[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":464},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article-en-vietnamese-spelling-rules":3,"series-en-vietnamese-spelling-rules":417,"free-tools-en":419},{"id":4,"title":5,"alternates":6,"body":9,"chip":388,"cluster":389,"description":390,"extension":391,"faq":392,"keyword":405,"meta":406,"navigation":407,"path":408,"pillar":407,"seo":409,"sources":410,"stem":414,"updated":415,"__hash__":416},"blog_en\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-spelling-rules.md","Vietnamese Spelling Rules: c or k, g or gh, ng or ngh",{"fr":7,"de":8},"orthographe-vietnamienne","vietnamesische-rechtschreibung",{"type":10,"value":11,"toc":373},"minimark",[12,21,26,29,36,62,66,72,76,82,88,91,108,112,115,195,208,212,223,241,245,253,257,273,277,316,320,328,332,335,339,342,349,352],[13,14,15,16,20],"p",{},"Vietnamese spelling looks irregular until you see the trick: ",[17,18,19],"strong",{},"one sound, two spellings, chosen by the next letter",".\nThe rules are few. Here they are, every example with its sound.",[22,23,25],"h2",{"id":24},"c-or-k","c or k?",[13,27,28],{},"Same sound. The letter depends on the vowel that follows.",[30,31],"spelling-split",{"a":32,"b":33,"words-a":34,"words-b":35},"k","c","kẹo kêu kỳ","cá cơm con",[13,37,38,39,42,43,47,48,47,51,54,55,47,58,61],{},"And ",[17,40,41],{},"qu"," is its own consonant: the u belongs to it. ",[44,45],"vi",{"w":46},"quà",", ",[44,49],{"w":50},"quê",[44,52],{"w":53},"quốc",".\nAfter qu, i is written y: ",[44,56],{"w":57},"quý",[44,59],{"w":60},"quyết",".",[22,63,65],{"id":64},"g-or-gh","g or gh?",[30,67],{"a":68,"b":69,"words-a":70,"words-b":71},"gh","g","ghế ghi ghe","gà gỗ",[22,73,75],{"id":74},"ng-or-ngh","ng or ngh?",[30,77],{"a":78,"b":79,"words-a":80,"words-b":81},"ngh","ng","nghe nghĩ nghề","ngủ ngon",[83,84,85],"blockquote",{},[13,86,87],{},"One pattern for all three: the long spelling (k, gh, ngh) only before i, e, ê, plus y for k.",[22,89,90],{"id":90},"gi",[13,92,93,94,47,97,100,101,104,105,61],{},"Gi is one consonant: ",[44,95],{"w":96},"già",[44,98],{"w":99},"giường",". Before iê the two i's melt into one: ",[44,102],{"w":103},"giếng",".\nOn its own: ",[44,106],{"w":107},"gì",[22,109,111],{"id":110},"one-vowel-two-spellings","One vowel, two spellings",[13,113,114],{},"A final consonant after it, or not: that's all that changes.",[116,117,118,134],"table",{},[119,120,121],"thead",{},[122,123,124,128,131],"tr",{},[125,126,127],"th",{},"Vowel",[125,129,130],{},"With a final",[125,132,133],{},"Without",[135,136,137,153,174],"tbody",{},[122,138,139,143,148],{},[140,141,142],"td",{},"iê",[140,144,145],{},[44,146],{"w":147},"tiền",[140,149,150],{},[44,151],{"w":152},"mía",[122,154,155,158,166],{},[140,156,157],{},"uô",[140,159,160,47,163],{},[44,161],{"w":162},"muốn",[44,164],{"w":165},"uống",[140,167,168,47,171],{},[44,169],{"w":170},"mua",[44,172],{"w":173},"chùa",[122,175,176,179,187],{},[140,177,178],{},"ươ",[140,180,181,47,184],{},[44,182],{"w":183},"nước",[44,185],{"w":186},"đường",[140,188,189,47,192],{},[44,190],{"w":191},"mưa",[44,193],{"w":194},"cửa",[13,196,197,198,47,201,204,205,61],{},"At the start of a word, or after a gliding u, iê becomes yê: ",[44,199],{"w":200},"yêu",[44,202],{"w":203},"khuyên",", and without a\nfinal: ",[44,206],{"w":207},"khuya",[22,209,211],{"id":210},"o-or-u-before-a-vowel","o or u before a vowel?",[13,213,214,215,218,219,222],{},"The little gliding sound is written ",[17,216,217],{},"o"," before a, ă, e and ",[17,220,221],{},"u"," before the others.",[13,224,225,47,228,47,231,234,235,47,238],{},[44,226],{"w":227},"hoa",[44,229],{"w":230},"hoặc",[44,232],{"w":233},"khoẻ"," · ",[44,236],{"w":237},"huế",[44,239],{"w":240},"tuyết",[22,242,244],{"id":243},"i-or-y","i or y?",[13,246,247,248,47,251,61],{},"After that gliding u, and after qu, write y: ",[44,249],{"w":250},"tuy",[44,252],{"w":57},[22,254,256],{"id":255},"ai-or-ay-ao-or-au","ai or ay, ao or au?",[13,258,259,260,263,264,47,267,263,270,61],{},"In ay and au the a is short; in ai and ao it is long. Listen to the length:\n",[44,261],{"w":262},"hai"," \u002F ",[44,265],{"w":266},"tay",[44,268],{"w":269},"sao",[44,271],{"w":272},"sau",[22,274,276],{"id":275},"finals-nh-and-ch","Finals nh and ch",[13,278,279,280,283,284,287,288,47,291,47,294,297,298,47,301,304,305,263,307,47,310,263,313,61],{},"The finals ",[17,281,282],{},"nh"," and ",[17,285,286],{},"ch"," only come after a, ê and i: ",[44,289],{"w":290},"anh",[44,292],{"w":293},"bánh",[44,295],{"w":296},"ích",",\n",[44,299],{"w":300},"bệnh",[44,302],{"w":303},"sạch",". After ê and i it is always nh \u002F ch, never ng \u002F c. After a, both exist and\nmake different words: ",[44,306],{"w":290},[44,308],{"w":309},"ang",[44,311],{"w":312},"ách",[44,314],{"w":315},"ác",[22,317,319],{"id":318},"p-t-c-ch-two-tones-only","p, t, c, ch: two tones only",[13,321,322,323,61],{},"A word ending in p, t, c or ch only takes sắc or nặng. More in\n",[324,325,327],"a",{"href":326},"\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-accent-marks","Vietnamese accent marks explained",[22,329,331],{"id":330},"your-accent-hides-some-spellings","Your accent hides some spellings",[13,333,334],{},"Same spelling everywhere. But every accent pronounces some spellings the same, so the ear can't always tell\nyou which one to write. The South merges more of them. Switch the accent:",[336,337],"sound-pairs",{"pairs":338},"trà\u002Fchà sinh\u002Fxinh vì\u002Fdì bảo\u002Fbão bàn\u002Fbàng mát\u002Fmác con\u002Fcong ngọc\u002Fngọt",[13,340,341],{},"Look at the last two: after o, ô and u, -n \u002F -ng and -t \u002F -c stay apart even in the South.",[13,343,344,345,348],{},"So how do native speakers spell? ",[17,346,347],{},"By reading."," Each spelling gets its own anchor, a word you already know, and the\nspelling sticks to it.",[350,351],"try-family",{},[13,353,354,355,297,359,47,363,367,368,372],{},"Spellings that sound alike, pair by pair in your accent: ",[324,356,358],{"href":357},"\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-d-vs-dd","d vs đ",[324,360,362],{"href":361},"\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-tr-vs-ch","tr vs ch",[324,364,366],{"href":365},"\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-nh-vs-ng","nh vs ng",". The ",[324,369,371],{"href":370},"\u002Ftools\u002Ftelex","free Telex keyboard","\napplies the c \u002F k, g \u002F gh and ng \u002F ngh rules as you type.",{"title":374,"searchDepth":375,"depth":375,"links":376},"",2,[377,378,379,380,381,382,383,384,385,386,387],{"id":24,"depth":375,"text":25},{"id":64,"depth":375,"text":65},{"id":74,"depth":375,"text":75},{"id":90,"depth":375,"text":90},{"id":110,"depth":375,"text":111},{"id":210,"depth":375,"text":211},{"id":243,"depth":375,"text":244},{"id":255,"depth":375,"text":256},{"id":275,"depth":375,"text":276},{"id":318,"depth":375,"text":319},{"id":330,"depth":375,"text":331},null,"writing","Same sound, two spellings: the few rules that decide c or k, g or gh, ng or ngh, iê or ia. With sound, and what a Southern accent changes.","md",[393,396,399,402],{"q":394,"a":395},"When do you write k instead of c in Vietnamese?","Before i, e, ê and y. Before every other vowel, the same sound is written c: kẹo, kêu, kỳ but cá, cơm, con.",{"q":397,"a":398},"What is the difference between g and gh, ng and ngh?","None in sound. Gh and ngh are only written before i, e, ê; g and ng everywhere else: ghế, nghe but gà, ngon.",{"q":400,"a":401},"Is Vietnamese spelled differently in the South?","No. The spelling is the same everywhere. A Southern accent pronounces some spellings the same (hỏi and ngã, -n and -ng after a), so you learn which spelling a word takes by reading it.",{"q":403,"a":404},"Why is the same vowel written iê in tiền but ia in mía?","It's one vowel. It is written iê when a final consonant follows (tiền) and ia when nothing follows (mía). Uô \u002F ua and ươ \u002F ưa work the same way.","vietnamese spelling rules",{},true,"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-spelling-rules",{"title":5,"description":390},[411,412,413],"Every rule is the one the app's spelling engine enforces; every example is a valid spelling and a word of our {dictionary_words}-word dictionary, with its recording.","Even in the South, -n \u002F -ng and -t \u002F -c stay apart after o, ô, u (con ≠ cong, ngọc ≠ ngọt): checked with a native Southern teacher (October 2026).","Each “=” or “≠” is computed from our accent model, rule by rule, for the accent you pick.","en\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-spelling-rules","2026-10-22","b7NgJdrRNKsBSGaTcCDNXXusO5Igbcp1yaiTPSmJgoU",[418],{"path":408,"title":5,"pillar":407},[420,425,428,431,434,437,440,444,446,449,452,454,457,460,461],{"path":421,"cluster":422,"chip":423,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-to-pronounce-nguyen","pronounce","Nguyễn",false,{"path":426,"cluster":422,"chip":427,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-to-pronounce-pho","phở",{"path":429,"cluster":430,"chip":388,"pillar":407},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-to-read-vietnamese","read",{"path":432,"cluster":422,"chip":433,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-to-say-thank-you-in-vietnamese","cảm ơn",{"path":435,"cluster":436,"chip":388,"pillar":407},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Flearn-southern-vietnamese","accents",{"path":438,"cluster":439,"chip":388,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fsame-word-different-tones","marks",{"path":441,"cluster":442,"chip":443,"pillar":407},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-a-breve-vs-circumflex","sounds","ă \u002F â",{"path":445,"cluster":439,"chip":388,"pillar":407},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-accent-marks",{"path":447,"cluster":442,"chip":448,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-d-vs-dd","d \u002F đ",{"path":450,"cluster":422,"chip":451,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-food-pronunciation","bánh mì",{"path":453,"cluster":430,"chip":388,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-for-heritage-speakers",{"path":455,"cluster":422,"chip":456,"pillar":407},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-names","Thủy \u002F Thuỷ",{"path":458,"cluster":442,"chip":459,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-nh-vs-ng","nh \u002F ng",{"path":408,"cluster":389,"chip":388,"pillar":407},{"path":462,"cluster":442,"chip":463,"pillar":424},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvietnamese-tr-vs-ch","tr \u002F ch",1793180057021]