INTRODUCTION
The Vietnamese language is the communicative language of Vietnamese people
and also the mother-tongue of Viet people (also named as Kinh, the major ethnic
group in Vietnam). The formation of a common language used by the entire people
is a hard task due to the diversity of dialects and accents. Vietnamese is based on
melodious syllables and stressed accent. Accent has an important role to play in
helping distinguish and identify the meaning of the sayings. There also exist
numerous accents in the Vietnamese language, among which the most common
and favorite is the Southern one. This accent seems to be different form the
standard one as its pronunciation is based heavily on the main sound disregard of
the standard accent and even grammar. Vietnamese is a monosyllabic language
with each articulated sound carrying a certain meaning. Also, it offers innumerable
pairs of compound words, which are comprised of 2, 3 or even for constituent
single sounds.
The Vietnamese language has been formed and developed for many centuries now.
Documents of early feudal dynasties used Chinese and not until the birth of Nom
(Demotic script) language in 14th century was it employed in both speaking and
writing, especially in composing literature. In 17th century, Vietnamese or namely
national language came to existing. Its origin is closely related to Portuguese,
Spanish, Italian and French propagators working in South East Asia countries.
Those invented a new writing script as the mean to express the Vietnamese
language. The most noticeable contributors to the formation and studying
Vietnamese at that time was a French vicar named Alexandre de Rhode with his
publication of one of the first Vietnamese dictionary and grammar called
Vietnamese – Portuguese – Latin Dictionary. Initially, Vietnamese was used
merely for the purpose of propagation but was soon popularised officially when
French people imposed their colonial regime on Vietnam. To some extents,
Vietnamese was originally the tools for ruling of colonists, but then, thanks to its
convenience, Vietnamese became popular. Moreover, its easy-to-pronounce
alphabet system and combination enabled it to overcome any criticism.
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1. Vietnamese alphabet system
There are 29 letters in the Vietnamese alphabet system which consists of 12 vowels and 17
consonants. See the list below:
A a Ă ă Â â B b C c Dd Đ đ E e Ê ê G g
H h I i K k L l M m Nn O o Ô ô Ơ ơ P p
QqRrSs Tt Uu ƯưVvXxYy
2. Vowels
As mentioned above, there are 12 vowels in the Vietnamese alphabet system. They are including:
aăâe ê i
oôơuưy
How to pronoun these vowels is to follow the below
Front Central
Back
i, y [i] ư [ɨ]
u [u]
High
Upper mid ê [e] â [ə] / ơ [əː] ô [o]
Lower mid e [ɛ] o [ɔ]
Low
ă [a] / a [aː]
Front, central, and low vowels (i, ê, e, ư, â, ơ, ă, a) are unrounded, whereas the back vowels (u,
ô, o) are rounded. The vowels â [ə] and ă [a] are pronounced very short, much shorter than the
other vowels. Thus, ơ and â are basically pronounced the same except that ơ [əː] is long while â
[ə] is short — the same applies to the low vowels long a [aː] and short ă [a].
* Diphthongs and Tripthongs
In addition to single vowels (or monophthongs), Vietnamese has diphthongs and triphthongs.
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The diphthongs consist of a main vowel component followed by a shorter semivowel offglide to
either a high front position [ɪ], a high back position [ʊ], or a central position [ə]. See the table
below:
Vowel
nucleus
ê
Diphthong with Diphthong
front offglide with back
offglide
iu~yu [iʊ]
~
êu [eʊ]
Diphthong with Tripthong with Tripthong
centering offglide front offglide with back
offglide
ia~iê~yê~ya [iə] iêu [iəʊ]
~~~
-
e
-
eo [ɛʊ]
-
-
-
ư
ưi [ɨɪ]
ưu [ɨʊ]
ươi [ɨəɪ]
ươu [ɨəʊ]
â
ây [əɪ]
âu [əʊ]
ưa~ươ [ɨə]
~
-
-
-
ơ
ơi [əːɪ]
-
-
-
-
ă
ay [aɪ]
au [aʊ]
-
-
a
ai [aːɪ]
ao [aːʊ]
-
-
-
u
ui [uɪ]
-
uôi [uəɪ]
-
ô
ôi [oɪ]
-
ua~uô [uə]
~
-
-
-
o
oi [ɔɪ]
-
-
-
-
i
The centering diphthongs are formed with only the three high vowels (i, ư, u) as the main vowel.
They are generally spelled as ia, ưa, ua when they end a word and are spelled iê, ươ, uô,
respectively, when they are followed by a consonant. There are also restrictions on the high
offglides: the high front offglide cannot occur after a front vowel (i, ê, e) nucleus and the high
back offglide cannot occur after a back vowel (u, ô, o) nucleus.
The correspondence between the orthography and pronunciation is complicated. For example,
the offglide [ɪ] is usually written as i however, it may also be represented with y. In addition, in
the diphthongs [aɪ] and [aːɪ ] the letters y and i also indicate the pronunciation of the main vowel:
ay = ă + [ɪ], ai = a + [ɪ]. Thus, tay “hand” is [taɪ] while tai “ear” is [taːɪ ]. Similarly, u and o
indicate different pronunciations of the main vowel: au = ă + [ʊ], ao = a + [ʊ].
The four triphthongs are formed by adding front and back offglides to the centering diphthongs.
Similarly to the restrictions involving diphthongs, a triphthong with front nucleus cannot have a
front offglide (after the centering glide) and a triphthong with a back nucleus cannot have a back
offglide.
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With regards to the front and back offglides [ɪ, ʊ], many phonological descriptions analyze these
as consonant glides /j, w/. Thus, a word such as đâu “where” [ɗəʊ] would be /ɗəw/.
It is difficult to pronoun these sounds:
Liêu xiêu đêm khuya mưa lao xao mười hai
chai rượu tay
tai
làu bàu hiu hiu
3. Consonant
The consonants that occur in Vietnamese are listed below in the Vietnamese orthography with
the phonetic pronunciation to the right.
Labial Alveolar Retroflex palatal Velar
Glottal
voiceless p[p] t [t]
Stop
tr [ʈʂ~ʈ] ch [c~tɕ] c/k [k]
aspirated
th [tʰ]
voiced b [ɓ]
đ [ɗ]
d [ɟ]
kh [x]
h [h]
Fricative voiceless ph [f] x [s]
s [ʂ]
voiced v [v]
gi [z] r [ʐ~ɹ]
g/gh [ɣ]
m [m] n [n]
Nasal
nh [ɲ] ng/ngh [ŋ]
u/o [w] l [l]
y/i [j]
Approximant
Some consonant sounds are written with only one letter (like “p”), other consonant sounds are
written with a two-letter disgrah (like “ph”), and others are written with more than one letter or
digraph (the velar stop is written variously as “c”, “k”, or “q”).
The tables below show detail and it may help you easier to understand
* There are 17 single consonants as listed below:
Consonants Sound Phoneme English equivalent sounds
b
/b/
but, bike
c
/k/
car, clean
d
/z/
zoo,
đ
/d/
do, does
g
/g/
go, get
h
/h/
hat, house
k
/k/
keep,
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l
m
n
p
q
r
s
t
v
x
/l/
/m/
/n/
/p/
/k/
/r/
/sh/
/t/
/v/
/s/
leaf, lose
meet, mouse
not, no
pipe, people
queen
run, road
show, shower
tea, top
video, vowel
see, sea
* There are 11 consonants clusters:
Consonants Sound Phoneme English equivalent sounds
ch
/ts/
cheap
gh
/g/
ghost
gi
/j/
yes
kh
/x/
loch
nh
canyon
/ɲ/
ng
/ŋ/
sing
ngh
/ŋ/
single
ph
/f/
fine
th
/θ/
thin, theory
tr
try
/ʈʂ/
qu
/kw/
queen
* There are 8 final consonants:
Consonants Sound Phoneme English equivalent sounds
c
/k/
car
ch
/ts/
lunch
m
/m/
them
n
/n/
then
nh
canyon
/ɲ/
5
ng
p
t
/ŋ/
/p/
/t/
sing
stop
top
It is necessray to make a difference between these two sounds:
+) K vs. Kh
“K” & “kh” are two of the consonant symbols in the Vietnamese language. “K” is produced
fortis and unaspirated. It is similar to the “c” in cat. In Vietnamese language it is similar to “c”
and “q”. Perhaps one of the most common words beginning with “k” is “kem” which means “ice
cream” and “kẹo” which means “candy”. ‘Kh’ is produced lenis voiceless dorsorelar spirant. The
most common ‘kh’ word is “không” which means “no” or “not” though there are less common
meanings as well. “Khỏe” which means “strong” and “healthy” is another common word. To
place “khỏe không” after a personal referent is to enquire as to another’s health – literally: “you
well no?” as in “bạn khỏe không?” Also in these times of fast food, the ubiquitous french fry is
known as “khoai tây chiên” meaning “potato fry”.
+ ) Ng and Ngh
The sound that ng and ngh make in Vietnamese is by far the hardest sound for Westerners to
make. Ng and ngh simply make the last sound in “king” or “running” (as long as you don’t make
the hard /g/ sound at the end). The problem arises when ng or ngh come at the beginning of a
word, as the common family name Nguyễn clearly demonstrates. Here, the speaker has to isolate
the /ŋ/ sound, which even many Western dictionaries don’t recognize in their pronunciation
guides. (Those that do tend to represent it as /ng/.) This lesson will help you to at least pronounce
the /ŋ/ sound well enough for a native listener.
One thing you have to take a notice of is the combination of these above consonants Ng/ ngh
with vowels. See below for detail:
a
ăâe
ê
i
o ơ ô u ư y
Ngh
nghe nghê nghi
Ng nga
ngo ngơ ngô ngu ngư
1. Ngh can only combine with the vowels which are started with i, e, ê.
2. Ng can combine with vowels started with a, o, ơ, ô, u, ư.
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Besides, Vietnamese has another pair of sound (g/ gh) which are all pronouned as /g/, for these
consonants, there is also rule in combining with vowels.
a ăâe ê i o ơ ô u ư y
g ga
gi* go gơ gô gu gư
gh
ghe ghê ghi
- gh can only combine with vowel started with e, ê, i.
-g can go with vowel started with a, o, ơ, ô, u, ư.
* g can also go with i but in this case it will be pronoun as /j/, e.g. cái gì.
3. Tones
Vietnamese is a tonal language, It means that different voice inflections on any word will change
the meaning of that word. For example, if you say ban with a rising tone, it means “sell,” but if
you say it with a falling tone, it means “table.” Tone is the central part of a word.
There are five tones in Vietnamese, plus a mid-level non-tone. Press each symbol button below
to hear what each tone sounds like, and the name of the tone. Then press the word buttons to hear
how one word can be pronounced with all six tones. Underneath is the English translation of
each word.
Description
Midrange voice goes flat and
level.
High rising
Low falling
Start in a low tone, go down
and gently back up
Start high, bring voice down,
cut off, and go back up
Bring voice down and cut off
abruptly.
Name of Symbol Sample word &
tones
meaning
Ngang
“three”
Sắc
Huyền
Hỏi
bá “to hug”
“grandmother”
“bane”
Ngã
“residue”
Nặng
“haphazardly”
It is time to practice.
1 Ba Bá Bà Bả Bá Bạ
2 Ma Má Mà Mả Mã Mạ
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3 Be bé bè bẻ bẽ bẹ
4 Me mé mè mẻ mẽ mẹ
5 Le lé lè lẻ lẽ lẹ
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Greeting
1. Dialogue
David is a student he has just attended a Vietnamese class, he has not known somebody in the
class. Nam is also a member of that class and when he saw David he actively makes David’s
acquaintance.
Nam: Xin chào!
David: Xin chào!
Nam: Mình là Nam. Bạn tên là gì?
David: Tên mình là David.
Nam: Rất hân hạnh được làm quen với bạn
David: Rất vui được gặp bạn.
Nam: Hello!
David: Hello!
Nam: I am Nam. What is your name?
David: My name is David.
Nam: Nice to meet you.
David: Glad to see you.
2. New words:
Vietnamese
xin chào
chào
mình
tên
là
gì
cái gì
Rất hân hạnh được làm quen với bạn
Rất vui được gặp bạn

English equivalent
hello
hello
I
Name
to be
what
what
Nice to meet you
Glad to see you
Note:
“Rất vui được gặp bạn ” and “Rất hân hạnh được làm quen với bạn ” have the same meaning. We
use these phrases for the first time.
3. Grammar:
3.1 Personal Pronouns.
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Vietnamese use terms denoting family relationships (kinship terms) when addressing each other
(even when talking to whom they are not related). In fact, they are used as personal pronouns.
The system is rather complicated and the choice of the correct expression depends on many
factors such as sex, age, social status, the family relationship, the relationship between the
speaker and the person he or she is addressing or the overall degree of intimacy between them.
You may find it difficult to make sure which term should be used; thus, you need a little bit
experience to get it right. The below list will help you understand more.
3.1.1. The first person
The first person pronoun in Vietnamese is “tôi” which means “I” in English. It is the only
personal pronoun that can be used in polite speech. Beside it, the first person can be “ta”, “tao”
but they are only used in informal case, e.g. when talking with close friends.
3.1.2. The second person
The below table shows you some personal addresses and their usage
Personal pronoun
Em
Bạn
Anh
Chị
Cô
Bà
Ông/ ngài
/
mày
How to use
Use for person who are younger than you as your younger
sisters or brothers
Use for person who is as the same age as you or your friends
a young male who is a little older than you or your elder
brothers
a young female who is a little older than you or your elder
sisters
in formal case; to a young female (Miss )
Formal, an old female (Mrs., lady); informal, as your
grandmother
Formal, an old male (Mr., gentleman); informal, as your
grandfather
informal; people are younger than you
3.1.3. The third person
It is simple that when adressing the third person, Vietnamese adds the word “ ấy” after the
personal pronoun.
Example:
Anh ấy, ông ấy / -> He
Chị ấy, cô ấy, bà ấy / / -> She
Nó * -> It
Nó* often refers to the things, animals but sometimes, “nó” can denote for a little child in
informal case.
*Plural personal pronoun:
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- For the first person, the word “chúng” is added before the personal address.
Example:
Tôi -> Chúng tôi
Ta -> chúng ta
Tớ -> chúng tớ
- For the second person, we use the word “các” before the personal address.
Example:
Anh -> các anh
chị -> các chị
Bác -> các bác
- When addressing plural pronoun for the third person, the word “họ” is used. It refers to a group
of people in general both male and female.
- The second way to form the plural personal pronoun for the third person is to add the word
“ấy” after the second person pronoun.
Example:
Anh -> các anh ấy
chị -> các chị ấy
bác -> các bác ấy
The below table will show you general information.
* Singular pronoun
First
person
Tao
Pronoun Sound
Tôi
Second Em
person
Anh
Chị
Ông
Bà
Mày
Third Em ấy
person
Anh ấy
Ông ấy
English equivalence How to use it
I
- Refer to yourself (formal)
- Refer to yourself with close
friends (informal)
You
- Miss, girl or boy (younger
than you, informal)
He
- Boy (younger than you)
- Mr. (older than you)
- Miss or Mrs. in formal address
- Mr., Sir., gentleman (formal)
- Mrs., Madam, lady (formal)
- Address between close friends
(to use with “tao” – first person)
- Mr. (Older than you or slightly
younger than you in formal
address)
- Mr., sir, gentleman (person is
older than you or higher status)
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Em ấy
She
Cô ấy
Chị ấy
Bà ấy
- Miss.
- Miss or Mrs.
- Lady, Mrs, Madam (person is
older than you or higher status)
It
Nó
- Girl (younger than
you)
- Thing in general
In addition, there are different pronouns for each kind of relative. For a listing of those pronouns,
see family terms:
Pronoun
Usage
cụ
your grandgrand parents
bà
Your grand mother
ông
your grandfather
chú
your uncle who is your father’s younger brother
bác
Your uncle who are your parents’s older siblings
cô
your aunt, who is your father’s younger sister
dì
your aunt, who is your mother’s younger sister
chị
your elder sister or siblings
anh
your elder brother or siblings
em
your younger sister or brother or siblings
thầy
the teacher (if he is a man)
cô
the teacher (if she is a woman)
3.2. Greeting:
Chào/ xin chào: Hello
The Vietnamese greet others by using the word “chào” or “xin chào”. This is followed by either
a name or a kinship term (or both).
Example:
Chào Lan! Hello Lan!
Xin chào cô Liên! Hello Ms. Liên!
Chào ông! Hello Sir!
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However, you can use “chào” only in formal cases for example with close friends.
In Vietnam, “chào” means both “hello” and “goodbye”; therefore the above examples also mean
“Goodbye Lan”, “Good bye Ms. Lien”, “Goodbye sir”.
There is no Vietnamese equivalent for “Good morning”, “Good afternoon”, “Good evening”, etc.
that’s why “chào” can be used at any time of the day.
3.3. “Là”: “To be”
* “ Là” in Vietnamese has function as “to be” in English. It forms a simple sentence with the
logical word order of Subject-Verb.
Form:
S + Là
Example:
Tôi
I
Tên tôi
My name
là
to be
là
to be
Nam
Nam
David
David
I am Nam
My name is David
* Nghĩa phủ định – “Negative form”: “không phải là” -> “to be not”
To express the negation, Vietnamese put the word “không ph ải” before “là” to make the form.
See the below form and example for detail.
Mẫu câu-(form):
S + không phải + là + danh từ
(noun)
* Note: The noun can be a personal name, name of job, country….
Ví dụ- Example:
- Tên tôi không phải là David -> My name is not David.
- David không phải là người Anh -> David is not an American
- Đây không phải là David -> This is not David.
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Introducing someone
1. Hội thoại ( Dialogue):
On the way to class, David and Nam meet Lan, after greeting Nam introduce David to Lan.
Nam: Chào Lan!
Lan: Chào Nam!
Nam: Bạn thế nào? có khỏe không?
Lan: Cảm ơn! mình khỏe. Còn bạn?
Nam: Cảm ơn!mình cũng vậy.
À! để mình giới thiệu nhé, đây là David, thành viên mới của lớp mình.
Lan: Chào bạn! mình là Lan
David: Chào bạn! tên mình là David.
Lan: Bạn đến từ nước Anh, phải không?
David: Không phải! Mình đến từ nước Mỹ.
Nam: Đến giờ rồi, chúng ta vào học thôi.
Nam: Hi!
Lan: Hi!
Nam: How are you?
Lan: I’m fine. Thanks! And you?
Nam: Thank you! Me too!
Ah! Let me introduce, this is David, a new member of our class.
Lan: Hello! I am Lan.
David: Hello! My name is David.
Lan: You come from England. Aren’t you?
David: No! I come from America.
Nam: It’s time for the lesson. Let’s go to class.
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2. Từ mới (New words)
Vietnamese
cảm ơn
khỏe
mình cũng vậy
giới thiệu
đây
thành viên
mới
của
lớp/ lớp học
đến từ
nước/ đất nước
nước Anh
nước Mỹ
giờ
vào/ đi vào
chúng ta
English equivalent
Thanks
fine/ healthy
me too
introduce
this
member
new
of
class
come from
country
England
America
time
go to
we
3. Ngữ pháp (Grammar):

Đất nước và quốc tịch (Country and nationality)
In Vietnamese, stating country and nationality is very simple.
For stating country, the word “nước” is used followed by the country’s name and for stating
nationality as well, we state the word “người” before the country’s name. See the below for the
detail:
Đất nước ( Country)
Nước + Tên nước (name of country)

Quốc tịch (Nationality)
Người + Tên nước (Name of country)
Tên một số đất nước và quốc tịch ( List of country and nationality)
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Country
Vietnamese
Nước Anh
Nước Việt Nam
Nước pháp
Nước Mỹ
Nước Đức
Nước Nhật
Nước Thái Lan
Nước Canada
Nước Nga
Nước Trung Quốc

English
England
Vietnam
France
America
Germany
Japan
Thailand
Canada
Russia
China
Nationality
Vietnamese
Người Anh
Người Việt Nam
Người Pháp
Người Mỹ
Người Đức
Người Nhật
Người Thái Lan
Người Canada
Người Nga
Người Trung Quốc /
Người Tàu
English
English
Vietnamese
French
American
German
Japanese
Thai
Canadian
Russian
Chinese
Note: Sometimes, Vietnamese use “người Tàu” replacing for “ người Trung
Quốc”
3.1.1. When asking for country, Vietnamese often use:
Mẫu câu 1 - (form 1)- Tag question
S + đến từ + tên nước (1), (có) phải không?
+) Vâng/ phải, S + đến từ + tên nước (1)
-) Không (phải), S + đến từ + tên nước (2)
Example:
- Bạn đến từ nước Mỹ, phải không? -> You come from America, aren’t you?
- Vâng, tôi đến từ nước Mỹ. -> Yes, I come from America.
- Không, tôi đến từ nước Anh. -> No, I come from England.
Besides, there is another way to ask for someone which country he/she is from. You can follow
the below form:
Mẫu câu 2 – (Form 2)
S + đến từ + nước + nào?
+) S + đến từ + tên nước
Example:
- Anh đến từ nước nào? -> Which country are you from?/ Where are you from?
- Tôi đến từ nước Anh. -> I am from England.
3.1.2. Asking for nationality.
There are several ways to ask for someone’s nationality. Here, we would like to mention two
common ways.
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Mẫu câu 1 – (form 1):
S + là + người + nước + nào?
+) S + là + người + nước + tên nước
Example:
- Chị là người nước nào? -> What is your nationality?
- Tôi là người (nước) Anh. -> I am an English
Mẫu câu 2 – (form 2)- Tag question
S + là + người + tên nước (1), (có) phải không?
+) Vâng/phải, S + là + người + tên nước (1).
-) Không phải, S + là + người + tên nước (2).
Example:
- Anh ấy là người Pháp, có phải không? -> He is a French, isn’t he?
- Vâng/ phải, anh ấy là người Pháp. -> Yes, He is a French
Hoặc Or
- Không phải, anh ấy là người Anh -> No, he is an English
* Note:
In Vietnamese, the difference between the way to ask for country and for nationality is not so
clear. You can use these above to ask for other’s country or nationality.

Để: Let
Vietnamese use “để” when request someone to do something or offer to do somethi ng. It is used
as an imperative (order clause or offer clause).
Để + S + động từ (verb)
Example:
- Để tôi giới thiệu -> Let me introduce.
- Để anh ấy làm -> Let him does it.
- Để tôi ăn -> Let me eat.

Demonstratives: Đây là (this is)
“Đây là” is used as a demonstrative pronoun. Besides, there are several demonstratives which are
listed below:
Vietnamese English
Đây
This
Này
Đó
This
That
Usage
Refers to something or somebody near the speaker and far from the person
being spoken to.
Also refers to something or somebody near and infront of the speaker.
Refers to something or somebody near the person being spoken to but far from
17
Kia
That over there
Kìa
That over there
Ấy
That
Đấy
That
the speaker.
Refers to something or somebody located far from both the speaker and the
person being spoken to.
Refers to something located very far from both the speaker and the person
being spoken to.
refers to something that is far from the speaker but near to the person being
spoken to.
Also refers to something that is far from the speaker but near to the person
being spoken to.
For example:
Khách sạn này -> This hotel
Khách sạn kia -> That hotel over there
Khách sạn ấy -> That hotel
These demonstratives can follow two word orders depend on which are used as demonstrative
pronoun or not.
* When introducing something or someone to others.
Đại từ chỉ định + là + tên người / đồ vật
(Demonstrative) + (to be) + (Noun)
Example:
Đây là Nam -> This is Nam
Đó là nhà tôi -> That is my house
* When describing something or someone look like, we use:
Tên người / đồ vật + đại từ chỉ định + tính từ
(Noun) + (Demonstrative) + (Adjective)
Example:
Ngôi nhà này đẹp -> This house is beautiful
Chiếc xe ấy đắt -> That car is expensive
18
Introducing yourself
1. Hội thoại – (Dialogue):
In short break time, David and Lan are talking to each other, they are talking about themselves.
Lan: Năm nay David bao nhiêu tuổi rồi?
David: Mình 22 tuổi.
Lan: Thế thì bằng tuổi mình. Mình cũng 22 tuổi. David đến Việt Nam lâu chưa?
David: Mình đến Việt Nam được 2 tuần rồi.
Lan: Bây giờ bạn đang sống ở đâu?
David: Mình sống ở số nhà 109, đường Nguyễn Trãi, quận Thanh Xuân, Hà Nội.
Lan: Bạn sống ở đó một mình à?
David: Ừ, mình ở đó có một mình thôi. Đây là lần đầu tiên mình xa nhà, lại sống một mình nữa
nên thấy nhớ nhà lắm.
Lan: Thế nhà bạn có mấy người?
David: Nhà mình có 6 người. Bạn có muốn xem ảnh không?
Lan: Ồ! có chứ.
David: Đây là ảnh gia đình mình. Đây là bố mẹ mình, người đứng bê n cạnh là anh trai mình, còn
2 người ngồi trước là ông bà mình.
Lan: Đó là ông bà nội của bạn à?
David: “ông bà nội” nghĩa là gì?
Lan: À! “Ông bà nội” là người sinh ra bố, còn “ông bà ngoại” là người sinh ra mẹ.
David: À! ra thế, mình hiểu rồi. Còn nhà bạn ?
Lan: Nhà mình ít người hơn nhà David. Khi nào rảnh David đến nhà mình chơi nhé, bố mẹ mình
mến khách lắm, chắc chắn bạn sẽ thấy thích.
David: Thế nhà bạn ở đâu?
Lan: Nhà mình ở gần đây thôi, ở đường Xuân Thủy, quận Câu Giấy, Hà Nội.
David: Nhất định mình sẽ đến.
Lan: Nhất định nhé!
(see the translation)
19
Lan: How old are you, David?
David: I am 22 years old.
Lan: The same to me. I am also 22 years old.
How long have you been here?
David: I have been here for 2 weeks.
Lan: Where are you living now?
David:I am living at No.109, Nguyen Trai street, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi.
Lan: you live there alone, aren’t you?
David: Yes, I live alone.It is the first time I live alone and also the first time I live far from my
home so I miss my family very much.
Lan: How many people are there in your family?
David: There are six people in my family. Do you want to see my family photo?
Lan: Yes, of course.
David: Here are my parents, the person stands next to me is my older brother. Sitting in front of
us are my grandparents.
Lan: They are your “ông bà nội”?
David: What is “ông bà nội”?
Lan: Ah! “ông bà nội” are the people who born your father, and “ông bà ngoại” are the people
who born your mother.
David: Ah! I see. How about your family?
Lan: My family has less people than yours. When you have free time, please come to my house,
my parents are so hospitable, you will like them.
David: Where is your house?
Lan: My house is quite near here. It is on Xuan Thuy Street, Cau Giay district, Hanoi.
David:I will come to visit your house.
Lan: You are sure!
* Note:
- “ Ông bà nội” means paternal grandparents
- “ Ông bà ngoại” means maternal grandparents.
20
2. Từ mới – (New words)
Vietnamese
bao nhiêu
tuổi
bằng
cũng
lâu
bao lâu
tuần
bây giờ
đang
sống
ở đâu
số
đường
quận / huyện
một mình
lần đầu tiên
xa nhà
nên
nhớ (nhớ nhà)
mấy
người
muốn
xem
ảnh
gia đình
bên cạnh
ngồi
trước/ (đằng trước)
ông bà nội
ông bà ngoại
sinh ( sinh ra)
ít… hơn
khi nào
rảnh (rảnh rỗi)
Sound
English equivalent
how many
year old
Equal / the same
also
long
how long
week
now
be + Ving
live
where
number
street
district
alone
the first time
far from home
so, therefore
Miss (homesick)
how many
people
want
see/ look
photo
family
next to
to sit
in front of
paternal grandparents
maternal grandparents
to bear
less … than
when
free
21
mến khách
chắc chắn
sẽ
thích
gần
hospitable
to be sure
will
like
near
3. Ngữ pháp – (Grammar):
3.1. Số đếm – (Cardinal number):
Number
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
30
31
40
50
60
70
Vietnamese
Không
Một
Hai
Ba
Bốn
Năm
Sáu
Bảy
Tám
Chín
Mười
Mười một
Mười hai
Mười ba
Mười bốn
Mười lăm
Mười sáu
Mười bảy
Mười tám
Mười chín
Hai mươi
Hai (mươi) mốt
Ba mươi
Ba (mươi) mốt
Bốn mươi
Năm mươi
Sáu mươi
Bảy mươi
English
Zero
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-one
Thirty
Thirty- one
Forty
Fifty
Sixty
Seventy
22
80
90
100
101
1000
1001
2000
Tám mươi
Chín mươi
Một trăm
Một trăm linh một
Một nghìn/ một ngàn
Một nghìn không trăm linh
một
Hai nghìn/ hai ngàn
Eighty
Ninety
One hundred
One hundred and one
One thousand
One thousand and one
Two thousand
3.2. Câu so sánh – (comparative clause):
* So sánh ngang bằng: “bằng”= to be equal
To express that something or somebody is equal to something or somebody else, the Vietnamese
use the word “bằng” = to be equal:
Mẫu câu – (form):
S1 + (Tính từ) + bằng + S2
(Adjective)
Ví dụ (example):
- Lan bằng tuổi David means Lan has the same age with David so we can say:
Lan trẻ bằng Daivid -> Lan is as young as David.
- Mẹ tôi già bằng bố tôi. -> My mother is as old as my father.
- Nam cao bằng David -> Nam is as tall as David.
* So sánh hơn: (comparative: more… than)
Vietnamese use “hơn” to form the comparative clause, it follows the word order as below:
Mẫu câu – (form):
S1 + (Tính từ) + hơn + S2
(Adjective)
Ví dụ – (example):
Nam trẻ hơn Peter -> Nam is younger than Peter
David cao hơn Peter -> David is taller than Peter
Nhà Lan ít người hơn nhà David -> Lan’s family has less people than David’s family
23
* So sánh bậc nhất – (Superlative):
To form the superlative clause, the word “nhất” is used and it also places after the adjective.
Mẫu câu – (form):
S + (là) + (danh từ) + tính từ + nhất + phạm vi so sánh
(noun) (adjective) (place, org, group…)
Ví dụ: (example)
Hồ Chí Minh là thành phố lớn nhất Việt Nam.
(S) (là) (Noun) (adj) (nhất) (country)
Ho Chi Minh is the largest city in Vietnam.
Lan trẻ nhất trong lớp học.
(S) (adj) (nhất) (class)
Lan is the youngest in the class.
3.3. Câu hỏi (Question): có …. không?
The most common way to form a question in Vietnamese is to follow the below construction:
Mẫu câu – (form):
S + có + động từ + không?
(verb)
Ví dụ: (example)
David có học tiếng Việt không? -> Does David study Vietnamese?
Lan có sống ở Hà Nội không? -> Does Lan live in Hanoi?
And the answer can be possitive or nagative. For example:
For the first question the answer can be:
- Vâng, David học tiếng Việt. -> Yes, David studies Vietnamese.
Hoặc Or
- Không, David không học tiếng Việt. -> No, David does not study Vietnamese.
Sometimes, we can use the word “ là” in the question. Let see some examples:
David có phải là sinh viên không? -> Is David a student?
Bạn có phải là nhà báo không? -> Are you a journalist?
After these questions, we can have the form as:
S + có phải là + danh từ + không?
(noun)
The way to answer these questions is also as the way we mentioned above. For example:
David có phải là sinh viên không? -> Is David a student?
+ Vâng, David là sinh viên -> + Yes, David is a student
Hoặc Or
- Không, David không phải là sinh viên. -> – No, David is not a student.
24
Asking the time
1. Hội thoại (Dialogue)
To day is Wednesday, David and Nam are going to visit Quoc Tu Giam with Vietnamese class,
they gather at the main gate of Quoc Tu Giam at 7:30, but it is 7:20 am, Nam is so anxious
waiting for David.
Nam: A David! Sao đến muộn thế? bạn mệt à?
David: Chào Nam! mình không sao. Thế bây giờ là mấy giờ rồi?
Nam: Bây giờ đã là 7 giờ 20 rồi, nhanh lên không mình muộn mất.
David: 7 giờ 30 mới vào lớp học mà.
Nam: Bạn không nhớ sao? hôm nay là thứ tư, lớp mình có buổi đi thăm quan ở Quốc Tử Giám
mà.
David: À! xin lỗi mình quên mất, mình cứ nghĩ hôm nay mới là thứ ba thôi.
Nam: Tối thứ 7 tuần này bạn có rỗi không?
David: Để mình xem đã, nhưng mà có việc gì không?
Nam: Mình có 2 vé đi xem phim, mình muốn mời David đi cùng.
David: Ồ! hay quá nhỉ, nhưng mà sáng thứ 7 mình phải đi học thêm tiếng Việt, buổi chiều còn
phải lên thư viện nữa.
Nam: Thế còn buổi tối?
David: Buổi tối thì mình rỗi.
Nam: Thế thì tốt rồi, 7 giờ tối thứ 7 tuần này bọn mình gặp nhau ở rạp chiếu phim Quốc Gia nhé.
David: Ừ!Thế nhé.
(see the translation)
Nam: Ah! David! Why did you come late? Are you tired?
David: Hi Nam! I am ok. What time is it now?
Nam: It is 7:20 am, be quick we will be late.
David: The lesson starts at 7:30 am.
Nam: Do you remember? Today is Wednesday, and our class are going to visit Quoc Tu Giam.
David: Ah! Sorry, I forgot, I still think today is Tuesday.
Nam: Are you free on this Saturday?
David: Let me see, but is there any thing?
25
Nam: I have two cinema tickets, I would like to invite you to go with me.
David: Oh! that’s great. But, on Saturday morning I have an extra-Vietnamese lesson and on the
afternoon I need to go to library.
Nam: How about Saturday night?
David: I am free on Saturday night?
Nam: That’s ok, so at 7:00 this Saturday night we gather at Quoc Gia cinema
David: That’s ok.
2. Từ mới (New words)
Vietnamese
muộn
mệt
mấy
giờ
nhanh
nhớ
hôm nay
thứ tư
đi thăm quan
xin lỗi
quên
nghĩ
thứ ba
tối (buổi tối)
thứ bảy
tuần này
rỗi (rảnh rỗi)
để mình xem đã
nhưng
vé
phim
vé đi xem phim
mời
đi cùng
hay quá
sáng (buổi sáng)
Sound
English equivalent
to be late
to be tired
how many (use for question)
time
quick
remember
today
Wednesday
go to visit
sorry
to forget
think
Tuesday
night
Saturday
this week
to be free
let me see!
but
ticket
film
cinema ticket
to invite
to go with
that’s great
morning
26
phải
học thêm
chiều (buổi chiều)
thư viện
gặp
rạp chiếu phim
have to
extra-class
afternoon
library
to meet (in this lesson: to
gather)
cinema
1. Ngữ pháp (Grammar):
3.1. To tell the time
Vietnamese uses three units to express the time, which are shown below:
Giờ -> hour
Phút -> minute
Giây -> second
* How to state the time: (need a clock)
Depending on the exact time, we have several ways to state the time.
+ ) Even hour: the word “giờ” is added after the number referring the time.
Example:
11:00 -> 11 giờ -> 11 o’clock
8:00 -> 8 giờ -> 8 o’clock
+ ) Other cases:

Vietnamese often use the word “ qua”, “kém” to express the time.
Example:
8: 15 -> 8 giờ (qua) 15 (phút)
10: 20 -> 10 giờ (qua) 20 (phút)
- The word “ quá” and “phút” can be omit, but in this case
7: 45 -> 7 giờ 45 (phút) or we can say 8 giờ kém 15 (phút), and Vietnamese prefer the later to the
former and only the word “phút” can be omit. When the time past over 30 minutes, Vietnamese
often use the word “kém” to express time.
Example:
8:50 -> 9 giờ kém 10 -> ten to nine
11:35 -> 12 giờ kém 25 -> twenty five to twelve
Besides, Vietnamese often use the word “rưỡi” to stand for the time which past 30 minutes.
27
Example:
9:30 -> 9 rưỡi -> half past nine
10: 30 -> 10 rưỡi -> half past ten
To express the time in which period of day, Vietnamese use the below words, which refer to the
period of day, to add after the time.
Period of time
Vietnamese
English equivalent
1:00am~11:00am
sáng
morning
11:00am~1:00pm
trưa
at noon
1:00pm~7:00pm
chiều
afternoon
7:00pm~11:00pm
tối
evening
11:00pm~1:00am
đêm
night
Example:
2: 15 pm -> 2 giờ 15 chiều
9:20 am -> 9 giờ 20 sáng
12:00 pm -> 12 giờ trưa
1:00 am -> 2 giờ đêm
* Asking and answering about time.
When asking for the time, Vietnamese use the question:
Bây giờ là mấy giờ rồi?
(Now) (to be) (how many) (time) (interjection)
To answer this question, we replace the word “mấy ” by the exact time as below:
Bây giờ + là + thời gian + giờ + (rồi)
(Now) (to be) (time) (hour)
Example:
A: Bây giờ là mấy giờ?
B: Bây giờ là 8 giờ (rồi).
* To ask someone what time he/she does something we use:
Form:
CN + ĐT + lúc/ vào lúc mấy giờ?
S+ V
Example:
Nam đi học vào lúc mấy giờ? -> What time does Nam go to school?
And the answer is
Nam đi học vào lúc 7 giờ. -> Nam goes to school at 7 o’clock
3.2. Parts of a day
The main distinction between the day time and night-time is expressed by the word “ban”, so we
have “ban ngày” (daytime) and “ban đêm” (night-time). To express the part of the day, the word
“buổi” is made use of. See the list for more detail.
28
Vietnamese
buổi sáng (sáng)
buổi trưa (trưa)
buổi chiều (chiều)
buổi tối (tối)
ban đêm (đêm)
Sound
English equivalent
morning
at noon
Afternoon
evening
Night
3.3. Days in a week
* Số thứ tự (Ordinal number)
Ordinal number is formed from cardinal number by adding the ordinal designator “thứ”. This
element precedes the cardinal number.
Vietnamese
Thứ
nhất
Thứ
hai*
Thứ
ba
ứ
Th
tư*
Thứ
năm
Thứ
sáu
Thứ
bảy
Thứ
tám
ứ
Th
chín
Thứ
mười
Thứ
mười một
Thứ
mười hai
Thứ
mười ba
ứ
Th
mười bốn
Thứ
mười lăm
Thứ
mười sáu
Sound
English
The first
The second
The third
The fourth
The fifth
The sixth
The seventh
The eightth
The nineth
The tenth
The eleventh
The twelveth
The thirteenth
The forteenth
The fifteenth
The sixteenth
-“Thứ nhì” is sometime used instead of
“thứ hai”
- “Thứ tư” is sometime replaced by “thứ
bốn”, but Vietnamese prefer the former to
the later.
* Days in a week:
In Vietnamese the terms denoting the
days of the week are ordinal numbers
except Sunday. The week starts from
Sunday, therefore Monday is the second
day in the week, Tuesday is the third day,
Wednesday is the fourth day, etc.
Vietnamese
Chủ nhật
Thứ hai
Thứ ba
Thứ tư
Thứ năm
Thứ sáu
Thứ bảy
Sound
English
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
* Asking and answering for the day in a week.
When asking for what the day today is, Vietnamese often use the below question:
29
Hôm nay là thứ mấy?
(today) (to be) (ordinal designator)(how many)
The answer is to replace “mấy” by the day in the week.
Example:
A: Hôm nay là thứ mấy? What day is it today?
B: Hôm nay là thứ tư. Today is Wednesday.
If we want to ask the day of tomorrow, replacing “hôm nay” by “ ngày mai” in the question and
the answer is also follow the above form.
Example:
A: Ngày mai là thứ mấy? What day is it tomorrow?
B: Ngày mai là Chủ nhật. Tomorrow is Sunday
Accordingly, using that form we can ask for other days base on the below suggestion:
Vietnamese
hôm nay
ngày mai
ngày kia
hôm qua
hôm kia
English
today
tomorrow
the day after tomorrow
yesterday
the day before yesterday
Example:
A: Hôm kia là thứ mấy? What day is it the day before yesterday?
B: Hôm kia là thứ hai. The day before yesterday is Monday
Vietnamese calendar
Vietnamese use a solar calendar (dương lịch) for official purposes but religious activities and
celebrations are governed by the lunar calendar (âm lịch) formed by a sixty-year cycle divided
into five twelve-year groups. Each year is associated with an animal. (The names of the animals
are traditionally referred to using, a Sino-Vietnamese expression.) The following table lists one
twelve-year cycle and the Sino-Vietnamese terms together with their Vietnamese and English
equivalents.
Sino-Vietnamese
Tý
Sửu
Vietnamese
Chuột
Trâu
English
Mouse/ rat
Buffalo
30
Dần
Mão
Thìn
Tị
Ngọ
Mùi
Thân
Dậu
Tuất
Hợi
Hổ
Mèo
Rồng
Rắn
Ngựa
Dê
Khỉ
Gà
Chó
Lợn
Tiger
Cat
Dragon
Snake
Horse
Goat
Monkey
Rooster/hen
Dog
Pig
The New Year festival
The Vietnamese have many festivals and celebrations but without doubt the biggest one is the
new year festival (Tết Nguyên Đán). The Vietnames e celebrate the New Year according to the
lunar calendar. Tết Nguyên Đán is an opportunity for the whole family to meet together. It is a
festival which marks the beginning of the spring and it is filled with hopes and expectations that
the New Year will be happier and better than the previous one. Tết Nguyên Đán is rich in
customs and traditions and many special dishes are prepared. Traditionally, firecrackers (Pháo)
are set off to welcome the New Year.
Vietnamese folk prints are used to decorate houses on the occasion of Tết. These are Đông Hồ
prints made in a village of the same name.
31
Asking for and Giving Directions
1. Hội thoại (Dialogue)
This Friday, Mary wants to go to British Embassy to completel procedure, but she is not sure
how to get there, she is asking Lan for the way to get there.
Mary: Chào Lan!
Lan: Chào Mary!
Mary: Xin lỗi cho mình hỏi một chút.
Lan: Có gì Mary cứ nói
Mary: Chiều nay mình cần đến Đại Sứ Quán Anh để hoàn tất một số thủ tục, nhưng mà mình lại
không rõ đường đi tới đó lắm , Lan chỉ giúp mình với.
Lan: Bạn có địa chỉ chỗ đó chưa?
Mary: Mình có rồi, ở số 31 phố Hai Bà Trưng.
Lan: Thế thì tốt rồi, bạn nhìn lên bản đồ này nhé. Bây giờ bạn đang ở trên đường Xuân Thủy, cứ
đi thẳng vào đường Kim Mã, đến cuối đường rẽ phải vào đườn g Nguyễn Thái Học, đến ngã tư
đèn xanh đèn đỏ bạn rẽ trái, đó là đường Hai Bà Trưng, đi theo đường đó bạn sẽ nhìn thấy Đại
Sứ Quán ở bên phải đường.
Mary: Ồ! Xa nhỉ, từ đây đến đó khoảng bao xa?
Lan: Ừ! Cũng khá xa, chắc khoảng 12 km đó. Thế bạn định đi đế n đó bằng gì?
Mary: Mình cũng chưa biết nữa, theo bạn mình nên đến đó bằng phương tiện gì thì tiện nhất?
Lan: Hình như bạn cũng chưa rõ đường phố Hà Nội lắm, mình nghĩ bạn nên bắt taxi đi là hay
nhất.
Mary: Ừ! Có lẽ mình sẽ đi taxi, cảm ơn Lan nhiều nhé.
Lan: Không có gì.
(see the translation)
Mary: Hi Lan!
Lan: Hi Mary!
Mary: Excuse me! Could I ask you a question?
Lan: please!
Mary: This afternoon I need to go to British Embassy for completing procedure, but I am not
32
sure about the way, could you tell me how to get there?
Lan: Do you have address?
Mary: Yes, I have, it is at 31 Hai Ba Trung Street.
Lan: That’s good. Look at the map, now you are on Xuan Thuy street, to the end of this road you
turn left to Kim Ma street, keep straight to the end of Kim Ma road then turn right to Nguyen
Thai Hoc street, at the end of the road you will see the red-blue light you turn right to Le Duan
street, when you see the first cross road turn right that is Hai Ba Trung street, follow this road
until you see the British Embassy on your right hand side.
Mary: Oh! That is so far; how far is it from here?
Lan: Yes, it is about 12 km. How do you intend to get there?
Mary: I also don’t know, do you think what transportation should I use to get there?
Lan: You seem to be not so clear about Hanoi street aren’t you? So I just think Taxi is the best
choice for you.
Mary: Yes, maybe I will take a taxi to get there, thank you very much.
Lan: You’re welcome.
Đại sứ quán Anh nằm tại điểm có dấu sao đỏ.
Đại sứ quán Anh, Tầng 4-5, Toà nhà Trung tâm, 31 Hai Bà
Trưng, Hà Nội. ĐT: ++ (84) (4) 936 0500 – Fax: ++ (84) (4)
936 0561 / 9360562 – Email: emyeukhoahoc@gmail.com
2. Từ mới (New words)
Vietnamese
hỏi
hỏi đường
nói
cần
đại sứ quán
hoàn tất
một số
thủ tục
rõ
đường
chỉ (đường)
English equivalent
to ask
to ask for the way
to tell/ say/ speak
need
Embassy
to complete
some
procedure
clear
way
to draw a map/ to show the way
33
giúp
địa chỉ
tốt
nhìn
bản đồ
trên
cuối
rẽ trái
đi thẳng
rẽ phải
đèn xanh đèn đỏ
ngã tư
đi theo
ở phía bên phải
khoảng
bao xa
định /ý định
bằng
cũng
nên
phương tiện
hình như
đường phố
bắt (xe)
hay nhất / tốt nhất
có lẽ
sẽ
cảm ơn bạn nhiều
to help
address
good
to look
map
on
the end
to turn left
to keep straight
to turn right
red-blue light (traffic light)
cross-road
to follow
at the right hand side
about
how far
to intend
by
also
should
transportation
seem to be
street
to take
the best
maybe
will
thank you very much
3. Ngữ pháp (Grammar)
3.1. Talking about distance:
* Từ…… đến:
The preposition “….từ… đến…” means “…from (place)…. to(place)….”
Form 1
từ + địa điểm 1 + đến + địa điểm 2
from + place 1 + to + place 2
This form is to express the movement from one place to another place.
34
Example:
- từ nhà tôi đến trường -> from my house to school
- từ sân bay đến khách sạn -> from the airport to the hotel
These prepositions also express a period of time
Form 2
từ + thời gian + đến + thời gian
from + time + to/ until + time
Example:
- từ 8 giờ sáng đến 5 giờ chiều -> From 8 o’clock in the morning
to 5 o’clock in the afternoon
- từ sáng đến tối -> from dawn till dusk
* “Cách*” và “Bao xa”
+) In order to state the distance between two places, the word “cách” is made use of. See the
form:
Form 3
Địa điểm 1 + cách + địa điểm 2 + số km
place 1 + distance + place 2 + No. of km
Example:
- Sân bay cách khách sạn 5 km -> The airport is five km from the hotel.
- Nhà tôi cách trường học 8 km -> My house is eight km from school.
- Hà nội cách Huế khá xa -> Hanoi is quite far away from Hue.
+ ) when asking for the distance, Vietnamese often use the question:
Form 4
Địa điểm 1 + cách + địa điểm 2 + bao xa?
place 1 + cách + place 2 + (how far)?
Example:
- Hà Nội cách Huế bao xa? -> How far is it from Hanoi to Hue?
- Sân bay cách nhà ga bao xa? -> How far is it from the airport to the station?
Besides, we can use the question which is combined with the prepositon “t ừ… đến”.
Let take an example to see how it is formed
- Từ Hà Nội đến Huế khoảng* bao xa?
(Place 1) (place 2) (about) (how far)?
This question can be translated as: How far is it from Hanoi to Hue?
and the answer can be:
- Từ Hà Nội đến Huế khoảng 500 km. -> It is about 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
Or we can answer by using the form 3 above as below:
35
- Hà Nội cách Huế khoảng 500 km. -> Hanoi is about 500km from Hue.
* Note:
- The word “khoảng” can be replace by the word “là” and “ cách”.
Example:
Từ Hà Nội đến Huế là 500 km -> It is 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
hoặc
Từ Hà Nội đến Huế cách 500 km -> It is 500km from Hanoi to Hue.
- “cách” can also be used to state the period of time. It is to describe how long ago something
happened.
Example:
Tôi đến Việt Nam cách đây hai tuần
-> I arrived Vietnam two week ago.
Tôi bắt đầu học tiếng Việt cách đây một tháng.
-> I started to learn Vietnamese a month ago.
3.2. “ Hình như” : seem to be
In Vietnamese, when talking about something that is not so clear or may cause a doubt, the word
“hình như” is used and it often state at the beginning of the sentence.
Example:
- Hình như bạn chư a quen đường phố Hà Nội lắm.
-> You seem to be not so familiar to Hanoi Street.
- Hình như tôi chưa từng đến nơi này.
-> It seems to be that I have ever been here.
3.3. Nên: should
Vietnamese use the word “nên” to give suggestion or advice to someone. It often stands after the
Subject. See below form for detail.
Form 5
CN + nên + ĐT + VN
S + should + V + O
Example:
- Bạn nên đến đó bằng taxi -> You should get there by taxi.
- Bạn nên thư giãn một chút -> You should relax.
36
How to Take a Taxi
1. Hội thoại (Dialogue)
On the afternoon Mary is going to British Embassy, now she is calling to Hanoi taxi agency to
reserve a taxi.
Agency: Dạ! Hà Nội taxi xin nghe!
Mary: Alô! chào anh ạ! anh có thể gọi cho em một xe taxi bốn chỗ tới địa chỉ số 27 đường Xuân
Thủy, Cầu Giấy được không ạ?
Agency: Dạ vâng ạ! chị vui lòng chờ một lát, taxi sẽ đến ngay ạ
Mary: Cảm ơn anh nhiều, chào anh!
Agency: Dạ không có gì ạ, chào chị!
Some minutes later, Mary sees a four-seat taxi is coming; she waves her hand as a sign.
Taxi driver: Xin lỗi, có phải chị gọi taxi không ạ?
Mary: Vâng! đúng rồi ạ, anh có phải từ bên Hà Nội taxi không ạ?
Taxi driver: Vâng! Thưa chị, mời chị lên xe ạ.
Mary: Cảm ơn anh!
Taxi driver: Bây giờ chị muốn đi đến địa điểm nào ạ?
Mary: Anh đưa tôi đến Đại sứ quán Anh ở số 31 Hai Bà Trưng.
Taxi driver: Vâng! Phiền chị thắt dây an toàn để chúng ta có thể khởi hành ạ.
Mary: Vâng! tôi đã sẵn sàng, anh có thể cho tôi hỏi một chút được không ạ?
Taxi driver: Vâng chị cứ nói ạ.
Mary: Từ đây đến Đại sứ quán mất bao lâu ạ?
Taxi driver: Bây giờ đường không đông lắm nên khoảng 30 phút nữa chúng ta sẽ đến Đại sứ
Quán.
Mary: Vâng! vậy là tôi yên tâm rồi. Cảm ơn anh!
Taxi driver: Dạ! không có gì ạ.
Thirty minutes later, Mary gets to British Embassy; she gets off the taxi and makes the payment.
Taxi driver: Thưa chị! Đại sứ quán đây rồi ạ
Mary: Vâng! cảm ơn anh nhé, xin hỏi hết bao nhiêu tiền ạ?
Taxi driver: Dạ! hết 90.000 đồng chẵn ạ.
Mary: Đây thưa anh, cảm ơn anh nhiều ạ.
37
Taxi driver: Dạ! không có gì ạ, chị có muốn tôi đợi không ạ?
Mary: Không cần đâu, chào anh!
Taxi driver: Cảm ơn chị! Chào chị!
(See the translation)
Dialogue 1:
Agency: Hello! Thank you for calling to Hanoi taxi, can I help you?
Mary: Hello! Could you arrange one four-seat taxi to pick me up at No.27 Xuan Thuy Street,
Cau Giay Dist.?
Agency: Yes, Madam. Could you please wait for some minutes, our taxi will come now.
Mary: Thank you very much and goodbye!
Agency: You’re welcome, goodbye!
Dialogue 2:
Taxi driver: Excuse me! Did you call for a taxi?
Mary: yes, I did. You are from Hanoi taxi, aren’t you?
Taxi driver: Yes, I am. Please get in the car.
Mary: Thanks you!
Taxi driver: Where would you go to now?
Mary: Please take me to British Embassy at No.31 Hai Ba Trung Street.
Taxi driver: yes, could you please wear seatbelt and we can departure.
Mary: Yes, I am ready, may I have a question?
Taxi driver: yes, please!
Mary: How long does it take from here to British Embassy?
Taxi driver: At the moment, the street is not so crowded, so it may take about 30 minutes.
Mary: Yes, It’s good, thank you!
Taxi driver: Not at all!
Dialogue 3:
Taxi driver: Here is British Embassy.
Mary: Yes, thank you! How much is it?
Taxi driver: It is 90.000 VND.
Mary: Here you are!
Taxi driver: Thank you! Do you need me to wait for you?
38
Mary: No, thanks! Goodbye!
Taxi driver: Thank you and goodbye!
2. Từ mới (New words)
Vietnamese
Chỗ (chỗ ngồi)
vui lòng
chờ
một lát
gọi
lên xe
địa điểm
đưa/ đưa đón
thắt
dây an toàn
có thể
sẵn sàng
Sound
đông
nên
bao nhiêu tiền
English equivalent
seat
please
to wait
a little (in this lesson: some minutes)
to call
to get in
place
to take, to pick up
to tie
seatbelt
can, could, might, may
ready
crowed
so
how much
*Note:
- The word “vui lòng” is used when offering someone to do something politely.
Example:
Bạn vui lòng mở cửa giúp mình được không?
-> Could you open the door please?
- In the dialogue you see so many word “ạ”, but we can not translate it into English because there
is no equivalent meaning in English. It is used to show the politeness and respect of the speaker
to the person being spoken. For example, before going to class children have to say goodbye to
their parents “Thưa bố mẹ! Con đi học ạ” as well as when they come back home they have to say
hello to their parents “thưa bố mẹ con đã về ạ”. It does not only convey the meaning of
informing but also expressing the respect to the olders.
3.Ngữ pháp (Grammar)
3.1. Bao lâu: How long….
When asking for how long something done, Vietnamese use the question which is formed by the
word “ bao lâu”.
Form 1
39
CN + ĐT + VN + (mất) bao lâu?
S + V + O + how long?
Let analyse the example for futher detail:
- (S) Đi từ đây đến Đại sứ quán mất bao lâu?
- S (Verb) (Object) how long?
The subject is not appeared here but we still can understand that there is someone moves to
Embassy; therefore this sentence can be translated into English as below:
-> How long does it take from here to Embassy?
See more examples:
- Bạn đi từ nhà đến trường mất bao lâu?
-> How long does it take you from your house to your school?
- Đi từ Hà Nội vào Huế mất bao lâu?
- > How long does it take from Hanoi to Hue?
* Note:
- The word “mất” can be replaced by “trong” or “khoảng”. “Mất” refers to the exact time,
“trong” refers to the approximate time but not over the time given, and “khoảng” also refers to
the approximate time and it can be less or more than the time given. Therefore, Vietnamese
applied this meaning of these words to give clear answer. See the answer for these above
questions:
Question 1
Q: Đi từ đây đến Đại sứ quán mất bao lâu?
A: Đi từ đây đến Đại sứ quán mất 30 phút. (Exactly it takes 30 minutes)
Question 2:
Q: Bạn đi từ nhà đến trường mất bao lâu?
A: Mình đi từ nhà đến trường trong 15 phút. (It takes less than 15 minutes)
Question 3:
Q: Đi từ Hà N ội vào Huế mất bao lâu?
A: Đi từ Hà Nội vào Huế khoảng 4 tiếng. (It may take less than or more than 4 hour)
- In the question, the word “bao lâu” can be replaced by the word “ bao nhiêu thời gian”. The
question and answer form as well as the meaning is the same with the word “bao lâu”.
Vietnamese prefers using “bao lâu” to using “bao nhiêu thời gian”.
3.2. Conjunction: “ nên” means “ so”
40
The conjunction “nên” is used to combine two clauses that have “cause and effect” relationship.
The first clause often shows the meaning of cause and the second one has the meaning of effect.
To make you easy to remember we provide the form as below:
Cause clause + nên + effect clause
See the example for detail:
- Bây giờ đường không đông lắm// nên // khoảng 30 phút nữa chúng ta sẽ đến Đại sứ quán.
(Cause clause) nên (Effect clause)
-> Now the street is not so crowed so we can get to Embassy about 30 minutes later.
In order to emphasize the reason we add the word “vì”at the very beginning of the cause clause.
Example:
- Vì // trời mưa // nên // chúng tôi không đi chơi.
vì (cause) nên (effect)
-> Because it rains so we do not go out.
- Vì // Lan bị ốm // nên // cô ấy không đến lớp.
-> Because Lan is ill so she does not come to class.
Similiar with English, the position of these two clauses can be exchanged, and in this case the
word “nên” can be omittied, and replaced by “vì”.
See example:
- Chúng tôi không đi chơi // vì // trời mưa.
(Effect) vì (cause)
-> We do not go out because it rains.
- Lan không đến lớp // vì // cô ấy bị ốm
-> Lan does not come to class because she is ill.
* Note:
- If the subject in two clauses is the same, it can be omitted in one of these two clauses.
Example:
- (Vì) bị ốm nên Lan không đến lớp
(vì) (S) V nên S V
-> Because of being ill so Lan does not come to class.
Or
- Lan bị ốm nên không đến lớp.
41
S V nên (S) V
This sentence can be translated into English as:
-> Lan is ill so not come to class.
42
Shopping
1. Hội thoại (Dialogue)
At the weekend, Mary goes shopping; she wants to buy a shirt, a Vietnamese dictionary and then
some fruit.
Hội thoại 1: Mary is at a clothes shop
Saller: Chào em! Chị có thể giúp gì cho em?
Mary: Chào chị! Em có thể xem chiếc áo màu hồng kia không ạ?
Saller: Đây! Em xem thử đi.
Mary: Chị ơi! Em có thể mặc thử được không ạ?
Saller: Em mặc thử đi.
Mary: Trông có vẻ hơi chật một chút, chị có cỡ nào rộng hơn không?
Saller: Em đang mặc thử cỡ S phải không?
Mary: Để em xem đã, vâng đúng rồi chị ạ.
Saller: Thế thì em mặc cỡ M là vừa đấy, em thử lại áo này đi.
Mary: Vâng!
Saller: Em thấy thế nào? Có vừa không?
Mary: Vừa chị ạ. Bao nhiêu tiền chiếc áo này?
Saller: Chiếc áo đó 110.000 em ạ.
Mary: Ôi! Hình như hơi đắt, chị có thể bớt cho em một chút được không?
Saller: Thôi được! Chị bán mở hàng, bớt cho em 10.000.
Mary: Cảm ơn chị!
Saller: Em có mua thêm gì nữa không?
Mary: Dạ không ạ, chào chị nhé!
Hội thoại2: Mary is in the book shop
Seller: Em đang tìm sách gì thế?
Mary: Chị ơi ở đây có bán từ điển tiếng Việt không ạ?
Seller: Có, ở phía bên này cơ, để chị lấy cho.
Mary: Em mới bắt đầu học tiếng Việt thì nên dùng quyển nào chị nhỉ?
Seller: Thế thì em nên dùng quyển này, toàn những từ thông dụng thôi.
Mary: Vâng! Cảm ơn chị nhiều nhé. Quyển này giá bao nhiêu thế chị?
Seller: Quyển này giá 45.000 thôi em ạ.
Mary: Cảm ơn chị ạ. Chào chị!
Seller: Chào em!
Hội thoại 3: Mary is at the market.
Seller: Cháu ơi! Vào đây mua hoa quả cho cô.
Mary: Cô ơi! Bao nhiêu tiền một cân nho ạ?
Seller: Nho 25.000 một cân cháu ạ. Cháu mua đi nho tươi và ngọt lắm.
Mary: Cô bán giảm cho cháu nhé, 20.000 một cân thôi ạ.
43
Seller: Thôi cô bán 22.000 cháu mua giúp cô nhé?
Mary: Vâng! Thế cô cân giúp cháu ạ.
Seller: Cháu mua gì nữa không?
Mary: Dạ! không ạ. Cháu chào cô.
Seller: Ừ chào cháu! Lần sau lại vào mua hoa quả cho cô nhé.
Dialogue 1:
Saller: Hello! Can I help you?
Mary: Hello! Can I see that pink shirt?
Saller: Here you are.
Mary: Can I try it on?
Saller: Yes, you can.
Mary: It looks a little bit small. Do you have a bigger size?
Saller: You are trying on S size, aren’t you?
Mary: Let me see, yes it is.
Saller: So the M size is fit to you, can you try on this one?
Mary: Yes,
Saller: How about it? Is it fit to you?
Mary: Yes, it is. How does it cost?
Saller: It cost 110.000 VND.
Mary: Oh! It is expensive. Could you cut the price down?
Saller: Alright! It is the first purchase of day for you; I reduce 10.000 VND for you.
Mary: Thank you!
Saller: Would you like to buy more?
Mary: No, thanks and goodbye!
Dialogue 2:
Saller: Which book are you looking for?
Mary: Is there any Vietnamese dictionary here?
Saller: Yes, it is over there; let me take it for you.
44
Mary: I just started to learn Vietnamse, so which Dictionary should I use?
Saller: Oh! You should use this book; it is contain almost common words.
Mary: Yes, thank you very much. How much is it?
Saller: It is only 45.000 VND.
Mary: Thank you and goodbye!
Saller: Goodbye!
Dialogue 3:
Saller: Hey girl! Come to buy my fruit!
Mary: How much does a kilo of grapefruit cost?
Saller: One kilo grapefruit costs 25.000 VND. It is very fresh and sweet, you should buy it.
Mary: Could you reduce the price? 20.000 a kilo?
Saller: Alright! I wil sell it with the price of 22.000 VND, let buy it.
Mary: Yes, could you give me a kilo.
Saller: Do you need anything else?
Mary: No, thanks and goodbye!
Saller: Goodbye! Shall you come to my shop next time?
2. Từ mới (New words)
Vietnamese
giúp
xem
chiếc
áo (áo sơ mi)
áo phông
áo vét
màu hồng
mặc thử
hơi
chật
cỡ
rộng
vừa
tiền
English equivalent
to help
to look, to see
a classifier
Shirt
T-Shirt
Jacket
pink
to try it on
a little bit
small
size
Big/ large
fit
money
45
đắt
bớt = giảm giá
bán
mua
bán/ mua mở hàng
expensive
sale off / cắt the price off
to sale
to buy
to make the first purchase
tìm
to search, to look for
sách ( quyển sách) book
từ điển
dictionary
lấy
to take
bắt đầu
to begin
học
to learn
dùng = sử dụng to use
quyển
a classifier
Toàn (toàn bộ)
all
thông dụng
common
giá
price
quả
fruit
cân
Kilo
quả nho (nho)
grapefruit
tươi
fresh
ngọt
sweet
lần sau
next time
* Note:
- Shopping
In Vietnam, the most popular place for doing shopping is the market. There are many things
available here and you can buy anything you need from food to electrical goods. The market is
not only the place for doing shopping but also the place for meeting to exchange information,
and especially, it is a place for young people who want to find the other part of their life, the
popular market like this are Sapa love market, Khau vai love market. It is popular that
Vietnamese’s largest markets are Đồng Xuân in Hanoi, Đông Ba in Hue and Bến Thành in Sai
Gon. Market is the most useful place for foreigners who want to learn Vietnamese language and
to practice.
- Vietnamese currency
The currency of Vietnam is named as “đồng”, in the past there existed smaller monetary units
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called “xu” and “hào”, but they are no longer used. At the present, the smallest banknote
denomination is 100 đồng, and the biggest one is 500.000 đồng. Beside that, there are some coins
in Vietnamese circulation including 200 đồng, 500 đồng, 1000 đồng, 2000 đồng and 5000 đồng.
See the below system (range from the smallest to the biggest)
Paper money Coin
100 đồng
200 đồng
200 đồng
500 đồng
500 đồng
1000 đồng
1000 đồng
2000 đồng
2000 đồng
5000 đồng
5000 đồng
10 000 đồng
20 000 đồng
50 000 đồng
100 000 đồng
200 000 đồng
500 000 đồng
3. Ngữ pháp (Grammar)
3.1.Classifier
Vietnamese uses a system of classifiers to indicate word classes of nouns. It sounds slightly
complecated at first but the below examples show that it is not too difficult.
* Usage of classifiers:
- Use to specify an object, a person, an animal, etc. in specific case.
Example:
Specific reference
Con chó của tôi rất đẹp
-> My dog is very beautiful
This statement refers to a specific dog, i.e.
my dog; therefore the classifier “con” is
used.
General reference
Chó là loài động vật thông minh
-> Dog is an intelligent animal
This statement there is no specific dog is refered to,
dog here is refered as a species; therefore no
classifier is used.
3.2.Classifiers stand before the noun they classify “classifier + noun”
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E.g.
Con mèo -> a cat
Cái bàn -> a table
Đôi giày -> a pair of shoes
3.3.When the statement refers to the certain number of object, animal, etc. the classifiers
is used normally and placed after the number.
E.g.
Ba con mèo -> three cats
Năm cái bàn -> five tables
Hai đôi giày -> two pair of shoes
Sometimes, classifiers can stand without nouns, but it occurs in clear context in which they refer
to.
Example:
- Quyển sách này rất hay, cho tớ mượn quyển này nhé.
Classifier noun classifier
-> This book is very interesting, may I borrow it?
The below are the most common classifiers:
Classifiers Usage
Examples
Cái
Used for most ainanimate objects
cái ô (umbrella), cái búa (hammer), cái đinh
(srew), etc
Con
Usually for animals, but can be used con dao (knife), con đường (street), con mèo
to describe some inanimate object
(cat), etc.
Bài
Used for copositions like songs,
bài hát (song), bài thơ (poem), etc.
drawings, poems, essays, etc.
Cây
Used for stick like objects
cây tre ( bamboo), cay mía (cane), cây súng
(gun), etc
Chiếc
Object that are worn or moved by
chiếc ghế (chair), chiếc xe (car), chiếc áo
people
(shirt), etc.
Tòa
Building of authority
tòa án (court), tòa nhà (hall), tòa tháp (tower)
Quả/ trái Used for globular objects (Earth,
quả/ trái đất (the Earth), quả xoài
fruit)
(mango)(fruits)
ển/
quy
Used for book-like object
quyển sách (book), quyển vở (notebook),
cuốn
quyển nhật ký (diary), etc.
Tờ
Used for sheets and other thin objects tờ báo (newspaper), tờ giấy (paper), tờ lịch
made of paper
(calendar), etc.
Việc
an event or an ongoing process
việc cưới xin (wedding ceremony)
Cuộc
Used for process, activity like sport, cuộc chiến tranh (war), cuộc thi hoa hậu
contests, meetings, parties,
(beauty contest), cuộc cách mạng (revolution),
struggles...
etc.
Đôi
Used for objects always come in set đôi giày ( pair of shoes) đôi đũa ( pair of
of two
chopstick), etc.
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Bộ
Used for a set of group objects
Tấm
Rectangular flat piece of material,
with cloth, boards, etc.
Flat and rectangular objects
Bức
bộ bàn ghế (set of table and chair), bộ ấm
chén (tea-set)
tấm vải (cloth), tấm gỗ (wood), etc.
Bức thư (letter), bức tranh (picture), etc.
- Besides, the classifier “cái” has a special role in that it can extend all other classifiers e.g. cái
con mèo này (this cat), cái chiểc áo này (this shirt), etc.
- Many other words can fulfil the role of a classifier:
~ Containers: hộp (box), chai (bottle), bát (bowl), ấm (kettle), cốc (glass)
~ Unit of language: từ (word), câu (sentence), tiếng (sound).
~ Spartial unit: chỗ (place), lớp (class), phòng (room), nước (country).
~ Time unit: bữa (meal), lần (time), giờ (hour), phút (minute), ngày (day), mùa (season), tháng
(month), năm (year).
3.4. Bao nhiêu tiền? How much?
To ask for price of thing, Vietnamese often uses the question which forms of the word “bao
nhiêu tiền”. See the form below:
CN + (giá) + bao nhiêu (tiền)?
S + (cost) + how much?
Example:
- Chiếc áo này bao nhiêu tiền? -> How much is this shirt?
- Quyển sách này bao nhiêu tiền? -> How much is this book?
- Bao nhiêu tiền một cân nho? -> How much is a kilo of grapefruit?
It can be placed at the beginning or at the very end of the question, but do not change the
meaning of question.
See below examples:
- Chiếc áo này bao nhiêu tiền? -> How much is this shirt?
- Bao nhiêu tiền chiếc áo này? -> How much is this shirt?
Sometimes, the word “giá” is added before “bao nhiêu tiền”, or the word “tiền” can be omitted.
Example:
- Chiếc áo này giá bao nhiêu (tiền)? -> How much does this shirt cost?
- Quyển sách này giá bao nhiêu (tiền)? -> How much does this book cost?
Have you relize how to answer this question, look again the dialogue and you will see the way to
answer. It is very simple if follow these below order:
CN + giá + số tiền
S + cost + money
Example: See the answer of these above questions.
- Chiếc áo này giá 110.000 đồng. -> This shirt costs 110.000 VND.
- Quyển sách này giá 45.000 đồng -> this book costs 45.000 VND.
- Một cân nho giá 25.000 đồng -> One kilo grapefruit costs 25.000 VND.
* Note:
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In some case, the word “giá” can be omitted, e.g. Chiếc áo đó 110.000 đồng.
It is not necessary that the answer has to follow the above order, it can be changed or shortened
as shown in the below examples:
- 25.000 đồng một cân nho. -> 25.000 VND for one kilo grapefruit.
- 110.000 chiếc áo đó. -> 110.000 VND for that shirt.
- 45.000 quyển sách đó. -> 45.000 VND for that book.
Short answer like:
A: Nho bao nhiêu tiền một cân?
B: 25.000 đồng.
A: How much is one kilo grapefruit?
B: 25.000 VND.
In this case the both seller and buyer all know exactly thing, but it occurs in spoken language.
3.5.Quantifier: một chút, một ít… (a) few, (a) little.
The using of quantifier in Vietnamese is not so different from that in English, there are two types
of quantifiers, one is used for count noun and the other is used for non-count noun.
The most common quantifiers are:
Used with count noun Used with non-count noun
Một vài
Một lát (used for time only)
Một lúc (used for time only)
Một chút
Một ít
Một tí
The position of the quantifiers is before the nouns
Example:
- Một vài cái bánh -> A few cakes
- Vài cái kẹo -> some sweets
- Một chút đường -> a little sugar
- Một ít muối -> a little salt
- Một tí kem -> a little cream
Exceptionally, “một lát”, “một lúc” are the quantifiers for time only therefore they are no longer
need the existence of the noun time,
Example:
- Đợi tôi một lát -> wait me for some minutes.
- Tôi đợi bạn được một lúc rồi -> I am waiting for you for some minutes.
In the clear context when the conversation attendants all know the thing they refer to, the
quantifiers can stand alone without the noun
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Example:
- Mary points to a pack of sweet and says to Lan: “cho tớ vài cái nhé” Can I have some?. In this
case, Mary does not need to refer to sweet, but Lan can understand Mary wants some sweet
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References:
Vietnamese for foreigners, viewed 15 September 2012,
http://www.vietgle.vn/diendan/showthread.php/15313-Vietnamese-for-foreignersTieng-Viet-cho-nguoi-nuoc-ngoai.
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