Key takeaways
- Cái introduces most inanimate objects and con introduces animate ones, especially animals, according to Wikipedia.
- Con is also used for some objects associated with motion, such as dao (knife), đường (road) and sông (river).
- Shape classifiers include quả or trái for round things, tờ for sheets of paper and quyển or cuốn for books.
- The classifier sits between the number and the noun: bốn con gà, 'four chickens'.
- Time units such as phút, administrative units such as tỉnh and Sino-Vietnamese compounds do not need a classifier.
To say "four chickens" in Vietnamese you say bốn con gà, four, a classifier, chicken. That middle word is not optional decoration: Wikipedia's Vietnamese grammar article says classifiers are required when a quantifier is present, with a few named exceptions. This guide covers the two classifiers you will use most, the shape-based ones, where they sit in the noun phrase, and which nouns go without. Vietnamese is written here in its standard alphabet with tone marks, which are part of each word; see Vietnamese tones explained if the marks are new.
What a classifier does
Wikipedia's article on classifiers defines them as words that accompany nouns and "classify" them by features of what they refer to, such as animacy or shape. In languages that have them, "three people" is expressed as something like "three X of people", the way English says "three blades of grass". The Vietnamese grammar article adds that Vietnamese uses a rich set of classifiers and measure words to introduce or stand in for nouns, similar to the system in Chinese.
Cái and con: the two you meet first
Cái introduces most inanimate objects. Con generally introduces animate things, especially animals. Wikipedia notes that the most common classifiers typically do not translate into English, and gives this exchange:
- Bán cho tôi bốn con gà. "Sell me four chickens."
- Bao nhiêu? "How many?"
- Bốn con. "Four [of them]."
The last line shows a second job: once the noun is known, the classifier can stand in for it, so bốn con alone means "four of them".
The surprise is that con is not limited to living things. Wikipedia lists dao (knife), đường (road), mắt (eye), sông (river) and vít (screw) as nouns that take con, explaining that it conveys motion. Learn those as a set rather than trying to derive them.
Classifiers by shape and kind
Beyond cái and con, Wikipedia lists these among the most common:
| Classifier | Used for |
|---|---|
| chiếc | much like cái, usually more connotative, for example for a cute object |
| người | people, except infants |
| quả / trái | round objects: fruit, the Earth |
| quyển / cuốn | book-like objects: books, journals |
| tờ | sheets of paper: newspapers, calendars |
| lá | smaller sheets: letters, playing cards |
| tấm | flat, rectangular objects: signs, panes of glass |
| cây | stick-like objects: plants, guns, canes |
| bài | compositions: songs, poems, essays |
| câu | sentences, verses, quotes |
| tòa | buildings of authority: courts, halls |
| chuyện | a topic or matter |
| việc | an event or ongoing process |
Wikipedia lists quả and trái, and quyển and cuốn, as alternatives for the same kind of noun, so you will meet both members of each pair. Everyday vocabulary also varies by region in other ways; northern vs southern Vietnamese covers the best-known differences.
Where the classifier sits in the noun phrase
Wikipedia sets out the full order of a Vietnamese noun phrase:
totality + article + quantifier + classifier + head noun + attributive modifiers + demonstrative + possessive phrase
So numbers and plural words come before the classifier, while adjectives, "this" and "that", and possessors come after the noun. Plural articles work the same way: các quả cam, "(the) oranges", puts các before the classifier.
A worked example: building one long noun phrase
Wikipedia's example is cả hai cuốn từ điển Việt Anh này của nó, "both of these Vietnamese-English dictionaries of his". Taken slot by slot:
- cả: totality, "all".
- hai: quantifier, "two".
- cuốn: classifier for books.
- từ điển: head noun, "dictionary".
- Việt Anh: attributive modifier, "Vietnamese-English".
- này: demonstrative, "this".
- của nó: possessive phrase, "of his".
Seven slots, and the classifier is the hinge between the counting words on its left and the describing words on its right. Wikipedia's Classifier article gives a second count with a different classifier: ba bộ áo dài, three sets of áo dài.
Nouns that skip the classifier
Wikipedia names three groups of "non-classified nouns" that can follow a number directly:
- time units, such as phút, "minute";
- geographical and administrative units, such as tỉnh, "province";
- polysyllabic Sino-Vietnamese compound nouns.
Two further notes from the same article: some linguists count as many as 200 classifiers, though only a few are used in conversation or informal writing, and the use of cái for inanimate objects has increased at the expense of some rarer classifiers. Cái can even introduce another classifier, as in cái con, though Wikipedia records that one linguist treats that as a different use of cái.
Demonstratives come last
Because "this" and "that" follow the noun, classifier phrases often end with one. Wikipedia lists này "this", đó and ấy "that", kia "that yonder" and nào "which", with examples such as bà này, "this lady", and người nào, "which person". Note người there: the same word that counts people also means "person". Vietnamese numbers covers the numbers that go in the quantifier slot.
Practising classifiers in the app
Learn Vietnamese Language Fast explains classifiers in its grammar lessons, alongside sentence patterns, pronouns, questions and possession, with practical examples and sentence-building practice. It is free with ads and optional in-app purchases, and it is one of our language-learning apps. Thai also uses classifiers with numbers; Thai classifiers covers that system.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between con and cái in Vietnamese?
Where does the classifier go in a Vietnamese noun phrase?
Which Vietnamese nouns do not need a classifier?
How many classifiers are there in Vietnamese?
Sources
- Vietnamese grammar (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia — accessed
- Classifier (linguistics) (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia — accessed
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