see
Tones
The standard Vietnamese language has six tones. Each tone is a meaningful and integral part of the syllable. Every syllable must have a tone. The tones are indicated in conventional Vietnamese spelling by diacritic marks placed over (á, à, ả, ã) or under (ạ) single vowels or the vowel in a cluster that bears the main stress (v).
| Vietnamese | Tone name | Tone mark | Description | Example | Meaning |
| Không dấu | (no) | o | Voice starts at middle of normal speaking range and remains at that level | ma | ghost |
| Sắc | high-rising | ó | Voice starts high and rises sharply | má | cheek |
| Huyền | low-falling | ò | Voice starts at a fairly low and gradually falls | mà | but |
| Nặng | low-broken | ọ | Voice falls, then cuts off abruptly | mạ | rice seedling |
| Hỏi | low-rising | ỏ | Voice falls initially, then rises slightly | mả | tomb |
| Ngã | high-broken | õ | Voice rises slightly, is cut off abruptly, then rises sharply again | mã | horse |
Tone Symbols
The six tones just described are summarized in the following chart to illustrate the differences between them as they are associated with individual words.
Vietnamese language has its national standard syntax, morphology and the tone system, although there are some regional variations in pronunciation and accents. There are significant differences in pronunciation and accents between the Northern and Southern people (represented by Hanoi and Saigon respectively). They are as follows:
1. There is no difference in the single vowels between Hanoi and Saigon.
2. There are two vowel clusters /ưu/ and /ươu/ which are pronounced /iu/ and /iêu/ by Hanoi, and /ưu/ and /ươu/ by Saigon.
3. Differences in the pronunciation of consonants:
4. Saigonese do not differentiate between the two tones /?/ and /~/; these are pronounced alike.
We hope that all users of this Compact Vietnamese Dictionary—be they Vietnamese students learning English, or English-speaking expatriates, students or business people—will find this a most compact, up-to-date and user-friendly Vietnamese-English/English-Vietnamese dictionary, for all aspects of daily communication.
Phan Văn Giưỡng
VIETNAMESE–ENGLISH
A
a 1 n. acre [100 square meters] chữ viết tắt mẫu Tây 2 a! intj. Oh! [exclamation term]
a dua v. to flatter, to follow: a dua theo lối ăn mặc người khác to follow a person’s style of dress
a-lô! intj. Hello!
a ma tơ adv. amateur: học hành a ma tơ to study in a very amateurish manner
a phiến n. (= thuốc phiện) opium
A-Phú-Hản n. Afghanistan, Afghan
a tòng v. to act as an accomplice
a-xít n. acid
á! intj. Oh! Ouch!
Á n. Asia, Asian: Á Phi Afro-Asian; Ðông Nam Á Southeast Asia
Á-Căn-Ðình n. Argentina, Argentine
Á Châu n. Asia, Asian: Ðông Nam Á Châu Southeast Asia; người Á châu Asian
Á Ðông n. Asia, The East, The Orient, Asian, Eastern, Oriental: tiệm thực phẩm Á Ðông Asian grocery shop
á kim n. metalloid
Á Phi n. Asian-African: Á Phi Afro-Asian
à intj. Oh! Ah!
Aû Rập n. Arabia, Arab, Arabian: Khối Aû Rập the Arab Bloc
ạ intj. polite particle: vâng ạ Yes sir
ác adj. cruel, severe
ác cảm n. antipathy, ill-feeling, dislike
ác chiến n. a bloody fight; trận ác chiến a bloody fight
ác liệt adj. [of a fight, battle, war] very violent, very fierce
ác miệng adj. foul-mouthed
ác mộng n. nightmare
ác ôn n. wicked thug
ác thú n. wild animal
ác ý n. malice, ill-will
ách n. yoke: ách thực dân the yoke of colonialism
ach tắc adj. congested, blocked up: ách tắc giao thông traffic congestion
ai pron. Who?, whom, whoever, everyone, someone, anyone
Ai Cập n. Egypt, Egyptian
Ai Lao n. Laos, Laotian [see Lào]
ái ân v. to make love: trong lúc ái ân during love making
ái