Vietnamese grammar

Every grammar guide of Lingora’s Vietnamese A1 course, with examples you can listen to.

01Forming Questions with 'có ... không'To form standard "Yes/No" questions, use the construction có ... không. This structure acts like a frame around the main verb or adjective of the…
02Progressive Tense with 'đang'To describe an action that is currently taking place, place the particle đang directly before the main verb. This corresponds to the English continuous…
03Inclusive vs. Exclusive 'we'Unlike English, which uses the single word "we" for all contexts, Vietnamese distinguishes between two types of "we" based on whether the listener is…
04Imperative Particle 'nhé'The particle nhé is a sentence-final particle used to modify the tone of a statement, request, or suggestion. Its primary function is to "soften" the…
05ClassifiersClassifiers are words used to categorize nouns based on their physical characteristics or nature. While English uses them occasionally (e.g., a head of…
06Question Marker 'à'The particle à is placed at the very end of a sentence to turn a statement into a question. Unlike neutral questions that simply ask for unknown…
07Focus Marker 'thì'The particle thì functions as a connector that links a topic to a comment, or a condition to a result. It serves a similar purpose to a comma or the…
08Plural Marker 'các'Vietnamese nouns do not change their form to indicate plurality. Instead, you place a plural marker before the noun. The word các is a specific plural…
09Plural Marker 'những'Vietnamese nouns do not change their form to indicate plurality (like adding an "s" in English). Instead, you place a plural marker before the noun. The…
10Result Complement 'thấy'thấy functions as a result complement. It is placed immediately after verbs of perception or seeking to indicate that the action has been completed…
11Reflexive Pronoun 'mình'The word mình is one of the most versatile pronouns in Vietnamese. Literally translating to "body" or "self," it functions primarily as a reflexive…
12Imperative Particle 'hãy'The particle hãy is placed before a verb to turn a statement into a polite command, a piece of advice, or an encouraging suggestion. It functions…
13The Many Meanings of 'cho'The word cho is a versatile component of Vietnamese grammar. While its root meaning is the verb to give, it frequently functions as a preposition, a…
14Existence with 'có'The verb có is one of the most fundamental words in the language. While its primary definition is to have (indicating possession), it is also the…
15Perfect Aspect Marker 'đã'The particle đã is a function word placed immediately before a verb to indicate the perfect aspect. This means it marks an action as completed or…
16Tag Questions with 'nhỉ'The particle nhỉ is placed at the very end of a sentence to turn a statement into a tag question. It is primarily used to seek agreement, confirmation,…
17Personal PronounsUnlike many Western languages, Vietnamese does not rely on a fixed set of pronouns like "I", "you", "he", or "she" that can be used in every situation.…
18Imperative Particle 'đi'The word đi has two distinct functions depending on its position and usage in a sentence. While its primary meaning as a main verb is to go, it…
19Question Marker 'thế'The particle thế is a versatile word frequently used at the end of sentences in spoken Vietnamese. While it literally relates to "way" or "manner," as a…
20Focus Marker 'còn'The particle còn is a versatile word primarily used to shift focus, create contrast between two subjects, or indicate continuity. Its meaning changes…
21Emphasis Particle 'vậy'The particle vậy is a highly versatile word that functions as a demonstrative pronoun, an emphasis marker, or a conjunction depending on its position and…
22Question Marker 'sao'Placing sao at the end of a statement transforms it into a question. Unlike standard neutral questions, this structure usually carries an emotional…
23Emphasis with 'rồi'The particle rồi is one of the most frequently used words in Vietnamese grammar. It is placed at the end of a sentence to indicate that an action is…
24Emphasis Particle 'mà'The particle mà is one of the most versatile words in Vietnamese grammar. Depending on its position in the sentence and the context, it can function as a…
25Passive Voice Marker 'được'The word được is one of the most versatile and frequent words in the language. It functions as a passive voice marker, a modal verb indicating ability,…
26Passive Voice Marker 'bị'In Vietnamese, the passive voice is not neutral. You must choose a specific marker based on whether the action affects the subject positively or…
27Questions and answers with 'phải'The word phải is one of the most versatile words in Vietnamese. Depending on its position in the sentence, it can function as a modal verb indicating…
28Future Tense Marker 'sẽ'To indicate that an event will happen in the future, place the particle sẽ directly before the main verb. It functions similarly to the English auxiliary…
29Politeness Particles 'ạ' & 'dạ'The particles dạ and ạ are used to show politeness and respect towards the listener. They are typically used when speaking to someone who is older or of…
30Copula 'là'Là is the Vietnamese equivalent of the English verb "to be" when linking a subject to a noun or noun phrase. It identifies or classifies the subject.
31Demonstratives: 'đây', 'đó', 'kia'Vietnamese has three demonstratives that distinguish distance from the speaker: đây — this / here (close to speaker) đó — that / there (moderate…
32Possessive Marker 'của'Của marks possession, similar to English 's or of. It goes between the thing possessed and the owner: Noun + của + Owner Đây là xe của tôi. This is my…
33Indefinite Article 'một'Một means one as a number, but it also works as the Vietnamese equivalent of English a / an. It always appears with a classifier: một + Classifier + Noun…
34Conjunctions: 'và', 'nhưng'The two most common conjunctions connect words, phrases, or clauses just like English and and but.
35Negation with 'không'Không is the main negation word in Vietnamese. Place it directly before the verb or adjective to negate: Tôi không hiểu. I do not understand. Cô ấy không…