Place in Vietnam

How to pronounce Việt Nam

Việt Nam
Without marks
viet nam
Syllables
2 · việt · nam
Tone
việt: nặng (dot below · low, cut short) · nam: ngang (no mark · level)
Meaning
Vietnam
Frequency
No. 168 among the most used words

Việt Nam, 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”).

Syllable 1 · việt

Syllable 2 · nam

Spelled the Vietnamese school wayiê tờ iêt vờ iêt viêt nặng việt — a mờ am nờ am nam

việt namVietnam

Every tone

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

Syllable 1 · việt

Syllable 2 · nam

Southern or Northern?

South · Sài Gòn

  • v = d = gi
  • iêt = iêc = uyêt

North · Hà Nội

said as written

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

Read Việt Nam? 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 việt

  • thiệtreal, true
  • nhiệtheat
  • diệtto destroy, exterminate
  • biệtvanished, without a trace
  • liệtparalyzed
  • triệtto eliminate, to remove
  • tiệtcompletely, entirely
  • kiệtexhausted

Like nam

  • samhorseshoe crab
  • camorange
  • giamto imprison, detain
  • lamblue
  • gamgram
  • thamgreedy
  • hamto be eager for, fond of
  • ramto braise

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

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Spelling to know

iê, yê, ia or ya?

One vowel, four spellings: iê after a consonant (tiền); yê at the start of a word or after the linking u (yêu, khuyên); ia with no final (mía); ya with no final after the linking u (khuya).

tiền · yêu · khuyên · mía · khuya

Finals p, t, c, ch: two tones only

A syllable ending in p, t, c or ch only takes sắc or nặng: the sound cannot be drawn out.

mắt · một · học · đẹp · sạch

Quick answers

How do you pronounce Việt Nam?

Block by block: iê → t → iêt → v → viêt → nặng → việt · a → m → am → n → nam. Tone: việt: nặng (dot below · low, cut short) · nam: ngang (no mark · level). Read each block aloud, then compare with the recording, in a Southern or a Northern voice.

What tone is Việt Nam?

việt: nặng (dot below · low, cut short) · nam: ngang (no mark · level)

Is Việt Nam said differently in the South and the North?

South · Sài Gòn: v = d = gi, iêt = iêc = uyêt. North · Hà Nội: said as written.

What does Việt Nam mean?

Vietnam

More: Places

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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.

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