Vietnamese family name

How to pronounce Ngô

Ngô
Without marks
ngo
Syllables
1 · ngô
Tone
ngang (no mark · level)
Also a common word
corn, maize

Ngô, block by block

Each line adds one piece. Read it aloud, then tap a card to compare: a consonant plays the way it is spelled at school (ph = “phờ”).

Spelled the Vietnamese school wayngờ ô ngô

ngôcorn, maize

Every tone

The same letters without a tone (the root), then with each tone the spelling allows: some are words, some only possible syllables.

Southern or Northern?

South · Sài Gòn

said as written

North · Hà Nội

said as written

Same sound, different spelling: the accent changes the sound, never the written word.

“ngo” without the marks

12 other real words are spelled ngo apart from the marks. Only the marks tell them from ngô.

  • ngờto doubt, suspect
  • ngõalley, lane
  • ngọnoon
  • ngộto meet
  • ngóto look at
  • ngỏopen
  • ngỡto think, to (mistakenly) believe
  • ngốsilly, dim-witted
  • ngòcilantro, coriander
  • ngớto be stunned, dumbfounded
  • ngơto overlook, let pass
  • ngổrice paddy herb, water hyssop

Read Ngô? Then you can read these

Same rhyme, same tone: only the first consonant changes. That's how the app teaches reading, from words you know to every word that sounds like them.

Like ngô

  • côaunt (father's side)
  • vôto enter, to go in
  • đôcapital (city)
  • khôdry
  • ôumbrella
  • lôbatch, lot
  • môtissue (biology)
  • sôshow

Any other word, and your own words: in the app.

Create my free account

Spelling to know

ng or ngh?

Same sound. Write NGH before i, e, ê, and NG everywhere else.

nghe · nghĩ · nghề · ngủ · ngon

Quick answers

How do you pronounce Ngô?

Block by block: ô → ng → ngô. Tone: ngang (no mark · level). Read each block aloud, then compare with the recording, in a Southern or a Northern voice.

What tone is Ngô?

ngang (no mark · level)

Is Ngô said differently in the South and the North?

Both accents say Ngô as it is written.

What does “ngo” mean without the marks?

Without the marks, ngo can be several words: ngờ (to doubt, suspect), ngõ (alley, lane), ngọ (noon), ngộ (to meet), ngó (to look at), ngỏ (open), ngỡ (to think, to (mistakenly) believe), ngố (silly, dim-witted), ngò (cilantro, coriander), ngớ (to be stunned, dumbfounded), ngơ (to overlook, let pass), ngổ (rice paddy herb, water hyssop). The marks decide which one.

Is Ngô also a common word?

corn, maize

More: Family names

All the words →
Free toolVietnamese alphabet chart →29 letters, each with a word you know and its sound. Print it.
Free toolLook-alike letters compared →ă / â, d / đ, tr / ch, hỏi / ngã: real word pairs, the same or not in your accent.
Free toolType Vietnamese with Telex →A keyboard that explains every key, and a 5-minute course.

Any word, in your accent

In the app, every word of the dictionary opens in the Microscope, and your own words become the anchors you read with.

Create my free account