Lesson 10: Pronouns in Vietnamese (Part 2)

Summary: After learning some common singular pronouns in Vietnamese, we will learn some plural pronouns following those singular ones. As mentioned, Vietnamese nouns don’t have plural form so you just add “Các/chúng” to the singular pronouns you learned to have plural pronouns.

1. Plural pronouns

Most of the time, you just add “Các/Chúng” before a singular pronounce to make a plural one. Similar to singular pronouns, I also put plural pronouns in a table below:

Table 03: Vietnamese singular pronouns

AGE GAP	FIRST PEOPLE (WE)	SECOND PEOPLE (YOU)	THIRD PEOPLE (THEY)
Small/no age gap. This is also used when you're unsure about the age of people you're talking to or to keep the conversation neutral.	Chúng tôi	Các bạn	Các bạn ấy.
You’re 5 to 20 years younger than people you’re talking to/about.	Chúng em	Các anh (for male) Các chị (for female)	Các anh ấy (for male) Các chị ấy (for female) Các anh chị ấy (for group of both)
You’re 5 to 20 years older than people you’re talking to/about.	Các anh (for male) Các chị (for female)	Các em	Các em ấy
You’re 20 to 40 years younger than people you’re talking to/about.	Chúng con	Các chú (for male) Các cô (for female)	Các chú ấy (for male) Các cô ấy (for female) Các cô chú ấy (for group of both)
You’re 20 to 40 years older than people you’re talking to/about.	Các chú (for male) Các cô (for female)	Các con	Các bé ấy
You’re 40+ years younger than people you’re talking to/about.	Chúng con	Các ông (for male) Các bà (for female)	Các ông ấy (for male) Các bà ấy (for female) Các ông bà ấy (for group of both)
You’re 40+ years older than people you’re talking to/about.	Các ông (for male) Các bà (for female)	Các con	Các cháu ấy
You’re the teacher of people you’re talking to/about.	Các thầy (for male) Các cô (for female)	Các em	Các em ấy

Note:

• As singular pronouns, the first people pronoun is identified by the age gap between you and people you’re talking with, but the third people pronoun is identified by the age age between you and the ones you’re talking about.
• There is a general pronouns for third people: Họ. But “họ” is only used when you and the person/people you’re talking to know exactly who you’re talking about.
• There is a general pronouns for third objects/animals: Chúng. However, instead of using a pronoun for several objects and animals, Vietnamese usually mentions specifically what you want to talk about, like: two cars, three cats, etc.

2. Exercise

Quiz 01: Which is the most suitable pair of pronouns between Andy, Min and her friends?

(Note: Correct answer button will turn green.)

Quiz 02: Which is the most suitable pair of pronouns between Mrs. Vân, Duy and his friends?

(Note: Correct answer button will turn green.)

Quiz 03: Which is the most suitable pair of pronouns between Ms. Thu and her students?

(Note: Correct answer button will turn green.)

Don’t forget to practice how to use pronouns in Vietnamese, because we’re going to use them in the next lesson and start the first conversation in the journey of Learn Vietnamese 30 Days.

Thank you and see you next time!