (It is raining, but I want to go out.)

Lại also has a relationship with mà. Cf. mà1 (p. 225, 229).

Combinations

• lại còn:

[1] Không biết lại còn cãi!
    (You don't know that, but you still argue about it!)

• lại thêm:

[2] Chuyện trước chưa giải quyết xong lại thêm chuyện này nữa.
    (No sooner has the previous problem been resolved than this one comes.)

• đã... lại...:

[3] Cô ấy đã đẹp lại thông minh.
    (She is not only beautiful but also intelligent.)

• mà lại:

[4] Tôi mà lại không tin anh à?
    (Have I ever not believed you?) (I have always believed you.)

• vừa... lại vừa...:

[5] Quán này cà phê vừa ngon lại vừa rẻ.
    (The coffee in this shop is both delicious and cheap.)

Lắm (Adj)

Situations

S1: Hoa invited Lan to go swimming. Lan refused because she thought there were too many people swimming on Saturday afternoon.

Chiều thứ bảy hồ bơi lắm người, làm sao bơi!
(On Saturday afternoon there are too many people in the swimming pool. How can we swim!)

In this situation, Lan used lắm to mean that the swimming pool is more crowded on Saturdays than other days of the week, and that they cannot swim.

Definition

Lắm, as an adjective, is used before certain nouns to indicate a large amount according to the speaker.

Related Expressions

• Lắm is grouped with the adjectives nhiều, ít, etc. Of these, lắm is used in spoken Vietnamese and often connotes a negative attitude from the speaker. Compared with nhiều, the use of lắm in combination with nouns is more restrictive. Cf:

[1a] Sao anh đọc nhiều (sách) vậy?
     (Why did you read many books?) (Asking about the purpose of reading.)
[1b] Sao anh đọc lắm (sách) vậy?
     (Why did you read so many books?) (Stress on 'so many'.)

(In [1b], the speaker might look angry because the person only reads books.)

[1c] Sao anh mua lắm sách thế?
     (Why did you buy a lot of books?) (The speaker feels uneasy about the expense.)

Combinations

• lắm + noun: Lắm is usually combined with nouns such as chuyện, điều, lời, người, tiền, etc. Some of these (lắm lời, lắm điều...) are used as idiomatic expressions.

• Lắm can be used after words of degree:

[1] Cô ta hơi lắm lời.
    (She is a little talkative.)
[2] Im đi! Chị lắm điều quá!
    (Be quiet! You are too gossipy!)

• lắm lúc / lắm khi (= nhiều lúc, nhiều khi):

[3] Sống độc thân, lắm lúc tôi cũng thấy buồn.
    (Being single, I am sad many a time.)

• lắm used after some active / stative verbs conveys a negative meaning:

[4] Sao các bà ấy nói lắm thế!
    (How these ladies talk so much!)
[5] Sao Hoa ngủ lắm thế không biết nữa!
    (I don't know why Hoa sleeps so much!)

Lắm (Adv)

Situations

S: Hoa asked Lan: "Have you seen that film? Is it good?". Lan answered:

Tôi xem rồi. Phim đó hay lắm!
(Yes, I have. It is very good.)

In this situation, lắm expresses Lan's idea that the film is very good, better than other films.

Definition

Lắm, as an adverb which comes after the adjective or the verb, indicates that a characteristic, a quality, or a state is highly appreciated, or is better than usual, according to the speaker.

Related Expressions

• Lắm is classified with the words of degree: rất, quá, lắm, hơi, khá, etc. Of these, lắm and quá are frequently used in spoken Vietnamese. Cf. rất (p. 323), quá1 (p. 317).

• Both lắm and quá are often used in spoken Vietnamese, but lắm usually appears in narrative or commentary sentences, while quá is often used in exclamatory sentences. Cf:

[1a] Mời bạn Tâm hát. Xin giới thiệu với các bạn, Tâm hát hay lắm!
     (Ms. Tâm, will you please sing a song? I would like to tell you all that Tâm sings very well.)

(Tam finished singing, Nam said:)

[1b] Tâm hát hay quá!
     (You sing very well!)

Combinations

• không... lắm / không... cho lắm: The speaker uses this construction to soften a negative remark or attitude.

[1] Quyển từ điển này không tốt lắm.
    (This dictionary is not very good.)
[2] Chuyến du lịch tháng vừa rồi không vui cho lắm.
    (Last month's trip was not very enjoyable.)

• ... cho lắm (vào), ... cho lắm để..., ... cho lắm để rồi...:

[6] Ho như thế mà hút thuốc cho lắm vào!
    (You are coughing like that, yet you smoke so much!)

(Used to criticize someone's fault; implies they should not smoke.)

[7] Làm cho lắm để kiếm vài trăm ngàn mỗi tháng!
    (Working so hard only to get several hundred thousand đồng a month!)

(Expresses a contrary result; implies the effort is not worth it.)

• ... (cho) lắm thì cũng...: Expresses the maximum capability of someone, even if they keep trying to do better.

[8] Anh viết dài lắm thì cũng 8 điểm thôi.
    (No matter how much you write, you'll get only 8 points.)
[9] Em có hát hay cho lắm thì cũng không thể bằng ca sĩ được.
    (No matter how well you sing, you cannot do as well as a professional singer.)

Liền (Adv 1)

Situations

S1: Nam received his girlfriend's letter. He was so eager that he read it immediately.

Nhận được thư, Nam đọc liền.
(Upon receiving the letter, Nam read it immediately.)

Liền in this situation expresses the quickness of the action đọc (read) just after the moment of receiving the letter.

S2: Hà is angry with Nam, so she does not want to see him.

Thấy Nam bước vào phòng, Hà liền bỏ ra ngoài.
(Hà left the room just as she saw Nam entering.)

In this situation, liền also expresses the immediateness of the action bỏ ra ngoài (left the room), which is considered the result of the previous action (thấy Nam bước vào).

Definition

Liền, as an adverb, is used before or after the verb to indicate the quickness or the immediateness of an action (S1); this action may be a result of another action that previously happened (S2).

Related Expressions

• liền and ngay: Liền, when following the verb, can be replaced with ngay. Cf. ngay1 (p. 269).

Combinations

• liền... ngay: Liền, when placed before the verb, can be combined with ngay to emphasize that the action occurred immediately, not later.

Nghe anh gọi, tôi liền đến ngay.
(Having received your call, I came immediately.)

Liền (Adv 2)

Situations

S1: Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I do not work. I have three days off in a row.

Tôi nghỉ làm 3 ngày liền.
(I had three consecutive days off.)

Liền is used in this situation to indicate the continuous period of time of the action nghỉ làm (taking off from work).

S2: The singer T. finished singing a song. Immediately after that, she sang three more songs without taking a break.

Cô ca sĩ T. hát liền bốn bài.
(The singer T. sang four songs in a row.)

Liền expresses a continuation/succession in time without interruption of the action hát (singing).

S3: My house and Nam's are adjacent.

Nhà tôi và nhà Nam (ở) liền nhau.
(My house and Nam's are adjacent.)

In this situation, liền indicates close positions; there is no distance between the two houses.

Definition

Liền, as an adverb placed after a verb, is used to indicate the continuation (without interruption) in time of an action or state. Liền also indicates no distance in space between things.

Related Expressions

• liền and liên tiếp: When liền is used to express continuation or no gap in time, it can be interchanged with liên tiếp.

Cô ca sĩ T. hát liền / liên tiếp bốn bài.
(The singer T. sang four songs in a row.)

• liền and sát: When liền is used to express no distance in space between things, it can be interchanged with sát.

Nhà tôi và nhà Nam (ở) liền / sát nhau.
(My house and Nam's are adjacent.)

Combinations

• liền một lúc / liền một mạch / liền một hơi: At a time / at a stretch / in a gulp / in a breath. These combinations emphasize the continuation in time of an action or state. They also imply that, according to the speaker, the amount is significant.

[1] Trong bữa tiệc tối qua, anh ấy hát liền một lúc hai bài.
    (At last night's party, he sang two songs in a row.)
[2] Hôm qua mệt quá, tôi ngủ liền một mạch 8 tiếng.
    (Yesterday, I was so tired that I slept for 8 hours at a stretch.)
[3] Đói quá Nam ăn liền một hơi bốn chén cơm.
    (Nam was so hungry that he ate four bowls of rice in a row.)

• liền tay: This combination is used when one does something by hand, continuously without interruption or immediately.

[4] Chị ấy làm việc liền tay, không nghỉ được một phút.
    (She has her hands full and has no time to take a break.)
[5] Cưới vợ thì cưới liền tay...
    (If you want to marry a wife, you should do it immediately.)

• Some verbs are often used in combination with liền: nối (to join), gắn / đi (to be associated with / go with), etc.

Luôn (Adv 1)

Situations

S1: Nam comes to see Hà three or four times a month. If he is busy, he comes to see her at least once.

[1a] Nam đến thăm Hà luôn.
[1b] Nam luôn đến thăm Hà.
     (Nam often comes to see Hà.)

In this situation, the fact that Nam comes to see Hà is regular and repeated.

S2: Tân asked Hà: "Do you often see Nam these days?". Hà answered:

Trước Tết em gặp Nam luôn.
(Before Tết, I met Nam very often.)

In this situation, Hà usually met Nam many times before Tết.

S3: At last night's birthday party, Thu Thủy sang a very nice song. Her friends asked her to sing more. She was so happy that she sang three songs.

Tối hôm qua Thu Thủy rất vui nên hát luôn ba bài.
(Last night, Thu Thủy was so happy that she sang three songs in a row.)

Thu Thủy sang three consecutive songs, almost without interruption.

S4: Nam received a letter from Hà. He wrote back immediately after he had read it.

Đọc thư xong, Nam trả lời luôn.
(Having read Hà's letter, Nam replied at once.)

Luôn in this situation indicates the immediate succession of the two actions (đọc and trả lời).

S5: Thủy and Hà went to the market. Thủy looked at a shirt and asked Hà's opinion. Hà said:

Áo đẹp đấy! Mua luôn đi!
(It's nice! Don't think any more, buy it now!)

In this situation, Hà thinks that Thủy can buy that shirt without looking further or hesitating.

Definition

Luôn, as an adverb placed before or after the verb, expresses an action that occurs regularly, continuously, or almost continuously in a given period of time. Luôn also expresses an action that happens immediately after another action without any interruption.

Related Expressions

• liền and thường / hay / hoài: To express repetition or high frequency, we can use thường, hay, thường xuyên, thường hay, hoài (usually) to replace luôn (luôn / luôn luôn are adverbs indicating the highest frequency). These words are antonyms of thỉnh thoảng (sometimes), ít khi (rarely), etc.

[1a] Họ viết thư cho nhau luôn.
[1b] Họ luôn viết thư cho nhau.
[1c] Họ luôn luôn viết thư cho nhau.
[1d] Họ thường viết thư cho nhau.
[1e] Họ viết thư cho nhau rất thường.
[1f] Họ hay viết thư cho nhau.
[1g] Họ rất hay viết thư cho nhau.
[1h] Họ thường hay viết thư cho nhau.
[1k] Họ thường xuyên viết thư cho nhau.
[1l] Họ viết thư cho nhau hoài.

NOTES:

• thường, hay can be combined with words of degree: rất, quá, lắm, khá, but luôn cannot.

• luôn can occur before or after the verb; thường is placed before the verb (only combinations like rất thường can occur after).

• thường xuyên is used in written Vietnamese.

• luôn luôn is usually placed before the verb or adjective.

• hoài only appears after the verb and is used in spoken Vietnamese. It often expresses continuous/endless actions or is used when complaining.

• To express continuation, we can use ngay, liền instead of luôn to emphasize immediacy.

[4] Nói xong anh ấy làm luôn / ngay / liền.
    (Upon saying this, he does it immediately.)

Liền is used in place of luôn to express continuous succession without interruption.

[5] Sáng nay, đói quá, tôi ăn luôn / liền hai tô phở.
    (This morning, I was so hungry that I ate two bowls of phở in a row.)

Cf. ngay1 (p. 269), liền1 (p. 203).

Combinations

• luôn miệng: Continuous movement of the mouth (eating, speaking, laughing...).

[1] Cô ấy vừa nhận được thư người yêu nên cười luôn miệng.
    (She just received a letter from her boyfriend and she can't stop smiling.)

• luôn tay / luôn tay luôn chân: Continuous movement of hands and legs.

[2] Tối qua nóng quá, không ngủ được. Tôi phải quạt luôn tay.
    (Last night it was too hot; I had to fan myself without stopping.)
[3] Đứa bé cứ luôn tay luôn chân, trông nó thực là mệt.
    (This child is very active; it is tiring to look after him.)

• luôn một mạch / luôn một hơi:

[4] Bà ấy đã 60 tuổi rồi mà đi bộ luôn một mạch 10 cây số không nghỉ.
    (She is sixty years old already, but she can walk ten kilometers in a row.)
[5] Vừa nhìn thấy tôi, cô ấy nói luôn một hơi, tôi không nghe kịp.
    (Upon seeing me, she talked so fast without stopping that I couldn't follow her.)

• luôn thể: By the way / while at it.

[6] Chị ra chợ, luôn thể mua giùm tôi bó rau nhé!
    (Since you are going to the market, will you buy a bunch of vegetables for me as well?)
[7] Tôi chưa ăn bây giờ đâu. Đợi cô ấy về, rồi ăn luôn thể.
    (I don't want to eat now; I'll wait for her to return, then we will eat together.)

NOTE: In the Southern dialect (spoken language), luôn is also used to emphasize a large amount or high degree.

[8] Đám cưới của tôi, tôi mời 500 khách luôn.
    (I invited as many as five hundred guests for my wedding reception.)
[9] Ông ta có mười căn nhà luôn.
    (He has ten houses!)

Luôn (Adv 2)

Situations

S1: Nam has a nice watch. His younger sister likes it very much. She said:

Anh cho em luôn cái đồng hồ này nhé!
(Please give it to me for good!)

In this situation, Nam's sister asked for the watch for keeps, not just to borrow it. Luôn expresses that she wants it permanently.

S2: John is working in Vietnam and his wife is Vietnamese. He decided to live in Vietnam for good.

[1a] John quyết định sống ở Việt Nam luôn.
[1b] John quyết định sống luôn ở Việt Nam.
     (John decided to live in Vietnam for good.)

In this situation, John decided to live in Vietnam forever and not return to his own country.

Definition

Luôn, as an adverb placed after the verb, indicates that an action or a state will continue to occur only in that same direction / sense, not in the reverse or opposite sense.

Related Expressions

• luôn and hẳn: In many cases, luôn and hẳn can be interchanged. However, hẳn can be used to express completion or definiteness. In such cases, luôn cannot be interchanged with hẳn. Cf:

[1] Căn nhà đó tôi đã mua luôn / hẳn rồi.
    (I went ahead and bought the house.) (I don't rent it anymore.)
[2] Sơn xong, căn nhà đẹp luôn / hẳn ra.
    (After the house was repainted, it surely looked nicer.) (It's clearly nicer.)

Combinations

• Luôn as used here is often combined with verbs like: mua, bán, cho, tặng, sống, ở, etc.

Mà (Conj 1)

Situations

S1: Nam worked very hard, but in the end, he did not succeed.

Nam làm việc chăm chỉ mà không có kết quả gì cả.
(Nam tried hard but without any success in the end.)

Logically, if someone worked hard, he would be successful. However, this did not come true in Nam's case. Mà is used to express a reality contrary to the logic of the situation.

S2: Nam thought Titanic was a very good movie, but Lan disagreed. She said:

Phim Titanic mà hay à?
((You thought) that film was good, did you?)

In this case, mà is used in a question form that does not demand a response. It is used to deny one idea and perhaps affirm another, contrasting idea.

Definition

Mà, as a conjunction, is used to express a reality contrary to the logical situation or to deny what has been suggested or supposed.

Related Expressions

• Mà, as used in S1, can be replaced with nhưng, song, or combinations such as nhưng mà, vậy mà, mà lại. However, mà refers to an event contrary to what is usually expected, while nhưng expresses a contrary relationship between cause and effect.

• Mà, as used in S2, can only be replaced with mà lại, which is used to make a denial. Cf. lại3 (p. 140/183).

Combinations

• nhưng mà: Usually used in spoken Vietnamese to emphasize a contrary relationship or contrast.

[1] Tôi đã đọc quyển sách ấy rồi nhưng mà không hiểu gì cả.
    (I read that book, but I didn't understand anything from it.)
[2] Cô ấy rất thông minh nhưng mà hơi tự kiêu.
    (She is very intelligent, but she is a little arrogant.)

• mà lại:

[3] Tôi mà lại nói dối à?
    (I lied? No way!) (Denial)

• vậy mà / thế mà:

[4] Tôi đã khuyên nó, vậy mà nó không nghe!
    (I gave him some advice, but he didn't take it.)

Mà (Conj 2)

Situations

S1: Lan's father suggests going to Ngọc Sương restaurant, but Lan suggests another one:

Sao mình không đi nhà hàng Cánh Buồm đi? Ở đó ngon mà rẻ lắm.
(Why don't we go to Cánh Buồm? It's good and it's very cheap.)

Here, rẻ adds to the quality of the restaurant being ngon (good).

S2: After eating at Cánh Buồm, the mother complained:

Nhà hàng này ngon mà mắc quá!
(The food in this restaurant is delicious; however, it is too expensive!)

Typically, if something is good, it is expensive. Unlike mà1, this mà does not express a reality contrary to logic; it indicates an additional quality. Therefore, we can say both ngon mà rẻ and ngon mà mắc.

Definition

Mà, as a conjunction, is used to indicate an additional quality or an addition to what has been suggested or supposed.

Related Expressions

• mà and nhưng: In S1, we cannot say ngon nhưng rẻ because rẻ expresses an additional quality, not a contrast. In S2, mà (additional) can be replaced with nhưng (contrastive). In spoken Vietnamese, mà in S2 is usually replaced with nhưng mà.

• mà and lại / mà lại: In S1, mà can be replaced with lại / mà lại. It does not express a reality contrary to logic but carries the meaning of an additional quality. Lại is not used to replace mà in S2. Cf. lại2 (p. 183).

Mà (Conj 3)

Situations

S1: Lan wanted to leave but forgot her raincoat. Her friend said:

Lan lấy áo mưa của mình mà mặc.
(Here, Lan, you can use my raincoat.)

Mà is used to give a friendly suggestion.

S2: Sơn's mother is blind, so he sells newspapers to make a living.

Em Sơn phải bán báo mà nuôi mẹ.
(Sơn has to sell newspapers to feed his mother.)

Mà indicates the purpose of selling newspapers (nuôi mẹ).

Definition

Mà, as a conjunction, is used to give a suggestion, a request, or a command in a friendly way (S1) or to show the purpose of an action (S2).

NOTES: Do not use mà to give a request or make a suggestion to a person of higher position.

Related Expressions

• mà and để / để mà: Mà used in S2 can be replaced with để / để mà to indicate purpose. Mà is used in S1 to make a suggestion or give a command (usually in short sentences). It can be combined with command words like hãy, đi.

Xe đạp của tôi kìa! Hãy lấy xe tôi mà đi!
(My bicycle is over there. Take it and ride it!)

Mà (Conj 4)

Situations

S1: Bình is good at computers and often helps the secretary.

Nhờ Bình giúp đỡ mà công việc của cô thư ký dễ dàng hơn.
(Thanks to Bình's help, the secretary's work became easier.)

Mà introduces a result (công việc... dễ dàng hơn) that comes from an action (Nhờ Bình giúp đỡ).

S2: Hà felt pity for Sơn after hearing about his poor family.

Nghe nói mà tội nghiệp cho nó!
(It is heart-rending to hear his story!)

Mà introduces the impact of hearing about Sơn's family situation.

Definition

Mà, as a conjunction, introduces the effect, consequence, or result of an action or event which has just been mentioned.

Related Expressions

• mà and nên: Mà in S1 can be replaced with nên. However, nên generally expresses a typical result, whereas mà implies an explanation or justification. Mà rarely appears in scientific or administrative texts. In S2, mà cannot be replaced with nên because the effect is not a direct result but implies an effect on the speaker's feelings. Cf:

[1a] Vì trời mưa mà anh ấy không đi học.
     (It rained; that's why he didn't go to school.) (Explanation/Justification)
[1b] Vì trời mưa nên anh ấy không đi học.
     (Because of the rain, he didn't go to school.) (Typical/Expected result)

Combinations

• vì... mà..., do... mà..., tại... mà..., nhờ... mà....
• Common expressions in spoken Vietnamese: thấy mà thương, nghe mà tội nghiệp, thấy mà ghét, etc.

Mà (Conj 5)

Situations

S1: Hà saw five girls talking and asked:

Cô gái mà xe đạp bị hư là ai thế?
(Who is the girl whose bicycle is broken down?)

Hà wants to ask about the girl, and "xe đạp bị hư" is a descriptive feature.

Definition

Mà, as a conjunction, is used to link a noun with a following clause to clarify or modify that noun.

NOTES:

• Mà links an adjective clause with a preceding noun (animate or inanimate).
• Mà can be omitted (it is optional).

Combinations

• may mà:

[1] Sáng nay có một tai nạn. May mà không ai bị thương.
    (An accident happened this morning. Fortunately, no one was injured.)

• khó mà:

[2] Bây giờ hàng giả rất là tinh vi. Khó mà phân biệt được với hàng thật.
    (Counterfeit goods are sophisticated. It is really difficult to distinguish them from the genuine ones.)

• dễ gì mà:

[3] Ừ, dễ gì mà phân biệt được với hàng thật.
    (Yes, it's not easy to distinguish them from the genuine ones.)

• tha hồ mà:

[4] Về Mỹ Tho, anh tha hồ mà ăn trái cây.
    (If you go to Mỹ Tho, you can eat as much fruit as you like.)

• Following an indefinite pronoun (gì, ai, đâu...), mà links the noun with its modifier to emphasize a quality the speaker finds unusual.

[5] Người gì mà kỳ cục quá!
    (What a strange person!)
[6] Anh mang cái gì mà nặng thế?
    (What is this heavy thing you are carrying?)

• ... mà ... thì ...: Used to raise a hypothesis and its resulting effect. Often expresses a wish.

[7] Bây giờ mà mưa thì tuyệt lắm nhỉ?
    (It would be wonderful if it rained now!)

It is similar to nếu... thì..., hễ... thì..., giá... thì.... It usually refers to a presumption or something that has not happened yet and is not likely to happen.

Mà (Par)

Situations

S1: Hà asks Nam: "John's mother speaks Vietnamese very well, doesn't she?". Nam replied:

Mẹ John là người Việt mà!
(John's mother is Vietnamese!)

Mà explains that what was said is natural or obvious to the speaker.

S2: Loan is worried about her fiancé's faithfulness. He replies:

Thật mà!
(Really! / I'm serious!)

He uses mà to affirm the fact and reassure Loan.

S3: Hà told Nam not to drive so fast. Nam still drove fast and had an accident. Hà said:

Tôi đã bảo mà!
(I told you so!)

Mà is used here to reproach Nam for not following advice.

Definition

Mà, as a final particle, is used in spoken Vietnamese to emphasize an explanation, persuasion, affirmation, or reproach.

Mất (Par)

Situations

S1: Hà took her uncle to the hospital. His health was very poor. Hà said:

Có lẽ bác ấy chết mất.
(I'm afraid he might die.)

Hà worries about her uncle's health and is afraid he might die.

S2: Hoa's boyfriend came to see her, but after he left, she was sad and said:

Mẹ ơi, anh ấy về mất rồi!
(Mom! He already went home!)

Hoa expresses sadness for something that happened contrary to her wishes.

Definition

Mất, as a particle, expresses the speaker's anxiety about an unlucky thing that might happen, or regret for what has happened contrary to their wishes.

Related Expressions

• mất and lo / sợ / e ngại: Anxiety is also expressed by verbs like lo (worry), sợ (fear), e ngại (rằng) (be afraid).

Tôi e rằng kế hoạch này sẽ thất bại mất.
(I am afraid this plan will be unsuccessful.)

NOTE: Distinguish between mất as a particle and mất as a verb (lose, die, disappear).

[1] Tôi mất tiền.
    (I lost my money.) (It is gone.)
[2] Ông ấy mất rồi.
    (He passed away.) (He died.)
[3] Khi cảnh sát đến thì tên trộm đã chạy mất.
    (When the police came, the thief had run away.)

In [3], mất expresses a completed action with a result/state continuing to the present.

Mọi (Quan)

Situations

S1: All of the staff have left the office.

Mọi người đã ra về.
(Everyone has left.)

Mọi denotes the entire group of staff but does not express an exact number.

S2: You can buy Sài Gòn beer anywhere.

Anh có thể mua bia Sài Gòn ở mọi nơi.
(You can get Sài Gòn beer everywhere.)

Mọi implies all places without referring to how many.

Definition

Mọi, as an indefinite quantifier, refers to the whole of a group or mass (identified by the noun which follows).

Related Expressions

• mọi and mỗi: To refer to a whole group of members sharing a quality, mọi can in some cases be replaced with mỗi. Cf. mỗi1 (p. 249).

Combinations

• Mọi + time expression (khi, hôm, lúc, lần, năm, tháng, ngày): Used to refer to time up to the moment of speaking.

[1] Mọi ngày anh ấy về nhà lúc 7 giờ.
    (He usually gets home at seven o'clock.)

(In this situation, returning at seven is regular in the past.)

[2] Công việc của Lan vẫn như mọi khi.
    (Lan is doing the same work as usual.)

Mọi (khi) covers the past up to now. We use như / vẫn như to avoid implying a change.

NOTES:

• Mọi must be followed by a countable noun. Combinations like mọi nhân dân, mọi nhà cửa, mọi áo quần are prohibited.
• Mọi cannot go with các or những.
• tất cả mọi X: Used to refer to the whole of what is being said.

[3] Tất cả mọi người đều biết anh ấy.
    (Everyone knows him.)

Mỗi (Quan)

Situations

S1: Each of the students in the class must write his report.

Mỗi sinh viên trong lớp đều phải có báo cáo.
(Each student in the class must have a report.)

In this situation, mỗi is used with sinh viên without a separate classifier because sinh viên acts as a unit noun itself.

S2: Bình drinks beer before going to bed every night.

Mỗi tối, trước khi đi ngủ, anh Bình đều uống bia.
(Bình drinks beer before going to bed every night.)

The word tối here is considered a unit noun of time, like sáng, chiều, ngày, tuần, năm, etc.

Definition

Mỗi, as a quantifier, denotes an individual member of a group of members which share a quality; this individual member is considered as a representative of the whole group. Mỗi must be followed by a unit noun.

Related Expressions

• mỗi, một, từng:

[1a] Một sinh viên nộp ba báo cáo.
     (A student will hand in three reports.) (Refers to one individual, not necessarily representing the whole group.)
[1b] Từng sinh viên nộp báo cáo.
     (The students, one after another, will hand in their reports.) (Stresses the succession of members.)
[1c] Mỗi sinh viên nộp ba báo cáo.
     (Each of the students will hand in three reports.) (Every student does the same.)

In some cases, mỗi and từng cannot be interchanged:

[2] Mỗi / *Từng vé xem kịch giá 30.000 đồng.
    (Each ticket for the play costs 30,000 VND.)
[3] Bà ấy sẽ nói chuyện với từng / mỗi người.
    (She will talk to them, one after another.)

• mỗi and mọi: Mọi refers inclusively (but indefinitely) to the members of a whole. Mỗi refers to a whole by stressing its separate members. They usually cannot be interchanged.

[4] Tôi muốn biết ý kiến của mọi / mỗi người.
    (I want to know everyone's opinion.)
[5] Mũ này, mỗi / *mọi cái giá bao nhiêu?
    (This kind of hat, how much does each cost?)

Combinations

• mỗi... một...:

[1a] Mỗi giáo viên có một cách dạy.
     (Each teacher has a particular way of teaching.)
[1b] Mỗi hai tuần chúng tôi có một bài trắc nghiệm lịch sử.
     (Every two weeks we have a history test.)

• mỗi + time expression + một / mỗi...: (Shows an increasing degree.)

[2a] Sức khỏe của ông ấy mỗi ngày một tốt hơn.
     (His health gets better and better.)

This can be replaced with ngày càng..., càng ngày càng..., càng lúc càng....

• mỗi khi... là / thì...:

[3a] Mỗi khi nó bệnh là mẹ nó mất ngủ.
     (Every time he gets sick, his mother loses sleep.)

Can be interchanged with hễ... là... or cứ... là....

Mỗi (Par)

Situations

S: Thu usually rests from one to three o'clock, but she thinks that is not enough. She said:

Buổi trưa tôi ngủ mỗi ba tiếng!
(I sleep only three hours in the afternoon!)

Mỗi, as a particle, is used to express an amount that is small, according to the speaker.

Definition

Mỗi, as a particle, is used to express an amount that is considered small by the speaker.

Related Expressions

• mỗi, chỉ, chỉ có, chỉ... thôi: Mỗi has the same meaning as chỉ, chỉ có, chỉ... thôi in this context. However, mỗi as a particle cannot be combined with a verb directly in the same way chỉ can. Cf:

[1a] Tôi viết mỗi / chỉ ba bức thư.
     (I wrote only three letters.)
[1b] Tôi *mỗi / chỉ viết ba bức thư.
     (I only wrote three letters.)

Cf. chỉ (p. 45), có (p. 77), thôi (p. 369).

• mỗi and những: Mỗi is an antonym of những (particle). Những emphasizes a large amount. Cf. những2 (p. 295).

Combinations

• có mỗi...:

[1] Sáng nay tôi ăn có mỗi hai tô phở.
    (I ate only two bowls of phở for breakfast.) (Implying not much.)

• chỉ (có) mỗi...:

[2] Sáng nay tôi ăn chỉ có mỗi hai tô phở.
    (I ate as few as two bowlfuls of phở for breakfast.) (Small amount.)

Mới (Adv 1)

Situations

S1: John arrived in Vietnam yesterday. Nam asked him when he came. John replied:

Tôi mới đến Việt Nam hôm qua.
(I just came to Vietnam yesterday.)

John perceives that he came to Vietnam just a short time ago.

S2: John saw a big hospital in Thủ Đức that wasn't there two years ago. He asked Nam:

- Bệnh viện mới xây à?
  (Was the hospital just built?)
- Vâng, mới xây năm ngoái.
  (Yes, it was just built last year.)

Both perceive that the hospital was built a short time ago with reference to the moment of speaking (even though it was built a year ago).

Definition

Mới, as an adverb, is used to express an action or a point of time, prior to the moment of speaking or to another moment in the past, which, according to the speaker, occurred a short time ago.

Related Expressions

• mới, vừa, vừa mới: In many cases, we can use vừa, vừa mới instead of mới to express an action that occurred in the recent past. Vừa is used for an action that happened very recently or just before speaking, while mới can be used for an action that occurred quite a long time ago but is perceived by the speaker as having happened recently. Cf. vừa1 (p. 413).

Combinations

• vừa mới:

Họ vừa mới đến.
(They have just arrived.)

• mới vừa:

Họ mới vừa đến.
(They have just arrived.)

Mới (Adv 2)

Situations

S1: Nam asked Lan what time it was. Lan didn't want him to leave, so she said:

Mới mười giờ.
(It's only ten o'clock.)

Lan used mới to say it's still early.

S2: The teacher gave 100 questions. After an hour, Nam said:

Tôi làm mới 30 câu.
(I've answered only thirty questions so far.)

Nam used mới to emphasize that he worked slowly and answered only a few questions.

Definition

Mới, as an adverb, is used to indicate that, according to the speaker, up to the present time, the duration of time is short, or the amount, number, or degree of something is small.

Related Expressions

• mới, chỉ, có:

[1a] Tôi làm chỉ 30 câu. (I only answered thirty; I didn't answer the others.)
[1b] Tôi làm có 30 câu. (I answered only thirty; emphasis on small amount.)
[1c] Tôi làm mới 30 câu. (I've only answered thirty; I am still going.)

[2a] Họ chỉ có một con trai. (They only have a son; they probably won't have more.)
[2b] Họ mới có một con trai. (So far, they have only one son; they may have more.)

Chỉ / có expresses a small amount and can be replaced with mới. However, mới often restricts the time up to the moment of speaking.

Combinations

• mới đầu (= lúc bắt đầu, lúc đầu): At first.

[1] Mới đầu tôi giận anh ta, nhưng sau này tôi đã hiểu.
    (At first I was angry with him, but later I understood.)

• mới đây (= gần đây, vừa rồi): Recently.

[2] Mới đây tôi có gặp cô ấy.
    (I've recently met her.)

• mới... (mà) đã...: Expresses that something happened surprisingly early or at a low degree.

[3a] Cô ấy mới 20 tuổi (mà) đã có chồng.
     (As young as twenty, she is already married.)

• mới đó đã...: Indicates a fact or state happened recently, implying time passed quickly.

[4] Mới đó mà đã hai mươi năm rồi!
    (I can't believe it; it's already been twenty years!)

• mới... thôi: Puts emphasis on limited time or degree.

[5] Cô ấy mới hai mươi thôi.
    (She's only twenty.)

• mới thôi:

A: Anh đến lâu chưa? (Have you been here long?)
B: Mới thôi! (I've just arrived!)

Mới (Prep)

Situations

S1: Nam asked when the bookstore closes. Hà said:

Nhà sách tám giờ tôi mới đóng cửa.
(The bookstore will not close until eight.)

Hà thinks the bookstore will close at eight or later; it won't close before then.

S2: Hà answered that the cafe closes only after the last customer has gone.

Các quán cà phê hết khách mới đóng cửa.
(The coffee shops close only after the last customer has gone.)

Hà means the condition for closing the cafe is that the last customer has left.

Definition

Mới, as a preposition, indicates the relationship between a condition and a result. In the construction (A) mới (B), (A) is the condition expressed as time, action, or state, and (B) results from the fulfillment of that condition.

Combinations

• chỉ... mới...: Denotes that A is a unique condition for B.

[1] Chỉ có cố gắng mới thành công.
    (Only by trying can one succeed.)

• có... mới...: Equivalent to chỉ... mới....

[2] Có nói chuyện với anh ấy anh mới hiểu anh ấy.
    (Only by talking to him can you understand him.)

• đến... mới...: Indicates an event occurs at a specific time later than expected.

[3] Trễ lắm! Đến năm giờ em mới về.
    (Very late! I won't be home until five o'clock.)

• mãi... mới...: Similar to đến... mới..., but stronger.

[4] Em ngủ trễ lắm. Mãi một giờ sáng em mới ngủ.
    (I went to bed very late. I didn't go to bed until one o'clock A.M.)

Ngay (Adv 1)

Situations

S1: Nam asks Hà a question, and she answers very quickly without taking time to think.

Nam hỏi Hà, Hà trả lời ngay.
(When Nam asked Hà something, she answered immediately.)

Ngay expresses the rapid occurrence of the second action following the first.

S2: A couple got married, but divorced several months later.

Họ ly dị nhau ngay sau vài tháng.
(They divorced after only a few months.)

Ngay indicates that the divorce happened very soon.

Definition

Ngay, as an adverb, expresses the promptness or quickness of one action following another.

Related Expressions

• In most cases, ngay can be replaced with liền or combinations like lập tức, tức thì, tức khắc, etc.

[1a] Sau khi thi, chúng tôi biết kết quả ngay.
[1b] Sau khi thi, chúng tôi biết kết quả ngay lập tức.
[1f] Sau khi thi, chúng tôi biết kết quả liền.
     (We were informed of the results immediately following the exam.)

Cf. liền1 (p. 203).

Combinations

• ngay sau:

[1] Họ đi hưởng tuần trăng mật ngay sau lễ cưới.
    (They went on a honeymoon immediately following the wedding ceremony.)

• ngay khi:

[2] Họ cãi nhau ngay khi tiệc cưới bắt đầu.
    (They got into an argument just as the wedding reception started.)

Ngay (Par 1)

Situations

S1: The director needs a contract typed today. Lan answered:

Tôi sẽ làm xong ngay chiều nay.
(I will finish it this afternoon.)

Lan used ngay to affirm the certainty and reassure her director.

S2: Thu saw a pair of shoes in an unexpected place. She told Hoa:

Vâng, tôi thấy đôi giày ngay trên giường tôi.
(Yes, I saw a pair of shoes right in my bed.)

Ngay is used to emphasize the exact location.

Definition

Ngay, as a particle, precedes a time expression or an expression of location to emphasize the precise time or location.

Related Expressions

• ngay and đúng / đúng ngay: In some cases, ngay can be replaced with đúng or đúng ngay (in spoken Vietnamese).

[1a] Ngay hôm nay mọi việc sẽ kết thúc.
     (Today for sure everything will be finished.)
[1b] Đúng hôm nay mọi việc sẽ kết thúc.
     (Today exactly, everything will be finished.)
[2a] Hôm đó anh ấy ngồi ngay đây.
     (On that day, he sat right here.)
[2b] Hôm đó anh ấy ngồi đúng ngay đây.
     (On that day, he sat exactly in this spot.)

Combinations

• ngay + cạnh / bên / trong / trước / giữa (place):

[1] Nhà tôi ở ngay cạnh trường.
    (My house is right next to the school.)
[2] Cô ấy ngồi ngay bên tôi.
    (She sat right beside me.)
[3] Họ cãi nhau ngay trong nhà tôi.
    (They argued right inside my house.)
[4] Chúng cướp xe ngay trước chợ.
    (They robbed a motorbike right in front of the market.)
[5] Họ đặt ti vi ngay giữa nhà.
    (They put the TV set right in the middle of the house.)

• ngay + bây giờ / lúc này / hôm nay / từ đầu:

[6] Tôi sẽ đi ngay bây giờ.
    (I am going right now.)
[7] Ngay lúc này chị phải bình tĩnh.
    (Right at this moment, you must be calm.)
[8] Cô ấy trở lại Sài Gòn ngay hôm nay.
    (She will return to Saigon today for sure.)
[9] Ngay từ đầu anh ta đã không nói thật.
    (From the very beginning, he didn't tell the truth.)

Ngay (Par 2)

Situations

S1: No one knows Nam is married. Even his close friend Tân doesn't know.

Ngay anh Tân cũng không biết Nam đã có vợ.
(Even Tân doesn't know Nam is married.)

Ngay (combined with cũng) shows that "not knowing" is also true of Tân, which is unexpected.

S2: Mrs. Ba hasn't even traveled to a nearby city.

Bà Ba chưa bao giờ đi xa, ngay Mỹ Tho bà ấy cũng chưa đi.
(Mrs. Ba has never left her hometown; she hasn't even gone to Mỹ Tho.)

Ngay highlights a situation where something expected (going to a nearby place) hasn't happened.

Definition

Ngay, as a particle, is used to express an unusual situation in which something expected to have happened or been known is, in fact, not happened or known.

NOTE: Ngay is often combined with cũng.

Related Expressions

• ngay, cả, chính:

[1a] Ngay tôi cũng không biết. (Even I don't know that - unusual/unexpected.)
[1b] Cả tôi cũng không biết. (I don't know either - inclusive.)
[1c] Chính tôi cũng không biết. (I myself don't know - emphasizing the person.)

Cf. cả (p. 23), chính (p. 49).

• ngay, kể cả, thậm chí, đến: These words indicate a high degree of surprise or inclusion and can sometimes replace ngay.

[2a] Kể cả tôi cũng không biết.
[2b] Thậm chí tôi cũng không biết.
[2c] Đến tôi cũng không biết.

Kể cả is inclusive and may not always be replaceable with ngay.

Combinations

• ngay đến... cũng...:

[1] Chuyện ấy, ngay đến tôi cũng không biết.
    (Even I didn't know that.)

• ngay cả... cũng...:

[2] Chuyện ấy, ngay cả tôi cũng không biết.
    (Even I didn't know that; I should have known.)

• ngay như... cũng...:

[3] Chuyện ấy, ngay như tôi, tôi cũng không biết.
    (I didn't know that either; take me for example.)

Ngoài (Prep)

Situations

S1: John went to Vietnam to study Vietnamese. He also studies Vietnamese History.

Ngoài tiếng Việt, John còn học lịch sử Việt Nam.
(Besides Vietnamese language, John also studies Vietnamese History.)

The speaker emphasizes that besides his main purpose, he does something else.

S2: Tom studies only Vietnamese.

Tom không học gì cả, ngoài tiếng Việt.
(Tom doesn't study anything else but Vietnamese.)

Vietnamese is the only thing he studies; all others are excluded.

Definition

Ngoài, as a preposition, is used to express an object or domain that is not included.

Related Expressions

• ** ngoài** and không những... mà... còn...:

[1a] Không những tôi học tiếng Anh mà tôi còn học tiếng Pháp.
     (I not only study English but also French.) (Progressive addition; French is a higher level/bonus.)
[1b] Ngoài tiếng Anh, tôi còn học tiếng Pháp.
     (Besides English, I study French.) (English is the main focus; French is an addition.)

• ngoài and trừ: In many cases, ngoài can be replaced by ngoại trừ or trừ. Trừ is stronger and often used in specific situations like raising conditions or disapproval.

[2] Tháng này, ở đâu cũng nóng cả, trừ / ngoại trừ / ngoài Đà Lạt.
    (This month the weather is hot everywhere except in Đà Lạt.)

Cf. trừ (p. 381).

Combinations

• ngoài... ra (còn / cũng... nữa):

[1a] Ngoài tiếng Việt ra, John còn học lịch sử Việt Nam nữa.
[1b] John học tiếng Việt. Ngoài ra, John còn học lịch sử Việt Nam nữa.
     (Besides Vietnamese, John also studies Vietnamese History.)

• ngoài... chỉ...:

[2] Ngoài số tiền này, anh chỉ còn chiếc xe đạp là đáng giá.
    (Besides this sum of money, you possess only the bicycle which is of value.)

Nhé (Par)

Situations

S1: Saying good-bye to her friend, Lan says:

Thôi, mình về nhé!
(That's all. I'm leaving, okay?)

S2: Nam won the lottery. Bình says:

Chúc mừng anh nhé!
(Congratulations!)

In social situations (thanking, apologizing, wishing), nhé catches attention or adds intimacy.

S3: Before Bình leaves for university, his mom says:

Vào thành phố, con phải cố gắng học nhé!
(In the city, you must study well, right?)

His sister says:

Nhớ viết thư cho em nhé!
(Remember to write to me, okay?)

S4: Tí asks for ice cream and his mom agrees. Tí says happily:

Đấy nhé! Mẹ gật đầu tức là đồng ý rồi đấy nhé!
(There! You nodded, so you agreed, right?)

S5: Nam suggests to Lan:

Tối thứ bảy đi nghe nhạc với anh nhé!
(Let's go to a concert on Saturday evening, okay?)

In these situations, the speaker gives advice (S3), confirms a promise (S4), or makes a suggestion (S5) and hopes for the listener's agreement.

Definition

Nhé, as a sentence-final particle, is used to catch the listener's attention and imply that the listener should agree with the speaker's advice, promise, or suggestion.

Related Expressions

• Nhé can be interchanged with nhe, nha, or nghen in the Southern dialect.

- Thôi, mình về nhé / nha!
- Sướng nhé / nhe!
- Nhớ viết thư cho em nhé / nha!

• nhé and nhỉ: Questions ending with nhé or nhỉ expect agreement.
• nhỉ refers to the nature/characteristics of a thing (usually with adjectives or stative verbs).
• nhé involves a suggestion/requirement to do something (usually with active verbs). Cf. nhỉ (p. 273).

- Tối thứ bảy đi nghe nhạc với anh nhé? (Suggestion)
- Phong cảnh ở đây đẹp quá nhỉ? (Remark on characteristics)

Nhỉ (Par)

Situations

S1: Seeing a beautiful scene in Đà Lạt, Nam says to Hùng:

Phong cảnh ở đây đẹp quá nhỉ!
(The scenery here is beautiful, isn't it?)

Nam expects Hùng to agree with his remark.

S2: Hùng reminds Nam of a birthday. Nam remembers:

Ừ nhỉ! Thế mà anh quên mất.
(Oh, that's right! How could I have forgotten?)

Nhỉ is used here to agree with the first speaker.

S3: Nam did something embarrassing. His wife says sarcastically:

Đẹp mặt nhỉ!
(Embarrassing, isn't it?)

Nhỉ increases the nuance of irony or criticism.

S4: A beautiful girl enters the room. Nam asks Hùng:

Ai thế nhỉ?
(Who's that?)

Nhỉ makes the question intimate.

S5: Nam is worried about something he said and asks himself:

Trời ơi, mình đã nói gì nhỉ?
(Oh my God, what was I saying?)

Nhỉ is used in a self-questioning/narrative way without requesting an answer.

Definition

Nhỉ, as a particle, is placed at the end of an interrogative or exclamatory sentence. In exclamatory sentences, it is used to seek or express agreement, or to criticize. In interrogative sentences, it makes the question intimate or narrative.

Related Expressions

• nhỉ and ha, há, hén: In S1, S2, and S3, nhỉ can be interchanged with ha, há, or hén in the Southern dialect.

- Phong cảnh ở đây đẹp quá nhỉ / ha!
- Đẹp mặt nhỉ / ha!
- Ừ nhỉ / há!

Những (Quan 1)

Situations

S1: Tân tells his son about his past.

Tân thường kể cho con nghe những kỷ niệm thời trẻ của mình.
(Tân often tells his son about his memories of youth.)

His memories are the group of things being spoken about.

S2: A friend asks Tom about his travels in Vietnam.

Anh đã đi du lịch những đâu, và những gì làm anh chú ý hơn cả?
(What places did you travel to? What things fascinated you the most?)

The speaker knows Tom visited many places but doesn't know which ones, so he uses những đâu and những gì to ask about the indefinite group.

Definition

Những, as an indefinite quantifier referring to a group, is used to distinguish that group from another or to refer to an indefinite group.

Related Expressions

• những and các: Những is a plural indefinite quantifier, while các is a plural definite quantifier. Những can be combined with indefinite pronouns like gì, đâu, ai to indicate an indefinite whole. The indefinite quantifier usually requires a modifier following it (except in questions). Cf. các (p. 25).

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).

Related Expressions

• 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.)

Ở (Prep)

Situations

S1: The dictionary is on the table. Hà asks Nam where it is. Nam answers:

Quyển từ điển nằm ở trên bàn đấy!
(The dictionary is on the table.)

Ở appears after the verb but before the noun to identify the location of an object or fact.

S2: Nam represents his class in a competition. Everyone has high expectations.

Mọi người đều hy vọng ở anh.
(Everyone is placing their hope in you.)

Ở comes after verbs like hy vọng (hope), tin (believe), trông (expect), tìm (find), dựa (rely), etc., to indicate the goal or object of the verb.

Definition

Ở, as a preposition, is used to identify the location of an object or a fact, or to indicate the goal or object of certain verbs.

Related Expressions

• ở and tại:
• Tại is used instead of ở when a more precise location is needed or in formal contexts.

[1] Lúc xảy ra việc đó, anh ở đâu? (Where were you when it happened?)
    Tôi ngồi tại đây! (I was sitting right here.)
[2] Buổi lễ diễn ra tại Quảng trường Ba Đình lịch sử.
    (The ceremony took place at the historic Ba Đình Square.)

• We don't use tại before relative location nouns like trước, sau, cạnh, trong, ngoài, etc.

[2a] Chúng tôi đứng chờ cô ấy ở ngoài vườn.
[2b] *Chúng tôi đứng chờ cô ấy tại ngoài vườn.

• Ở is used for the goal of verbs like hy vọng, tin, trông, etc. In these cases, ở cannot be replaced with tại.

[3] Chúng tôi tin ở anh. (We trust in you.)

• Ở is used to indicate a part of the human body and cannot be replaced with tại.

[4] Anh đau ở đâu? (Where does it hurt?)
    Tôi bị thương ở gót chân trái. (I'm injured in my left heel.)

Cf. tại (p. 353).

Phải (V 1)

Situations

S1: My hasn't finished her homework but wants to watch TV. Her mother says:

Con phải học bài trước khi xem ti vi.
(You must finish your homework before watching TV.)

Phải is used here to give a command or a request.

S2: Nam declines an invitation to go to Đà Lạt.

Cám ơn, tôi không đi vì tôi phải học thi.
(Thank you, I can't go because I have to study for exams.)

Phải is used to express compulsion, obligation, or necessity.

Definition

Phải, as a verb, is used to give a command or request, or to express what must be done as a compulsion or obligation.

Related Expressions

• phải, nên, cần: These verbs express requirement, compulsion, or necessity. Phải is a stronger command than nên.

[1a] Anh phải đi ngủ sớm. (You must go to bed early.)
[1b] Anh nên đi ngủ sớm. (You should go to bed early.)

When speaking about a necessity, we use phải instead of nên.

[2] Tôi phải / *nên đi ngủ sớm (để sáng mai dậy đúng giờ).
    (I have to go to bed early.)

Phải (V 2)

Situations

S1: Lâm caused an accident and was sentenced to six months' imprisonment.

Lâm phải ngồi tù sáu tháng.
(Lâm got six months' imprisonment.)

S2: Lan married a man who everyone thought was good, but he turned out to be lazy.

Cô ấy lấy phải người chồng lười biếng.
(Unfortunately, she got a lazy husband.)

Lan's marriage to a lazy man is considered unlucky (she didn't know he was lazy before).

Definition

Phải, as a verb, is used to express that someone undergoes something unlucky or unfavorable, as expressed by the object which follows.

Related Expressions

• phải, được, bị: Phải is one of the "passive" verbs (bị, được, phải). It conveys a meaning similar to bị and contrary to được. However, bị and phải are used differently:
• bị usually appears before a verb.
• phải usually comes after another verb or before a noun.

[1] Nó bị phạt. (Unfortunately, he was fined.) (bị + Verb)
[2] Nó phải đòn. (Unfortunately, he was spanked.) (phải + Noun)
[3] Cô ấy lấy phải chồng lười. (Unfortunately, she got a lazy husband.) (Verb + phải)

Cf. bị (p. 17), được1 (p. 139).

NOTES

The combination phải + noun ([S1]) only occurs in certain (often idiomatic) expressions such as phải đòn, phải gió, phải vôi, phải bỏng, etc.

Quá (V)

Situations

S1: Bảo is sixteen and cannot attend a tournament for eleven to fifteen-year-olds.

Bảo đã quá tuổi tham gia cuộc thi này.
(Bảo is over the age limit to attend this tournament.)

Quá indicates that Bảo's age is over the set limit.

S2: Hoa is worried about her ten-year-old son's weight.

Cháu mới 10 tuổi mà nặng quá 50 ký rồi.
(He's only ten years old, but his weight is over fifty kilos.)

The weight is above what is considered normal for that age.

Definition

Quá, as a verb, is used to indicate something being above a lawful/allowed limit or a standard.

Related Expressions

• quá and hơn: If what follows indicates a degree of comparison rather than a strict limit, quá can sometimes be replaced by hơn.

[1] Con gà này có lẽ quá / hơn ba ký.
    (This chicken likely weighs over three kilos.)
[2a] Anh ấy hơn 30 tuổi. (He is more than thirty - e.g., 31, 32.)
[2b] Anh ấy quá 30 tuổi. (He is beyond the age of thirty - e.g., and thus cannot join an age-limited group.)
[3] Anh ấy hơn / *quá tôi hai tuổi. (He is two years older than I am.)

Hơn expresses being higher in comparison, while quá implies exceeding a limit.

Combinations

• Quá is often combined with nouns to form idiomatic expressions:

- quá chén: to be drunk
- quá cỡ: oversized
- quá tuổi: over age
- quá hạn: past expiration date
- quá đáng: excessive / going too far
- quá sức: too difficult / beyond strength

[1] Tối hôm qua ông ta quá chén, không về nhà được.
[3] Thuốc quá hạn, không uống được. (The medicine is expired.)
[5] Anh nói thế là quá đáng. (What you said goes too far!)
[7] Việc này quá sức tôi. (This is beyond my ability.)

Quá (Adv)

Situations

S1: Nam finished only two exercises in two hours while others finished more. The teacher said:

Em Nam làm chậm quá!
(Nam, you are very slow!)

Nam's speed was below the expected standard.

S2: Nam and Lan are traveling by train. Lan says excitedly:

Ôi, rừng núi đẹp quá!
(Oh, the mountains are so beautiful!)

Lan uses quá because she is excited by the beauty.

S3: Lan tells Hoa about a concert she enjoyed.

Chị không đi xem thật là đáng tiếc. Chương trình hay quá!
(It's too bad you didn't go; the program was very exciting!)

Lan is still excited about the concert.

S4: Nam wants to buy a dictionary that costs 200,000 VND.

Quyển từ điển này tốt, nhưng quá mắc, tôi mua không nổi.
(The dictionary is good, but it's too expensive; I can't afford it.)

Quá indicates a degree beyond Nam's capacity or a normal limit.

Definition

Quá, as an adverb, is used to indicate a degree that the speaker considers above normal, over the limit, or beyond their capacity.

NOTE: Quá is often used after an adjective or modal verb in exclamatory sentences to express feelings about something currently or recently perceived.

Related Expressions

• quá, rất, lắm, hơi, khá: Quá and lắm are frequent in speech. Lắm is more common in narration or commentary on a value, while quá is used in exclamations. Rất is neutral and can appear in most situations.

[1a] Cô ấy đẹp lắm! (She is very pretty - narration/remark.)
[1b] Cô ấy rất đẹp. (She is very pretty - neutral description.)

Cf. lắm2 (p. 201), rất (p. 323).

Combinations

• Quá is often used in exclamatory sentences ending with a "!".
• quá... để...:

[1] Cô ấy quá trẻ để đảm nhận chức vụ này.
    (She is too young to take charge of this post.)

• quá chừng, quá cỡ, quá mức, quá sức, quá trời, quá thể, quá đỗi:

[2] Bữa tiệc tối hôm qua vui quá chừng. (The party was so much fun.)
[5] Chương trình ca nhạc tối hôm qua hay quá sức. (The show was very exciting.)
[6] Tôi chờ anh lâu quá trời. (I've been waiting ages.)
[8] Nhận được thư gia đình họ vui mừng quá đỗi. (They were overjoyed.)

• (X) quá là (X) (spoken):

[9] Hay quá là hay! (It's so good!)

• quá lắm (cũng) (chỉ) (X): (X is the absolute limit.)

[10] Cô ấy quá lắm cũng chỉ 28, chứ không đến 30 đâu.
     (She is 28 at most; she can't be 30.)
[11] Anh đừng lo, quá lắm bảy giờ là xong.
     (Don't worry, it will be done by seven o'clock at the latest.)

In spoken Vietnamese, when following an action verb, quá indicates doing something beyond an allowed degree:

[12] Anh đừng nói quá! (Don't exaggerate!)
[13] Sao em làm quá vậy! (Why are you making such a fuss?)

Rất (Adv)

Situations

S1: In a math test, the class got 8 points, but Bá got 10.

Bá rất giỏi toán.
(Bá is very good at mathematics.)

Rất expresses that Bá's result is higher than his peers.

S2: Bá scored 10 in math and 8 in physics. The teacher said:

Môn vật lý em Bá giỏi, còn môn toán, em rất giỏi.
(In physics Bá is good, and in mathematics he is very good.)

His math score is much higher than his physics score.

Definition

Rất, as an adverb, expresses a higher level beyond the normal requirement of a certain nature, property, or state, according to the speaker's evaluation.

Related Expressions

• rất, quá, lắm, hơi, khá: Rất is neutral and lacks the special nuances of the others. It is used in all contexts, especially in descriptive sentences. Cf. lắm2 (p. 201), quá (p. 317).

• rất, thật (là), đến mức, đến nỗi:

[1a] Cô ấy rất đẹp. (She is very beautiful.)
[1b] Cô ấy thật (là) đẹp. (She is really beautiful.)
[1c] Cô ấy đẹp đến nỗi không anh sinh viên nào không mê cô ấy.
     (She is so beautiful that every male student is crazy about her.)

• rất, cực kỳ, tuyệt vời: The absolute highest level.

[2a] Bộ phim này rất hay. (This film is very good.)
[2b] Bộ phim này hay cực kỳ / cực kỳ hay. (This film is extremely good.)
[2d] Bộ phim này hay tuyệt vời. (This film is wonderful.)

Tuyệt vời indicates the absolute highest level of a positive value.

Combinations

• rất là, rất đỗi, rất ư: Used in speaking to express attitude more clearly.

[1] Cô ấy trông rất là ngây thơ. (She looks very naive.)
[2] Ông sống rất đỗi giản dị. (He lives extremely simply.) (Positive implication.)
[3] Quyển sách này rất ư là khó hiểu. (This book is really hard to understand.)

• rất mực:

[4] Công chúa rất mực xinh đẹp. (The princess is so beautiful.)

• rất / quá / lắm do not go with words followed by ra, lên, lại, đi... Words like mập, ốm, vui, cao, etc., indicate a state. When combined with ra / đi / lên / lại..., they indicate a process and cannot take absolute degree words like rất.

- Cô ấy rất mập. (Correct)
- *Cô ấy rất mập ra. (Incorrect)

Rồi (Adv)

Situations

S1: Nam asks about their old friend Loan.

Cô ấy có chồng rồi.
(She got married already.)

Rồi indicates the marriage happened prior to speaking. It doesn't specify current status (still married or divorced).

S2: Hoa asks John if he has read the Tale of Kiều. John answers:

Rồi. Tôi đọc Truyện Kiều rồi, cách đây năm năm.
(Yes. I read it already, five years ago.)

Rồi indicates the action began and terminated in the past.

S3: Nam is picking up his girlfriend at the station. He hears the train whistle.

Năm phút nữa là gặp cô ấy rồi.
(I will meet her in five minutes.)

Meeting hasn't happened yet, but evidence (whistle) makes it certain.

S4: A husband waits for his wife who is getting ready.

Đẹp lắm rồi! Nhanh lên, chúng ta chậm mất rồi!
(You look pretty already! Hurry up, we're late already!)

Rồi affirms the current state (being pretty, being late).

Definition

Rồi, as an adverb, is used to express the idea that a state or an action began before the moment of speaking. It may be completed or not completed, depending on context.

Related Expressions

• rồi and đã: In most cases, rồi can be replaced with đã. Cf. đã (p. 111).

• rồi and xong: Both indicate an event beginning/terminating before the moment of speaking. Rồi expresses reality, while xong always indicates completion.

[1] Nghe xong / *rồi bản nhạc tôi mới ra về.
    (I'm going home after listening to this piece of music.) (Requires completion.)
[2] Tôi nghe bản nhạc này rồi.
    (I have listened to this piece of music already.)

Combinations

• đã... rồi:

Cô ấy đã về nước rồi.
(She already went back to her country.)

• đã rồi: Often used with words like chuyện, việc, sự to indicate a "fait accompli".

Làm như vậy là anh đã đặt tôi trước việc đã rồi.
(What you did presents me with a fait accompli / something already settled.)

• xong rồi:

Vấn đề này bà ấy đã giải quyết xong rồi.
(She has solved this problem already.)

Rồi (Conj)

Situations

S1: Nam and Hà went to the cinema, and then for coffee.

Hôm qua chúng tôi đi xem phim rồi đi uống cà phê.
(We went to the cinema yesterday, and then we went for coffee.)

Rồi introduces the succession of events.

S2: Narrating a story:

Hai vợ chồng già sinh được một bé gái... Rồi một hôm, người chồng vào rừng bị hổ ăn thịt. Người vợ đau buồn rồi cũng qua đời. Rồi ngày qua ngày, Tí Hon trở thành một cô gái xinh đẹp...
(An old couple had a girl... Then one day, the husband was killed by a tiger. The wife was sad and she died. Then day by day, Tí Hon became a pretty girl...)

Rồi links facts in a sequence of time.

S3: Nam gives advice to lazy Bình:

Bây giờ anh không chịu cố gắng, rồi có ngày anh phải hối tiếc.
(Now you aren't working hard, and some day in the future you will regret it.)

Rồi shows succession based on logic (consequence) rather than just time.

Definition

Rồi, as a conjunction, is used to indicate the succession in time of two or more facts, or to present a relationship where one fact gives rise to another.

Related Expressions

• Other words like nên, vì, do, bởi, bèn, còn also express relationships between facts (cause-effect, etc.), while rồi primarily focuses on succession.

Combinations

• rồi and sau đó:

[1] Làm bài tập xong rồi / sau đó đi chơi.
    (Finish your homework first, then you can go out.)

• rồi sau đó:

[2] Em phải làm bài tập xong rồi sau đó mới được đi chơi.
    (You won't go out until you finish your homework.)

• rồi sao (nữa)?: What happens next?

A: Anh ấy cầm lấy tay tôi, rồi...
B: Rồi sao (nữa)?

• rồi sau này:

[4] Rồi sau này cô gái trở thành vợ ông.
    (Later on, that girl became his wife.)

• rồi đây: In the future.

[5] Thời tiết rồi đây sẽ khắc nghiệt hơn.
    (The weather will be harsher in the future.)

• vừa rồi:

[6] Đêm vừa rồi anh đi đâu? (Where did you go last night?)
    Vừa rồi tôi có gặp anh ấy. (I recently met him.)

NOTES: hôm rồi / hôm vừa rồi (a few days ago), tuần rồi, tháng rồi, năm rồi.

• mới vừa rồi:

B: Mới vừa rồi, cách đây khoảng vài ngày. (Just a few days ago.)

• ... rồi mới...:

[9] Có việc làm ổn định, rồi mới nghĩ đến đám cưới.
    (I won't think about getting married until I have a stable job.)

• (V1) đã, rồi hãy (V2): (V1 finishes before V2 starts.)

[10] Uống cà phê đã, rồi hãy về.
     (Have a cup of coffee first, then go home.)

Similar to: V1 đã rồi V2, V1 rồi hãy V2, V1 rồi hẵng V2, V1 đã!.

[11] Nghỉ một chút rồi / rồi hẵng đi tiếp!
[12] Nghỉ một chút đã!

Sắp (Adv)

Situations

S1: John decided to go home and bought his airline ticket.

John sắp về nước.
(John is going back to his country soon.)

Sắp indicates the event will happen in the near future.

S2: The exam is in two days. Nam is worried.

Ngày thi sắp đến rồi.
(The exam day will soon arrive.)

S2 indicates the exam will soon be held.

S3: Yesterday, while Hoa was preparing for the market, guests arrived.

Hôm qua, Hoa sắp đi chợ thì có khách.
(Yesterday, when Hoa was about to go to the market, guests arrived.)

Sắp indicates something that would have happened shortly if another event hadn't intervened. (She didn't go because of the guests.)

Definition

Sắp, as an adverb, indicates an event/fact that will happen in the near future, or something that was about to happen if another event hadn't occurred. (The "near future" is relative to a reference point in time.)

Related Expressions

• sắp and sẽ: Both express the future, but sắp indicates the near future.

[1a] Trời sắp mưa. (It is going to rain - e.g., in a few minutes.)
[1b] Trời sẽ mưa. (It will rain - e.g., in a few hours or days.)

Cf. sẽ (p. 343).

• sắp, gần, suýt:
• sắp X: X will happen soon (good or bad).
• suýt X: X almost happened but luckily didn't (usually bad).
• gần X: Indicates an approximate level.

[2a] Năm ngoái, ông ấy sắp phá sản vì nợ nần thì gặp may.
     (Last year, he was about to go bankrupt... then met good fortune.)
[2b] Năm ngoái, ông ấy suýt phá sản vì nợ nần thì gặp may.
     (Last year, he almost went bankrupt... then met good fortune.)
[2c] Năm ngoái, ông ấy gần phá sản vì nợ nần thì gặp may.
     (Last year, he nearly went bankrupt... then met good fortune.)

Sẽ (Adv)

Situations

S1: Mr. Lâm's family is in difficulty, but he says:

Em đừng lo! Mọi việc sẽ tốt đẹp.
(Don't worry! Everything will be fine.)

Sẽ indicates an event the speaker thinks will become true in the future.

S2: Lazy student Long apologizes:

Em xin lỗi cô! Em sẽ cố gắng. Em sẽ không lười nữa.
(I apologize. I will make an effort. I won't be lazy any longer.)

Sẽ expresses a promise or pledge for the future.

S3: Boiling water:

Ở nhiệt độ 100°C nước sẽ bốc hơi.
(At 100°C, water will evaporate.)

Sẽ expresses that, given a certain condition, something will be true.

S4: Nam wishes he had money:

Tôi có tiền, tôi sẽ đi du lịch khắp thế giới.
(If I had money, I would travel around the world.)

Sẽ introduces a hypothesis (not yet true) that hinges on a condition.

S5: Nam planned to marry Lan after graduating, but she changed her mind.

Theo dự định của Nam, đám cưới của anh và Lan sẽ diễn ra sau khi anh tốt nghiệp, nếu như Lan không đổi ý.
(The wedding would have taken place after graduation if Lan had not changed her mind.)

Sẽ indicates what would have happened from a past reference point.

Definition

Sẽ, as an adverb, is used to express something that will happen in the future (according to the speaker) or something that will happen given a certain condition.

Related Expressions

• sẽ and đã, đang, sắp: Traditional grammar links these to future, past, and present. However, in Vietnamese, tense is often understood from context (e.g., ngày mai, lúc bấy giờ). Đã, đang indicate the reality (fact) of an event, while sẽ, sắp indicate its unreality (not yet happened). Cf. đã (p. 111), đang (p. 119), sắp (p. 339), rồi (p. 327).

Combinations

• đã, đang và sẽ: Used in very formal language to affirm the long-term existence and continuation of an action.

[1] Chúng ta đã, đang và sẽ đấu tranh cho độc lập dân tộc.
    (We have been, are, and will continue fighting for national independence.)

Suýt (Adv)

Situations

S1: A glass rolled to the edge of the table. Nam jumped to grab it and it didn't fall. Nam said:

May quá! Cái ly suýt vỡ.
(How lucky! The glass almost broke.)

In this situation, the possibility of the glass breaking was high.

S2: Lan liked a director who proposed to her, but she refused. Later, his company went bankrupt. She told Hoa:

Công ty của ông Toàn phá sản rồi. May quá! Em đã suýt lấy ông ta.
(Mr. Toàn's company went bankrupt. How lucky! I almost married him.)

Marriage was possible and would have been bad in hindsight, but it didn't happen.

Definition

Suýt, as an adverb, expresses a negative action or state that had the possibility of happening but ultimately did not.

Related Expressions

• suýt and sắp: Suýt expresses a negative possibility that didn't happen. Sắp expresses a possibility of something happening just after a certain point in time. Cf. sắp (p. 339).

• suýt and toan: Toan expresses intending to do something right away but failing to do it. Suýt expresses something about to happen that (happily) does not happen.

[1] Tôi suýt / toan đánh nó.
    (I almost hit him / I intended to hit him.)
[2] Nó suýt / *toan khóc.
    (He almost cried.)
[3] Tôi suýt / *toan bị tai nạn.
    (I almost had an accident.)

Cf. toan (p. 375).

Combinations

• suýt nữa / suýt chút nữa: These clusters have similar meanings to suýt.

Sáng nay, suýt nữa / suýt chút nữa tôi bị tai nạn.
(I was almost in an accident this morning.)

Tại (Prep)

Situations

S1: There is an important conference in Hà Nội next week.

Hội nghị sẽ được tổ chức tại Hà Nội.
(The conference will be held in Hà Nội.)

S2: A robber was caught in the act.

Tên cướp bị bắt tại chỗ.
(The robber was arrested on the spot.)

Definition

Tại, as a preposition, is used to indicate the specific position or location of a thing, action, or process.

Related Expressions

• Tại defines a place more exactly than ở and is often used for solemn or important events.
• Ở is used for locations on the body; tại is not used for this purpose.

Combinations

• Special combinations:

- tại gia: at one's residence
- tại chức: in-office / holding a position
- tại ngoại: out on bail
- tại trận: on the spot / at the scene

• tại chỗ: Used to indicate exactly where something happened. Note: Tại is not often used before relative location words like trước (before), sau (behind), cạnh (next to), trong (inside), or ngoài (outside).

Tất cả (Pro)

Situations

S1: Students are visiting the Củ Chi tunnels.

Tất cả sẽ đi.
(They are all going.)

Tất cả refers to all students in the class.

S2: Mai chooses 3 shirts in a store.

Tôi mua tất cả.
(I will buy all of them.)

Tất cả refers to the 3 shirts she chose.

Definition

Tất cả, as a pronoun, refers to all units of a group or class. It can be used as the subject or object of a sentence.

Related Expressions

• tất cả and cả: Tất cả refers to every individual unit of a group, whereas cả indicates the complete group considered as a single unit. Cả cannot be used as the subject of a sentence.

[1] Tất cả / *Cả sẽ đi. (Everyone will go.)
[2a] Tôi mua tất cả. (I buy every loaf of bread individually.)
[2b] Tôi mua cả. (I buy the whole basket as one unit.)

Cf. cả (p. 23).

Thế (Pro)

Situations

S1: Tân pours too much water into the pot. His wife says:

Anh làm thế không được đâu.
(That's not the way you should do it.)

Thế refers to his action of pouring too much water.

S2: After a breakup, Tân says:

Thế là hết!
(That is finished!)

Thế refers to the breakup.

Definition

Thế, as a pronoun, is used to refer to an idea or situation mentioned before.

Related Expressions

• thế and vậy: Thế can be replaced by vậy in every case. Thế is used more often in the Northern dialect or in written language. Cf. vậy1 (p. 403).

• Thế used at the beginning of questions: Used to connect a question with a situation or previous utterance.

[1] Anh ấy không đi. Thế còn anh?
     (He isn't going. So, how about you?)
[2] Thế ông ấy có nói gì không?
     (So, did he say anything?)

Thế (Par)

Situations

S1: Nam sees a crowd and asks:

Có chuyện gì thế?
(What's happening?)

S2: Nam meets Bình on the street and asks:

Anh đi đâu thế?
(Where are you going?)

Definition

Thế, as a particle, is used to ask about something occurring at the moment of speaking or to ask for more information about what has happened.

Related Expressions

• thế and vậy: Thế can be replaced by vậy in almost all cases. However, thế is seldom used when conclusions are being drawn after observation or discussion (in such cases, vậy is preferred).

[1a] Tiền nhà bao nhiêu một tháng thế?
[1b] Tiền nhà bao nhiêu một tháng vậy?
[2b] Anh chờ em lâu chưa vậy? (Conclusion after seeing the person waiting.)

Cf. vậy2 (p. 407).

Thì (Par)

Situations

S1: A story about a couple's jobs:

Người chồng thì đi câu cá, người vợ thì ở nhà vá lưới.
(The husband went fishing, while the wife stayed home and mended nets.)

Thì topicalizes each person and marks the contrast between their jobs.

S2: Comparing children's hobbies:

Nam thì thích ăn thịt. Lan thì thích ăn cá.
(Nam likes meat; Lan, however, likes fish.)

Thì stresses the difference in their likes.

S3: A teacher comments on a student:

Toán thì xuất sắc...
(In math he is excellent...)

Thì implies contrast; the listener might infer he is not as excellent in other subjects.

S4: Hà expresses disagreement with Nam:

Tôi thì tôi hiểu khác anh.
(As for me, I understand it differently than you.)

Thì stresses the difference between "you" and "me".

S5: Nam talks about rain:

Trời mưa thì tôi sẽ không đi.
(If it rains, then I won't go.)

Thì expresses a condition-result relationship.

S6: Nam asks for a call:

Bao giờ anh đến thì gọi tôi nhé!
(When you arrive, give me a call!)

Thì marks the time frame within which an event will occur.

S7: Relative timing:

Anh đi được một lúc thì ông ấy đến.
(Just after you went out, he came.)

Thì expresses the relationship of sequence in time.

Definition

Thì, as a particle, is used to topicalize what lies before it. It emphasizes difference or contradiction between properties/actions. It is also used to mark a time frame or condition for a following event.

Related Expressions

• thì and là:

[1] Tan sở là tôi rảnh. (I am always free after work - regular/identical relation.)
[2] Tan sở thì tôi rảnh. (Since I've finished, I'm free - conditional/specific relation.)

Cf. là2 (p. 171).

Combinations

• Thì often follows: thật ra, đúng ra, nghĩ cho cùng, kế ra, xem ra, may ra, ít ra, theo tôi, dù sao, etc.

- Theo tôi thì anh ấy đã làm đúng. (As for me, I think he was right.)

• Conditional structures: nếu... thì..., hễ... thì..., giá... thì..., có... thì..., khi... thì..., mà... thì....

- Giá tôi có tiền thì tôi sẽ đi du lịch. (If I had money, I'd travel.)

• ... thì có!: Used to oppose someone's idea.

- Anh ta mà thông minh gì, chăm chỉ thì có! (He's not smart, just hard-working!)

• ... thì có (A) nhưng (B): Recognizes (A) but focuses on (B).

- Phim này hay thì có hay nhưng âm thanh dở quá. (The film is good bits aside, but the sound is terrible.)

• ... thì phải: Indicates possibility without certainty (like "perhaps").

- Hôm nay anh ấy về nước thì phải. (He likely went back home today.)

• thì ra (là): Expresses newly understood or realized information.

- Anh ấy đứng dậy chào tôi. Thì ra anh ấy vẫn còn nhớ tôi. (He stood up; as it turns out, he still remembers me.)

• Thì used multiple times for parallel structure:

- Các cô gái Hà Nội đầu thì đội khăn, tay thì cầm quạt, chân thì mang guốc.

Thôi (Par)

Situations

S1: I rarely meet him.

Tôi gặp anh ấy một vài lần thôi.
(I have met him only a few times.)

Thôi expresses a limit on frequency.

S2: She only thinks about herself.

Cô ấy nghĩ đến mình thôi.
(She only thinks about herself.)

Thôi expresses the uniqueness of her concern.

Definition

Thôi, as a particle, is used to express a limit of sphere, level, or uniqueness of things or actions.

Related Expressions

• thôi and chỉ / có: Thôi is similar to chỉ and có but has specific usages:
• It appears after the item asserted.
• It is often used in demands or suggestions.

- Anh nói ngắn thôi! (Be brief, please!)
- Cho ít đường thôi! (Just a little sugar!)

• It is often used when talking about qualities or states.

- Không sao, tôi bị đau đầu thôi. (No problem, I just have a headache.)
- Không, cô ấy cười thôi. (No, she only smiled.)
- Không, mỏng thôi. (No, only a few pages.)

Cf. chỉ (p. 45), có (p. 77).

Combinations

• có... thôi:

Tôi được nghỉ có hai ngày thôi.
(I only got two days off.)

• còn... thôi:

Tôi còn bắp cải thôi.
(I only have cabbage left.)

• (chỉ / có)... mà thôi: (Emphasizes uniqueness or limitation.)

Chúng ta chỉ ngồi chờ mà thôi.
(All we can do is sit and wait.)

• mới... thôi:

Nó mới ba tuổi thôi.
(She just turned three.)

• (chỉ)... không thôi: (Means "nothing but" or "entirely".)

Nó chỉ nói dối không thôi.
(He tells nothing but lies.)
Anh ấy chỉ mang về sách vở không thôi.
(He only brought home books, nothing else.)

Toan (V)

Situations

S: Nam and Tân argued. Nam was very angry and raised his hand to hit Tân, but ultimately stopped himself.

Lúc cãi nhau, Nam toan đánh Tân.
(While arguing, Nam intended to hit Tân.)

Nam intended to hit Tân in the heat of the moment but did not carry it out.

Definition

Toan, as a verb, expresses the subject's intent to carry out a certain action immediately, though the intention is ultimately not carried out.

Related Expressions

• toan, suýt, sắp: These words have similar meanings, but toan is a verb while suýt and sắp are adverbs.
• Toan only goes with intentional verbs.

Hồi sáng, tôi suýt / *toan bị tai nạn.
(This morning, I almost had an accident.)

Toan cannot be used in the sentence above because having an accident is unintentional. Cf. sắp (p. 339), suýt (p. 349).

Toàn (Adj)

Situations

S1: Tomorrow is a holiday for the entire school.

Ngày mai, toàn trường được nghỉ.
(The whole school has tomorrow off.)

Toàn precedes collective nouns to indicate all members/parts of that group.

S2: A sewing company has only female workers.

Công ty này toàn nữ.
(The employees of this company are all female.)

Toàn implies that a group is comprised of only one kind, with no others.

Definition

Toàn, as an adjective, indicates every element in a group when placed before collective nouns (S1). When placed before a common noun, it indicates that a group consists of only one kind (S2).

Related Expressions

• toàn, cả, tất cả:
• Toàn indicates every element of a group or that a group consists of only one kind.
• Cả indicates a group is considered a single unit. It cannot express "only one kind" like toàn.
• Tất cả refers to all units of a group/class. Like cả, it cannot express "only one kind".

- Ngày mai, toàn / cả / tất cả trường được nghỉ.
- Công ty này toàn / *cả / *tất cả nữ.

Combinations

• toàn X là X: (X is usually a noun.)

Trên kệ toàn sách là sách.
(The shelves are filled with nothing but books.)

Cf. chỉ (p. 45), tất cả (p. 355).

Trừ (Prep)

Situations

S1: Kim likes many Vietnamese dishes but dislikes spring rolls.

Kim thích các món ăn Việt Nam, trừ chả giò.
(Kim likes Vietnamese food, except for spring rolls.)

Definition

Trừ, as a preposition placed before a noun or noun phrase, expresses an exception for something that is not taken into account or is outside the scope of the main clause.

Related Expressions

• trừ and ngoài: In many cases, ngoài can take the place of trừ. Cf. ngoài (p. 283).

Combinations

• chỉ trừ / ngoại trừ: These have the same meaning as trừ but carry a stronger nuance.

Mọi người đều không tin tôi, chỉ trừ / ngoại trừ anh ấy.
(Nobody believes me except for him.)

• trừ... còn thì...: When trừ starts a sentence, the main clause often begins with còn thì....

Trừ cô thư ký mới vào, còn thì mọi người không ai lạ gì ông ta.
(Except for the new secretary, everybody knows him well.)

• trừ trường hợp / trừ lúc / trừ khi / trừ phi:

- Cô ấy sẽ không đến đâu, trừ khi / trừ trường hợp cô ấy đã tha thứ cho anh.
- Họ không có thì giờ nói chuyện với nhau, trừ trường hợp / trừ lúc / trừ khi ăn cơm.

Cf. trừ phi (p. 383).

Trừ phi (Conj)

Situations

S: Hùng has a bad cough. People think he will get cancer if he doesn't stop smoking.

Anh ta sẽ bị ung thư, trừ phi bỏ thuốc.
(He'll get cancer unless he stops smoking.)

If Hùng stops smoking, he might not get cancer; otherwise, it's likely he will.

Definition

Trừ phi, as a conjunction, presents an assumption. If the condition of that assumption is met, the statement in the main clause is rendered incorrect.

Related Expressions

• trừ phi and trừ khi: Trừ khi (except when) is often used mistakenly for trừ phi (unless). Trừ khi identifies an element not included, while trừ phi presents an assumption.

[1] Nam hút thuốc liên tục, trừ khi ăn cơm.
    (Nam smokes all the time, except during meals.) (Fact, not assumption.)
[2a] Công ty sẽ phá sản, trừ phi có phép lạ.
     (The company will go bankrupt unless a miracle occurs.) (Assumption.)
[2b] Công ty sẽ phá sản, trừ khi có phép lạ.
     (The company will go bankrupt, except in the event of a miracle.)

Where trừ khi refers to a condition, it can be used for trừ phi.

• trừ phi and may ra:

[3a] Anh ta không thể khỏi bệnh được, trừ phi bỏ rượu.
     (He can't recover unless he stops drinking alcohol.) (Sole condition.)
[3b] Anh ta bỏ rượu được thì may ra mới khỏi bệnh.
     (If he could stop drinking, then he might recover.) (Less definite.)

Cf. trừ (p. 381).

Combinations

• Trừ phi must be followed by a verb phrase or a clause.

[1] Tất cả sinh viên đã nghỉ hè, trừ / *trừ phi sinh viên nước ngoài.
[2] Chương trình sẽ tiếp tục, trừ phi khu này mất điện.

• If trừ phi starts a sentence, the main clause often contains còn thì... (meaning "and if not").

[3] Trừ phi ông ta thay đổi ý kiến, còn thì mọi chuyện sẽ tiếp tục.
    (Unless he changes his mind, everything will continue as before.)

Từng (N)

Situations

S1: Yesterday, I spent 100,000 VND on books.

Tôi đã mua từng ấy tiền sách.
(I spent that amount of money on books.)

Từng ấy indicates an amount already known to both speaker and listener.

S2: He is thirty but still depends on his parents.

Anh ta từng đó tuổi mà không tự lo được à?
(He is at that age; why can't he manage on his own?)

Từng đó refers to the age (30 years) which is known.

Definition

Từng, as a noun, indicates a quantity or specific amount known to both the speaker and the listener.

Related Expressions

• từng and ngần / chừng: Từng can be replaced by ngần or chừng.

Tôi đã mua từng / ngần / chừng ấy tiền sách mà vẫn không đủ.
(I bought that amount of books, but it's still not enough.)

Combinations

• Từng is always followed by demonstratives like ấy, đó, or này. Cf. ấy (p. 11).

Từng (Adv)

Situations

S1: Tân is rich but thrifty. He says:

Tôi từng nghèo khổ nên tôi biết giá trị của đồng tiền.
(I used to be poor, so I know the value of money.)

Tân speaks about what he has experienced.

S2: Nam speaks Russian well, but has never lived in Russia.

Tôi chưa từng đi Nga.
(I've never been to Russia.)

Nam uses chưa từng to deny having had that experience.

Definition

Từng, as an adverb placed before a verb or adjective, is used to express an action or state that someone experienced at least once or more in the past.

Related Expressions

• chưa từng, chưa bao giờ, chưa... lần nào: All three indicate that an event has not happened from the past up to the present. However, only chưa từng explicitly emphasizes not having had the experience.

[1a] Tôi chưa từng gặp ông ấy.
[1b] Tôi chưa bao giờ gặp ông ấy.
[1c] Tôi chưa gặp ông ấy lần nào.

Combinations

• đã từng + V, chưa từng + V are commonly used as phrases. Từng is rarely used alone.
• không từng, chẳng từng are not used.

NOTES

• In responses to questions (ending in chưa?, có... không?, etc.), đã từng is used for the affirmative and is often followed by proof or an example.

[1] Anh biết ông Nam chứ? - Tôi đã từng ăn nhậu với ông ấy.
    (You know Mr. Nam, don't you? - I've been out drinking with him before.)
[2] Ông ta đã từng xin tôi giúp đỡ.
    (He has asked me for help in the past.)

Từng (Quan)

Situations

S1: The principal visited the class and shook hands with all students, one after another.

Ông hiệu trưởng bắt tay từng người.
(The principal shook hands with each person.)

Từng indicates shaking hands with each student in turn (A, then B, then C...).

S2: The teacher answered all questions in order.

Thầy giáo trả lời từng câu hỏi của sinh viên.
(The teacher answered each of the students' questions in turn.)

Definition

Từng, as a quantifier, is used to express the order of each individual member of a group, one after another.

Related Expressions

• từng, mỗi, mọi: Mọi indicates the whole group. Mỗi indicates each member. Neither carries the "one after another" meaning that từng does.

[1a] Ngài Thủ tướng bắt tay từng người trong phái đoàn ngoại giao.
     (The Prime Minister shook hands with each person, one by one.)
[1b] Ngài Thủ tướng bắt tay mọi người trong phái đoàn ngoại giao.
     (The Prime Minister shook hands with everybody.)
[1c] Ngài Thủ tướng bắt tay mỗi người trong phái đoàn ngoại giao.
     (The Prime Minister shook hands with every person.)

Cf. mọi (p. 245), mỗi (p. 249).

Combinations

• từng... một: (Reinforces the individual, sequential nature.)

[1] Ông ấy cảm ơn từng người một.
    (He thanks each person one by one.)

Vẫn (Adv)

Situations

S1: Nam meets Lan after three years.

Trông chị vẫn trẻ và đẹp như trước.
(You still look as young and beautiful as before.)

Vẫn indicates that her beauty and youth have continued from before.

S2: At 11:00 AM on Sunday, Bình visits Nam.

Đến giờ ăn trưa rồi mà Nam vẫn ngủ.
(It's time for lunch, but Nam is still sleeping.)

Vẫn expresses a prolonged state that normally should have changed.

S3: Nam's family is traveling soon. He decides to make a reservation.

Đặt phòng trước thì vẫn hơn.
(Booking a room in advance is even better.)

Vẫn is used here to say that one way is more certain or better than another.

S4: Nam meets Tân after three years.

Trông anh vẫn thế!
(You look the same as before!)

Nam says Tân hasn't changed. Thế / vậy are pronouns referring to his previous state.

Definition

Vẫn, as an adverb, is used to express the continuation of an action, state, or quality that would normally be expected to change.

Related Expressions

• vẫn, còn, cứ:
• Còn expresses simple continuance at the moment of speaking (but it will eventually end). It can be used alone in responses.

[1a] Nó còn ngủ. (He is still sleeping - hasn't woken up yet.)
[1b] Nó cứ ngủ. (He keeps on sleeping - despite attempts to wake him.)
[1c] Nó vẫn ngủ. (He is still sleeping - even though it's late.)

• Cứ implies disregard for surrounding conditions.

• Vẫn implies continuation despite expected change.

• vẫn and đã từng: Vẫn can express repetitive actions in the past.

[1] Khi chưa có vợ, tôi vẫn nấu cơm cho mẹ tôi!
    (When I was single, I often cooked for my mom!) (Repeated action in the past.)
[2] Khi chưa có vợ, tôi đã từng nấu cơm cho mẹ tôi.
    (When I was single, I used to cook for my mom.) (Fact of past experience.)

Cf. từng2 (p. 391).

Combinations

• vẫn sẽ / vẫn đang: (Note: vẫn đã is incorrect.)

[1] Trước đây tôi đã từ chối. Bây giờ anh hỏi lại, tôi vẫn sẽ từ chối.
[2] Công việc vẫn đang được tiến hành. (The work is still being carried out.)

• cũng vẫn:

[3] Tôi đã đọc tài liệu đó nhưng cũng vẫn không hiểu.
    (I read it again but still don't understand it.)

• vẫn phải:

[4] Ông cụ đã 70 tuổi rồi mà vẫn phải làm việc.
    (He's 70 but still has to work.)

• vẫn còn:

[5] Anh ấy vẫn còn làm việc cho bưu điện phải không?

• vẫn cứ / vẫn còn cứ:

[6] Bố mẹ nó đã khuyên nhiều nhưng nó vẫn cứ lười biếng.

• tuy... vẫn...:

[8] Tuy trời mưa tôi vẫn đi học. (Even though it's raining, I'm still going to school.)

Vậy (Pro)

Situations

S1: Mai said, "The sun rises in the West." Her brother says:

Loan nói vậy là không đúng.
(What you said is incorrect.)

Vậy takes the place of the sentence "The sun rises in the West."

S2: Mai drew a dog with a very big head.

Em vẽ vậy không đẹp đâu.
(Your drawing that way is not beautiful.)

Vậy refers to the way Mai drew the dog.

Definition

Vậy, as a pronoun, takes the place of a clause or something mentioned before. Both speaker and listener know what it refers to from context.

Related Expressions

• vậy and thế: They can be substituted for each other in most cases.

[1] Nghe nói vậy / thế nó rất buồn. (Hearing that, he was very sad.)
[2] Anh đừng làm như vậy / thế, không hay đâu. (Don't do that; it's not good.)

Cf. thế1 (p. 359).

Combinations

• vậy thì / nếu vậy: Can appear at the beginning of a sentence to introduce a conclusion or result.

A: Chúng ta được nghỉ học hai ngày.
B: Vậy / (Nếu) vậy thì chúng ta đi Vũng Tàu đi.
   (In that case, let's go to Vũng Tàu.)

• vậy là...: Introduces an inference.

[2] Mình chờ cô ấy đã hơn một tiếng. Vậy là cô ấy không đến rồi.
    (I've waited over an hour; so that means she's not coming.)
[3] Vậy là nó may đấy! (So, he is very lucky!)

Vậy (Par 1)

Situations

S1: Nam meets Bình and asks:

Anh đi đâu vậy?
(Where are you going?)

Vậy asks about what is occurring at the moment of speaking.

S2: Tan's wife asks him about his afternoon when he comes home.

Lúc em gọi điện đến cơ quan, anh đi đâu vậy?
(Where were you when I telephoned your office?)

Vậy is used to ask more clearly about an event that has already occurred. It is often used after indefinite pronouns like ai, gì, sao, nào, đâu, etc.

S3: Lan asks a salesperson about price.

Đôi giày này bao nhiêu tiền vậy, chị?
(How much is this pair of shoes, ma'am?)

Vậy is used to ask about something after observing, comparing, or discussing it, similar to a conclusion.

Definition

Vậy, as a sentence-final particle, is used in questions to ask about a fact occurring now (S1), a known past event (S2), or to ask supplementary information about something observed or mentioned (S3).

Related Expressions

• vậy and thế, đấy / đó: In many cases, vậy can be replaced with thế, đấy, or đó.

Anh Nam đang đọc gì vậy / thế / đấy?
(What are you reading, Nam?)

Cf. thế2 (p. 274), đấy2 (p. 100).

Vậy (Par 2)

Situations

S: Nam and Lan find that tickets for the play are sold out.

Chúng ta đi ăn kem vậy.
(Let's go for ice cream instead.)

Because their original plan failed, Nam suggests an alternate option.

Definition

Vậy, as a sentence-final particle, is used to suggest an alternate option to take the place of the original intention.

Related Expressions

• vậy and thế: Thế cannot be used in place of vậy when suggesting that the listener accept an alternate solution.

Chờ lâu quá, chúng ta ăn trước vậy / *thế.
(It's such a long wait; let's eat first instead.)

Combinations

• Thôi, ... vậy.:

[1] Thôi, chúng ta về vậy. (Anyway, let's just go back.)

• đành... vậy:

[2] Làm ở đây lương thấp, nhưng chúng ta đành chấp nhận vậy.
    (The salary here is low, but we have to accept it.) (Because there's no other way.)

Vừa (Adv)

Situations

S: At 8:00, Hà arrived at Nam's house. Nam had left at 7:50. Nam's mother says:

Nam vừa đi ra ngoài.
(Nam has just gone out.)

Vừa is used because the 10-minute interval is considered very short.

Definition

Vừa, as an adverb, is used to express an action or state that occurred right before a set point of time.

Related Expressions

• vừa and mới: Cf. mới1 (p. 257).

Combinations

• vừa mới: Emphasizes that an action occurred very recently.

[1] Tôi vừa mới đến. (I've just arrived.)

• vừa... đã...: Two actions happening in rapid succession without a pause.

[2] Anh mệt quá nên vừa nằm xuống đã ngủ.
    (He was so tired that as soon as he lay down, he fell asleep.)

• vừa... vừa...: Two events, qualities, or actions happening simultaneously.

[3] Anh ta thường vừa ăn cơm tối vừa xem TV.
    (He usually watches TV while eating dinner.)
[4] Cô ấy vừa thông minh vừa chăm chỉ.
    (She is both intelligent and diligent.)

• vừa... vừa... can sometimes be replaced by:

- không những... mà còn...
- đã... còn...
- đã... lại...

These emphasize a complementary relationship where the second item adds value to the first. Both items must be positive or both negative. However, không những... mà còn... does not always imply simultaneity in the way vừa... vừa... does.