Vietnamese Grammar Bank
VIETNAMESE MEASUREMENTS
In Vietnamese, expressing measurements is essential for daily conversations, whether discussing length, weight, or volume.
This lesson will introduce common measurement units, such as meters, kilograms, and liters, and how to use them correctly in sentences.
TIME
Here is a list of the most common time measurements:
| VIETNAMESE | ENGLISH |
|---|---|
| năm | year |
| tháng | month |
| tuần | week |
| ngày | day |
| giờ/ tiếng | hour |
| phút | minute |
| giây | second |
TIME QUESTIONS
You can follow this pattern to make a question about time:
PATTERN
Bao lâu? / Bao nhiêu + time measurement
For example:
| vietnamese | english |
|---|---|
| Bao nhiêu năm? → 5 năm | How many years? → 5 years |
| Bao nhiêu tháng? → 7 tháng | How many months? → 7 months |
| Bao nhiêu tuần? → 10 tuần | How many weeks? → 10 weeks |
| Bao lâu? → 10 ngày | How long? → 10 days |
NOTE || Unless it is about time measurement, you can use “Bao nhiêu + measurement” to ask “How many?” for the rest of three measurements below:
WEIGHT
| vietnamese | english |
|---|---|
| mi-li-gam (mgr) Bao nhiêu mi-li-gam? → 5 mi-li-gam | miligram (gr) How many milligrams? → 5 milligrams |
| gam (gr) Bao nhiêu gam? → 5 gam | gram (gr) How many grams → 5 grams |
| ki-lô-gam (kg) Bao nhiêu ki-lô-gam? → 7 ki-lô-gam | kilogram (kg) How many kilograms? → 7 kilograms |
| tấn (t) Bao nhiêu tấn? → 7 tấn | ton (t) How many tons? → 7 tons |
NOTE || You can make a question about quantity with the suitable adjectives
For weight measurement, you use “nặng” which means “heavy”:
Nặng bao nhiêu? = How heavy is it?
HEIGHT / DISTANCE
| vietnamese | english |
|---|---|
| mi-li-mét (mm) Bao nhiêu mi-li-mét? → 5 mi-li-mét | millimeter (mm) How many millimeters? → 5 millimeters |
| xăng-ti-mét (cm) Bao nhiêu xăng-ti-mét? → 5 xăng-ti-mét | centimeter (cm) How many centimeters? → 5 centimeters |
| mét (m) Bao nhiêu mét? → 5 mét | meter (m) How many meters? → 5 meters |
| ki-lô-mét (km) Bao nhiêu ki-lô-mét? → 7 ki-lô-mét | kilometer (km) How many kilometers? → 7 kilometers |
NOTE || You can make a question about quantity with the suitable adjectives.
For height measurement, you use “cao” which means “high”:
Cao bao nhiêu? = How high is it?
For distance measurement, you use “dài” which means “long”:
Dài bao nhiêu? = How long is it?
VOLUME, DEPTH, CAPACITY, AREA
| Vietnamese | EngliSh |
|---|---|
| mét khối (m3) Bao nhiêu mét khối? → 5 mét khối | cubic meter (m3) How many cubic meters? → 5 cubic meters |
| xăng-ti-mét khối (cm3) Bao nhiêu xăng-ti-mét khối? → 5 xăng-ti-mét khối | cubic centimeter (cm3) How many cubic centimeters? → 5 cubic centimeters |
| lít (l) Bao nhiêu lít? → 5 lít | liter (l) How many liters? → 5 liters |
| mi-li-lít (ml) Bao nhiêu mi-li-lít? → 5 mi-li-lít | mililitre (ml) How many milliliters? → 5 milliliters |
| Mét vuông (m2) Bao nhiêu mét vuông? → 5 mét vuông | square meter (m2) How many square meters? → 5 square meters |
| ki-lô-mét vuông (km2) Bao nhiêu ki-lô-mét vuông? → 7 ki-lô-mét vuông | square kilometer (km2) How many square kilometers? → 7 square kilometers |
| héc-ta (ha) Bao nhiêu héc-ta? → 7 héc-ta | hectare (ha) How many hectares? → 7 hectares |
NOTE || You can make a question about quantity with the suitable adjectives.
For depth measurement, you use “sâu” which means “deep”:
Sâu bao nhiêu? = How deep is it?
For area measurement, you use “rộng” which means “wide”:
Rộng bao nhiêu? = How wide is it?
ELECTRICITY
| Vietnamese | English |
|---|---|
| am-pe (A) Bao nhiêu am-pe? → 5 am-pe | ampere (A) How many amperes? → 5 amperes |
| vôn (V) Bao nhiêu vôn? → 5 vôn | volt (V) How many volts? → 5 volts |
| mã lực (Hp) Bao nhiêu mã lực ? → 5 mã lực | horsepower (Hp) How much horsepower? → 5 horsepower |
NOTE || You can make a question about quantity with the suitable adjectives
For electricity measurement, you use “mạnh” which means “powerful”:
Mạnh bao nhiêu? = How powerful is it?
DEGREE
For degree measurement, it is not a metric unit so you omit the measurement after “Bao nhiêu?”. Instead, you follow this pattern:
PATTERN
Bao nhiêu + object?
| Vietnamese | English |
|---|---|
| ít Bao nhiêu bánh? → Ít bánh | little/ not a lot How many cakes? → Not a lot of cakes |
| rất ít Bao nhiêu kẹo? → rất ít kẹo | very little/ very few How many candies? → very few of candies |
| nhiều Bao nhiêu bánh? → nhiều bánh | a lot How many cakes? → a lot of cakes |
| rất nhiều Bao nhiêu kẹo? → rất nhiều kẹo | very a lot/ so much How many candies? → very a lot of candies |
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FAQs
What are common units of measurement?
Common units include mét (meter), kilômet (kilometer), gam (gram), kilôgam (kilogram), and lít (liter).
How do you express length in Vietnamese?
Length is typically expressed using units such as mét (meter) or centimét (centimeter), for example, “Chiều dài là hai mét” (The length is two meters).
What difference between trọng lượng & khối lượng?
Trọng lượng refers to weight (the force exerted by gravity on an object), while khối lượng refers to mass (the amount of matter in an object).
Are there any measurement phrases unique to Vietnamese culture?
Yes, Vietnamese culture uses specific measurements for things like rice or fabric, such as mấy chục cân (how many dozens of kilograms) or một thước (one measure, often referring to fabric length).
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Absolutely!
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