What does “Đi đi mau” mean in Vietnamese?
Đi đi mau translates to “go go, quickly!” in Vietnamese, like “Let’s go!” in English, or “Hurry up! Let’s move!”
Word of the Day – one Vietnamese word a day
Đi đi mau translates to “go go, quickly!” in Vietnamese, like “Let’s go!” in English, or “Hurry up! Let’s move!”
Uncle and Aunt are polite words used to refer to elder strangers, like “sir”/ “madam”. However, Vietnamese has more than 6 words for aunt & uncle.
When Vietnamese men are drinking, their version of “Cheers!” is: Một, hai, ba, dô! which translates to “one, two, three, go!”
Tôi không hiểu – Two of the most useful expressions in Vietnamese are I don’t understand and I don’t know.
Dương is not pronounced with a “d”. It is pronounced like zoo-ung in North Vietnam, and like yoo-ung in South Vietnam.
Good bye is Tạm biệt in Vietnamese. The challenge for English speakers is to not say it with a joyful high-pitch intonation, but with a down-tone
Vietnamese has many different way of saying “yes”, just Like in English when you say “yes sir” to someone older, and “yah” to someone younger. Vietnamese has có, ừ, dạ, vâng and more.
Cảm ơn sounds somewhat like “gam un”, including a clear articulation that separates the two words. Không có gì means “you’re welcome”.
There are many ways to say “beautiful”, “cute”, “handsome”, “hot” in Vietnamese. Xinh quá for pretty women; đẹp trai quá for handsome men. Nóng Bỏng is for a sexy man/woman.
Một Hai Ba is Vietnamese for One Two Three. It is approximately pronounced like “Mut” (down-tone) “Hi” (as in Hi!) “Ba” (like a sheep). Audio lessons included.
The Vietnamese word “ấy” is a versatile and useful word in Vietnam. It is like the English catch-all word “thing”. But, it also has a lot of other uses.
The most common Anglicized pronunciation of the Vietnamese family-name Ngô is “No/Know”. However, the correct pronunciation requires some careful study of the VIetnamese “ng” sound.
The Vietnamese word Nha is like the Vietnamese equivalent of the Canadian “… eh?” or “… okay?” It transform an imperative statement into a question. It is cute and casual.
If you want vegetarian food at a Vietnamese restaurant, just say “Ăn chay“, which is Vietnamese for “I am vegetarian”. Vietnam is great for Vegetarians.
The Vietnamese letter g is pronounced like “g” as in “goat”, when it is followed by any vowel other than i. “Gi” is pronounced like “z” as in “zebra”, or like “yuh” in the Southern dialect.
Xin Chao is the most generic way to say “Hello” in Vietnamese. It can be used with everyone (formal or informal). There are many other ways to greet people in Vietnam, most of which depend on your age and sex.
The “ng” sound (ŋ) is not an n-sound, nor a g-sound. In English, it occurs at the end of “-ing” words, like running, talking, and writing. If you listen carefully, you can hear that ng really deserves its own unique character, being entirely unrelated to both “n” and “g”. Use our trick to train your tongue to correctly pronounce the Vietnamese ng-sound.
“Việt Nam” means “People of the South”, where “south” is in reference to the South-East Asian continent, especially south of China. Nam is likely of Chinese origin from “Annam” for the “pacified south”. Listen to audio for the correct pronunciation of Vietnam.
Phở can be Anglicized to “phuh”. But, ở must be spoken with a peculiar pitch-dynamic: it first descends, then rises. If not done correctly, you may say something naughty
“Anh ơi” means “Hey, excuse me Mister”, but only for males with 15 years of your age. Vietnamese has complex pronoun rules based on age.