Vietnamese Grammar Bank
VIETNAMESE PAST SIMPLE TENSE
Unlike English, there are not any specific verb conjugations to indicate tenses in Vietnamese.
Instead, there are time adverbs to indicate when the action is occurring.
Today, we’ll learn a few adverbs and two markers “đã”and “rồi” to express past actions in Vietnamese.
AFFIRMATIVE – PAST SIMPLE
In order to indicate that an action occurred in the past, “đã” or “rồi” (both mean as “done”) are used with the verb as following below pattern:
PATTERN #1
Subject + đã + verb + (past tense time adverb)
PATTERN #2
Subject + verb + rồi (already) + (past tense time adverb)
Here are few common time adverbs which are used to describe a past action:
| Hôm qua | Yesterday |
| Tuần trước | Last week |
| Tháng trước | Last month |
| Năm ngoái | Last year |
For example:
| Tôi đã đi học hôm qua | I did go to school yesterday |
| Chị ấy đã đi du lịch Hàn Quốc năm ngoái | She did travel to Korea last year |
View More Examples:
| Anh ấy ăn cơm rồi | He did eat rice already |
| Tháng trước, chúng tôi cưới nhau rồi | Last month, we did marry already |
| Mình đã học bài tuần trước | I did study last week |
NEGATIVE – PAST SIMPLE TENSE
In past tense, you just need to add “không” (means “not”) or “chưa” (means “not yet”) before verb to make a negative sentence:
PATTERN #1
Subject + đã + không (not) + Verb + (past time adverb)
PATTERN #2
Subject + chưa (not yet) + Verb + (past time adverb)
NOTE || Review the negative form in Vietnamese here.
| Tôi đã không đi học hôm qua | I did not go to school yesterday |
| Chị ấy chưa đi du lịch Hàn Quốc năm ngoái | She did not travel to Korea last year yet |
View More Examples:
| Anh ấy đã không ăn cơm | He did not eat rice yet |
| Tháng trước, chúng tôi chưa cưới nhau | Last month, we did not marry yet |
| Mình chưa học bài tuần trước | I did not study last week yet |
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FAQs
How to use the Vietnamese past tense?
In order to indicate that an action occurred in the past, “đã” or “rồi” (both mean as “done”) are used with the verb as following below pattern:
Subject + đã + verb + (past tense time adverb)
Subject + verb + rồi (already) + (past tense time adverb)
Examples:
Tôi đã đi học hôm qua
I did go to school yesterday
Chị ấy đã đi du lịch Hàn Quốc năm ngoái
She did travel to Korea last year
What is a time adverb in Vietnamese?
A time adverb is a type of adverb that provides information about when an action takes place or for how long and how often it occurs.
In Vietnamese some of the most common time adverbs are:
Hôm qua – Yesterday
Tuần trước – Last week
Tháng trước – Last month
Năm ngoái – Last year
How to make a negative sentence?
This is one of the easiest ways to make a negative sentence in Vietnamese.
You only need to add “KHÔNG” in front of the verb or adjective, or “KHÔNG PHẢI LÀ” in front of the noun.
#1 không + Verb / Adjective
#2 không phải là + Noun
For example:
Tôi không thích mưa. I don’t like rain
Anh ấy không ăn kem. He doesn’t eat ice cream
Chị ấy không có tiền. She doesn’t have money
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Learn more about the Vietnamese Negative Form here.
Is Vietnamese SOV or SVO?
The Vietnamese language structure is SVO, meaning sentences are built according to Subject + Verb + Object.
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Learn more about the Vietnamese Sentence Structure here.
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