Vietnamese Pronouns and Grammar Guide

 

Person	Gender	Vietnamese Pronoun	English Equivalent	Approximate Age Range	Common Expression / Usage Notes
First Person	Male	Tôi	I	Any age	Formal, neutral, used in most settings
	Female	Tôi	I	Any age	Formal, neutral, used in most settings
	Either	Tớ	I	Informal, under 30	Casual, friendly; used with peers
	Either	Mình	I	Any age	Casual, for close friends/family
	Male	Ông	I	Elderly (over 60)	Used by elderly men with younger people for respect
	Female	Bà	I	Elderly (over 60)	Used by elderly women with younger people for respect
	Male	Bác	I	Older than addressee	Respected, neutral, older sibling or peer of parents
	Male	Chú	I	Middle-aged or older	Younger than parents, still respectful
	Female	Cô	I	Middle-aged or older	Younger than parents, still respectful
Second Person	Male	Bạn	You	Any age	Formal, polite, neutral
	Female	Bạn	You	Any age	Formal, polite, neutral
	Either	Cậu	You	Informal, under 30	Casual, friendly; used with close friends
	Either	Mày	You	Informal, any age	Informal, can be rude if used with strangers
	Male	Ông	You	Elderly (over 60)	Used to address elderly men respectfully
	Female	Bà	You	Elderly (over 60)	Used to address elderly women respectfully
	Male	Anh	You	Over 20, slightly older	Respected older brother or older peer
	Female	Chị	You	Over 20, slightly older	Respected older sister or older peer
	Male	Em	You	Under 20, younger	Used to address younger people, friendly
	Female	Em	You	Under 20, younger	Used to address younger people, friendly
Third Person	Male	Anh ấy	He	Over 20	Formal, respectful, for acquaintances and colleagues
	Female	Cô ấy	She	Over 20	Formal, respectful, for acquaintances and colleagues
	Either	Nó	He/She	Informal, any age	Informal, can be disrespectful if used incorrectly
	Either	Họ	They	Any age	Neutral, formal, respectful
	Male	Ông ấy	He	Elderly (over 60)	Respectful address for elderly men
	Female	Bà ấy	She	Elderly (over 60)	Respectful address for elderly women
	Male	Anh ấy	He	Over 20, slightly older	Respected older brother or male peer
	Female	Chị ấy	She	Over 20, slightly older	Respected older sister or female peer
	Male	Em ấy	He	Under 20, younger	Used for younger male, neutral
	Female	Em ấy	She	Under 20, younger	Used for younger female, neutral

Basic Grammar

• Subject-Verb-Object Order: Vietnamese sentences typically follow a Subject-Verb-Object structure.

  • Example: "Tôi ăn cơm" (I eat rice).

• Particles for Respect:

  • Particles like "ạ" are added for respect, especially when addressing elders.
  • Example: "Con cảm ơn ạ" (Thank you, respectfully).

• Pronoun Use with Age and Respect:

  • Pronouns reflect age and respect, with unique terms for older individuals and respected relations.