Vietnamese 'á' Usage (Reminder / Mild Emphasis)
'á' often placed at the end of a sentence adds a reminder, mild emphasis, or colloquial confirmation tone.
Quick explanation
Quick explanation
'á' often placed at the end of a sentence adds a reminder, mild emphasis, or colloquial confirmation tone.
English meanings
- reminder
- mild emphasis
Grammar pattern
Examples
1
Cái này ngon lắm á.
This is really delicious, you know.
2
Ngày mai đi sớm á.
You should go early tomorrow, okay.
How to use it
'á' has a stronger reminder or highlighting tone than 'à' and is common in southern spoken Vietnamese. It can be translated as 'oh', 'ah', or 'la' depending on context.
- Strongly colloquial; rarely used in formal writing.
- Often used to remind or draw attention.
Compared with English
Compared with English
English uses words like 'oh', 'ah', or tone to add emphasis or reminders; Vietnamese uses 'á' explicitly at sentence end.
Common mistakes
Á cái này ngon lắm.
Cái này ngon lắm á.
'á' as sentence-final particle should be at the end.
Báo cáo này cần nộp á.
Báo cáo này cần nộp.
'á' is usually avoided in formal writing.
Commonly confused grammar
Practice
Multiple choice
Which sentence correctly uses 'á'?
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Multiple choice
Which sentence correctly uses 'á'?
- Cái này ngon lắm á.
- Á cái này ngon lắm.
- Báo cáo này cần nộp á.
Answer: Cái này ngon lắm á.
Explanation: Strongly colloquial; rarely used in formal writing.
Fill in the blank
Fill in the blank: C____i này ngon lắm á.
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Fill in the blank
Fill in the blank: C____i này ngon lắm á.
Answer: Cái này ngon lắm á.
Explanation: Strongly colloquial; rarely used in formal writing.
English to Vietnamese
Translate "This is really delicious, you know." into Vietnamese.
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English to Vietnamese
Translate "This is really delicious, you know." into Vietnamese.
Answer: Cái này ngon lắm á.
Explanation: Use á in the same structure as the example.
True or false
True or False: Á cái này ngon lắm.
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True or false
True or False: Á cái này ngon lắm.
Answer: False
Explanation: 'á' as sentence-final particle should be at the end.
Correction
Correct the sentence with unnatural 'á' placement to natural spoken form.
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Correction
Correct the sentence with unnatural 'á' placement to natural spoken form.
Answer: Cái này ngon lắm á.
Explanation: 'á' as a sentence-final particle is usually placed at the end of the sentence or intonation unit.