Tuttle Compact Vietnamese Dictionary. Phan Van Giuong

see xa far nh canyon nho grape ph phone phải right r run ra to go out s show sữa milk t top tốt good th thin thăm to visit tr entry trên on/ above v very và and x see xa far

      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