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Vietnamese learning guides

How to Learn Vietnamese: A Complete Beginner's Roadmap (2026)
Getting StartedFeatured · 5 min read

How to Learn Vietnamese: A Complete Beginner's Roadmap (2026)

A step-by-step roadmap to learn Vietnamese from scratch: alphabet, tones, pronunciation, phrases, and grammar, with free resources for each stage.

Tan · May 4, 2026
How to Say Sorry & Excuse Me in Vietnamese
Phrases & Vocab4 min read

How to Say Sorry & Excuse Me in Vietnamese

Sorry and excuse me are the same word in Vietnamese: 'Xin lỗi'. Learn how to apologize, get someone's attention, and reply 'you're welcome' politely.

Ngan · June 18, 2026
How to Type Vietnamese: Telex and VNI for Beginners
Alphabet5 min read

How to Type Vietnamese: Telex and VNI for Beginners

How to type Vietnamese accents on any device: turn on a Vietnamese keyboard and use Telex or VNI. Type aa for â, w for ư, and s f r x j for tones.

Tan · June 18, 2026
Vietnamese Body Parts: Words from Head to Toe
Phrases & Vocab4 min read

Vietnamese Body Parts: Words from Head to Toe

Learn the Vietnamese body parts: đầu (head), mắt (eye), tay (hand), chân (leg), and more, plus how to say what hurts at the doctor.

Tan · June 18, 2026
Vietnamese Comparatives: hơn and nhất Made Simple
Grammar4 min read

Vietnamese Comparatives: hơn and nhất Made Simple

Vietnamese comparatives are easy: add hơn for 'more than' and nhất for 'the most'. Learn the patterns for taller, tallest, and as tall as.

Ngan · June 18, 2026
Vietnamese Emotions: How to Say How You Feel
Phrases & Vocab4 min read

Vietnamese Emotions: How to Say How You Feel

Learn Vietnamese emotions like vui (happy), buồn (sad), and giận (angry), plus how to say 'I feel ...' and add 'very' with rất and quá.

Ngan · June 18, 2026
Essential Vietnamese Travel Phrases for Tourists
Phrases & Vocab4 min read

Essential Vietnamese Travel Phrases for Tourists

The Vietnamese phrases that actually matter on a trip: taxis, hotels, ordering food, prices, and asking for help. With pronunciation and north/south notes.

Tan · June 18, 2026
Vietnamese Verb Tenses: đã, đang, sẽ Explained
Grammar5 min read

Vietnamese Verb Tenses: đã, đang, sẽ Explained

Vietnamese verbs never conjugate. Past, present, and future come from three little markers: đã, đang, and sẽ. Learn how and when to use them.

Ngan · June 18, 2026
Vietnamese Classifiers: cái, con, người Explained
Grammar5 min read

Vietnamese Classifiers: cái, con, người Explained

Vietnamese classifiers are little counting words like cái, con, and người that sit between a number and a noun. Learn the rule and the common ones.

Ngan · June 17, 2026
Vietnamese Question Words: ai, gì, ở đâu, and More
Grammar5 min read

Vietnamese Question Words: ai, gì, ở đâu, and More

The Vietnamese question words are ai (who), gì (what), ở đâu (where), khi nào (when), and tại sao (why). Learn them and where they go in a sentence.

Ngan · June 17, 2026
Vietnamese Slang: Gen Z Words You Will Hear Online
Phrases & Vocab4 min read

Vietnamese Slang: Gen Z Words You Will Hear Online

A friendly guide to popular Vietnamese slang like gấu, thả thính, and đỉnh, what each one means, and when it is okay to use them.

Tan · June 17, 2026
Vietnamese Food Words: A Menu Survival Guide for Travelers
Phrases & Vocab2 min read

Vietnamese Food Words: A Menu Survival Guide for Travelers

Read any Vietnamese menu: phở, bún, cơm, gà, bò, and the words for ordering. A practical food-vocabulary guide for travelers and food lovers.

Ngan · June 6, 2026
Colors in Vietnamese: Red, Blue, Green and Every Color Word
Phrases & Vocab2 min read

Colors in Vietnamese: Red, Blue, Green and Every Color Word

Red in Vietnamese is đỏ, green is xanh lá, blue is xanh dương. Every color word with pronunciation, plus the quirk where one word covers both blue and green.

Ngan · June 4, 2026
Vietnamese Family Words & Pronouns (Why They're the Same Thing)
Phrases & Vocab2 min read

Vietnamese Family Words & Pronouns (Why They're the Same Thing)

In Vietnamese, family words ARE the pronouns. Learn mom, dad, older/younger siblings, and how the same words mean "you" and "I" in conversation.

Ngan · June 1, 2026
Days, Months & Time in Vietnamese (with the Number Trick)
Phrases & Vocab2 min read

Days, Months & Time in Vietnamese (with the Number Trick)

Vietnamese days and months are basically numbers: Monday = "day 2," February = "month 2." Learn the pattern, plus how to tell time.

Tan · May 31, 2026
Vietnamese vs Thai vs Chinese: Which Is Hardest to Learn?
Getting Started3 min read

Vietnamese vs Thai vs Chinese: Which Is Hardest to Learn?

All three are tonal, but they differ a lot. Vietnamese uses the Latin alphabet, Thai and Chinese don't. Here's an honest difficulty comparison for English speakers.

Ngan · May 28, 2026
Why Learn Vietnamese? 7 Reasons It's Worth It in 2026
Getting Started3 min read

Why Learn Vietnamese? 7 Reasons It's Worth It in 2026

Is Vietnamese worth learning? 7 reasons: 85M+ speakers, a booming economy, travel, heritage, easy grammar, and fewer learners competing.

Tan · May 26, 2026
Best Apps to Learn Vietnamese in 2026 (Honest Comparison)
Apps & Tools2 min read

Best Apps to Learn Vietnamese in 2026 (Honest Comparison)

Compared: the best apps to learn Vietnamese in 2026 by price, features, and what each does well, including the free option built for tones and pronunciation.

Ngan · May 22, 2026
Vietnamese Vowels & Consonants: A Pronunciation Guide
Alphabet2 min read

Vietnamese Vowels & Consonants: A Pronunciation Guide

Vietnamese has 12 vowels and 17 consonants. Learn how each sounds, the tricky ones (ư, ơ, đ, ng, tr), and how vowels combine.

Tan · May 20, 2026
Vietnamese Pronunciation Practice: Drills That Actually Work
Pronunciation2 min read

Vietnamese Pronunciation Practice: Drills That Actually Work

Stop just reading about tones, practice them. These Vietnamese pronunciation drills (minimal pairs, shadowing, recording feedback) build real accuracy.

Tan · May 19, 2026
The Best Free Ways to Learn Vietnamese in 2026
Apps & Tools4 min read

The Best Free Ways to Learn Vietnamese in 2026

The best free ways to learn Vietnamese: structured apps, YouTube, flashcards, and language exchange, plus how to combine them into a routine that works.

Ngan · May 16, 2026
Vietnamese Sentence Structure: Grammar Basics for Beginners
Grammar2 min read

Vietnamese Sentence Structure: Grammar Basics for Beginners

Vietnamese follows Subject-Verb-Object like English, but adjectives follow nouns and classifiers count things. Learn the core sentence patterns.

Tan · May 14, 2026
Is Vietnamese Grammar Hard? (It's Easier Than You Think)
Grammar3 min read

Is Vietnamese Grammar Hard? (It's Easier Than You Think)

Vietnamese grammar is one of the easiest parts: no verb conjugation, no plurals, no genders, no articles. Here's why, and the few rules that matter.

Ngan · May 12, 2026
How Long Does It Take to Learn Vietnamese? Real Timelines
Getting Started6 min read

How Long Does It Take to Learn Vietnamese? Real Timelines

Expect ~1,100 hours (FSI) for fluency, but simple Vietnamese conversations are reachable in 3 to 6 months. See timelines by level and daily-practice math.

Ngan · May 9, 2026
Is Vietnamese Hard to Learn? An Honest Answer for English Speakers
Getting Started4 min read

Is Vietnamese Hard to Learn? An Honest Answer for English Speakers

Vietnamese is moderately hard for English speakers: tones and pronunciation are the challenge, but grammar is genuinely easy. Here's the honest breakdown.

Tan · May 8, 2026
Northern vs Southern Vietnamese: Which One Should You Learn?
Pronunciation2 min read

Northern vs Southern Vietnamese: Which One Should You Learn?

Northern (Hanoi) vs Southern (Saigon) Vietnamese differ in tones, vocab, and pronunciation. Here's how they compare and which to learn first.

Tan · May 2, 2026
Numbers in Vietnamese 1 to 100 (Count Like a Local)
Phrases & Vocab3 min read

Numbers in Vietnamese 1 to 100 (Count Like a Local)

Learn Vietnamese numbers 1 to 100. Master 1 to 10, the "mươi" pattern for tens, and the few irregularities, with a full counting chart.

Ngan · May 1, 2026
Vietnamese Greetings: How to Say Hello, Thank You & More
Phrases & Vocab2 min read

Vietnamese Greetings: How to Say Hello, Thank You & More

"Hello" in Vietnamese is "Xin chào", but the right greeting depends on who you're talking to. Learn greetings and the pronoun system that powers them.

Ngan · April 28, 2026
50+ Basic Vietnamese Phrases for Beginners (with Pronunciation)
Phrases & Vocab4 min read

50+ Basic Vietnamese Phrases for Beginners (with Pronunciation)

50+ essential Vietnamese phrases for travel and daily life, greetings, food, directions, emergencies, each with pronunciation and meaning.

Tan · April 26, 2026
Does Duolingo Have Vietnamese? Yes, Here's the Catch
Apps & Tools4 min read

Does Duolingo Have Vietnamese? Yes, Here's the Catch

Yes, Duolingo has a Vietnamese course for English speakers. Here's what it does well, where it falls short on tones, and a free tone-focused alternative.

Ngan · April 24, 2026
How to Pronounce Nguyen (the #1 Vietnamese Last Name)
Pronunciation2 min read

How to Pronounce Nguyen (the #1 Vietnamese Last Name)

"Nguyen" sounds roughly like "win" or "ngwin", not "noo-yen." Here's how to actually say Vietnamese's most common surname, North and South.

Tan · April 21, 2026
How to Pronounce Vietnamese Words: A Beginner's Guide
Pronunciation2 min read

How to Pronounce Vietnamese Words: A Beginner's Guide

Learn to pronounce Vietnamese words: the 6 tones, tricky letters (đ, ư, ơ, ng), and final consonants, plus how to practice with instant feedback.

Ngan · April 20, 2026
Vietnamese Tone Marks Explained (All 5 Accent Marks + Chart)
Tones3 min read

Vietnamese Tone Marks Explained (All 5 Accent Marks + Chart)

Vietnamese has 5 tone marks for 6 tones. See every accent mark, what it means, and how to type and read them, with a quick chart.

Tan · April 18, 2026
Vietnamese Alphabet: All 29 Letters Explained (Beginner's Guide)
Alphabet3 min read

Vietnamese Alphabet: All 29 Letters Explained (Beginner's Guide)

The Vietnamese alphabet has 29 letters. Learn every letter, its sound, the 7 with diacritics, and why there's no F, J, W, or Z.

Ngan · April 14, 2026
The 6 Vietnamese Tones Explained (with Examples)
Tones4 min read

The 6 Vietnamese Tones Explained (with Examples)

Vietnamese has six tones (five in the South). Learn each tone's pitch, its mark, and a mnemonic, with the classic 'ma' examples and practice tips.

Ngan · April 12, 2026