Learning Vietnamese for beginners can be challenging, especially for those from non-tonal language backgrounds. This step-by-step guide is designed to help beginners navigate the process of learning Vietnamese effectively and efficiently.
Step 1: Set Your Goals for Learning Vietnamese
Define your purpose for learning Vietnamese. Are you planning to visit Vietnam, connect with Vietnamese-speaking friends, or expand your professional skills? Setting specific goals will keep you motivated and focused. This will also help you prioritize certain language skills. For example, if your goal is to communicate during a short-term work experience in Vietnam, you should focus more on listening and speaking skills.
Step 2: Start with Learning the Vietnamese Alphabet and Pronunciation
The Vietnamese alphabet is based on the Latin script, which makes it somewhat familiar to English speakers, making it relatively easy for beginners to learn. However, pronunciation can be challenging due to the tonal nature of the language.
Alphabet: Familiarize yourself with the 29 letters of the Vietnamese alphabet.
Vietnamese Alphabet Overview
29 Letters: The Vietnamese alphabet consists of 29 letters, including 17 consonants and 12 vowels. Some letters are unique to Vietnamese, such as ă, â, ê, ô, ơ, and ư.
Here’s a quick overview:
- Consonants: b, c, d, đ, g, h, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, x
- Vowels: a, ă, â, e, ê, i, o, ô, ơ, u, ư, y
See more: VIETNAMESE ALPHABET – BEST GUIDE FOR BEGINNERS
Pronunciation and Tones
Pronunciation is perhaps one of the hardest things for foreigners to learn in Vietnamese. You can’t simply mimic local speakers if you want to learn and speak Vietnamese fluently; you also need to be aware of pronunciation guidelines as a mispronounced word can have a different meaning. So how do you pronounce Vietnamese?
Vietnamese contains five bar marks and six tones, in contrast to most other languages. Words can have entirely different meanings just by changing their tonality.
6 Tones: Vietnamese has six tones, represented by diacritical marks above or below the vowels. The tones are:
- Level: No accents. For example: Ca, Co, Cu,…
- Acute (´): A slash is placed on a vowel. This is the highest tone
For example: Á, Ó, Ố, Ú, Ứ, Ý, Í,…., Cá, Có, Cú,….
- Grave (`): Backslash with chromatic accent and also placed on vowels. When reading this tone, lower your voice.
For example: À, Ò, Ồ, Ù, Ừ, Ì,…, Cà, Cò, Cù,…
- Tilde (~): Placed on vowels.
Example: Ã, Õ, Ỗ, Ũ, Ữ, Ỹ, Ĩ,…, Cỗ, Cũ, Kỹ,…
- Hook above (?): Placed above a vowel
Example: Ả, Ỏ, Ổ, Ủ, Ử, Ỷ, Ỉ,…, Cả, Cỏ, Củ,…
- Underdot (.): Put below the vowel.
For example: Ạ, Ọ, Ộ, Ụ, Ự, Ị,…, Dạ, Cọ, Cộ, Cụ, Kị,…
Specially, an example of changing meaning when changing tone is so funny in Vietnamese, like:
Without accents, “ma = ghost” >< “mà – but” >< “má – mother” >< “mạ – rice seedling” >< “mả – tomb” >< “mã – horse”
Pronunciation can be challenging when learning Vietnamese for beginners due to the tonal nature of Vietnamese. Each word’s meaning can change based on its tone.
Learning these tones might be difficult, so you may need a course or reliable resources.
See more: Vietnamese pronunciation
Step 3: Learning Vietnamese for beginners by building basic vocabulary and phrases
Start with common phrases and essential vocabulary to help you form simple sentences and engage in basic conversations.
- Greetings: Learn how to say hello (Xin chào), goodbye (Tạm biệt), please (Làm ơn), and thank you (Cảm ơn).
- Numbers: Memorize numbers to help with shopping, asking for directions, and other daily interactions.
- Example: How much does this cost? (Cái này bao nhiêu tiền?)
- Example: Where’s the restroom? (Nhà vệ sinh ở đâu?)
- Daily Expressions: Focus on phrases like “How are you?” (Bạn khỏe không?) and “I don’t understand” (Tôi không hiểu).
See more: Learn Vietnamese online
Step 4: Learning Vietnamese for beginners – Basic Vietnamese grammar
Learning Vietnamese grammar is essential for constructing meaningful phrases. Here are some fundamental grammar rules to get you going:
- SVO stands for Subject-Verb-Object.
Word Order: Subject-Verb-Object is the typical word order used in Vietnamese phrases. This indicates that a phrase’s subject comes first, followed by the verb and then the object.
See more: VIETNAMESE GRAMMAR FOR BEGINNERS
Step 5: Practice to listening and Speaking Vietnamese
Speaking and listening are essential skills that go hand in hand with steps 2, 3, and 4. To effectively improve these skills, it’s important to use reputable learning resources, including audio materials. Here are some strategies and resources to help you practice listening and speaking Vietnamese for beginners.
If you are looking for a comprehensive Vietnamese course that will help you communicate with native speakers naturally and understand more about Vietnamese culture. Please refer to the special courses at Jellyfish:
Register to learn Vietnamese at LearnVietnamese.edu.vn
By following this step-by-step guide to learning Vietnamese for beginners, you’ll build a strong foundation in the language and gradually improve your skills.
👉👉 Learning Vietnamese – Jellyfish Vietnam
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