Vietnamese · KNLTV Bậc 1 (A1) · Chapter 16
Mấy giờ rồi?What time is it?
How to tell the time. Ask "Mấy giờ rồi?" and answer "… giờ" — Vietnamese needs NO dummy subject "nó" or copula "là": just "Ba giờ". For half, use "rưỡi": hai giờ rưỡi (2:30). For "to", use "kém": ba giờ kém mười lăm (2:45). The part of day goes AFTER the hour: chín giờ sáng, hai giờ chiều. New words: bây giờ, giờ, phút, rưỡi, kém, sáng, trưa, chiều, tối, đúng. Pronunciation corner: the tones of "giờ, rưỡi, chiều".
Dialogue
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Nó là hai giờ? Hai giờ?
- NamTom, mấy giờ rồi?Tom, what time is it?
- TomNó là hai giờ.It's two o'clock. (slip: Vietnamese needs no dummy "nó" or "là" for time — just say "Hai giờ")
- NamChỉ cần "Hai giờ". Không cần "nó" hay "là".Just "Hai giờ". No "nó" or "là".
- TomÀ, hai giờ rưỡi rồi. Muộn rồi!Ah, it's half past two. It's late!
Dialogue
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Lúc mấy giờ?— At What Time?
- LinhNam, lớp học lúc mấy giờ?Nam, what time is the class?
- NamChín giờ đúng.At nine o'clock sharp.
- LinhBây giờ mấy giờ rồi?What time is it now?
- NamChín giờ kém mười lăm. Còn sớm.A quarter to nine. It's still early.
Vocabulary
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- bây giờ
nounnow
- giờ
nounhour, o'clock
- phút
nounminute
- rưỡi
nounhalf (past)
- kém
adverbto (before the hour)
- sáng
nounmorning
- trưa
nounnoon, midday
- chiều
nounafternoon
- tối
nounevening
- đúng
adjectiveexact, sharp
Grammar
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Telling time (no "là")
Explanation
Ask the time: "Mấy giờ rồi?". The answer is just "number + giờ": Ba giờ, Chín giờ. Vietnamese does NOT use a dummy subject "nó" or the verb "là" for time — English speakers often translate "it is" as "Nó là hai giờ", but you just say "Hai giờ". Half hour: "rưỡi" — hai giờ rưỡi (2:30). Near the next hour: "kém" — bốn giờ kém mười lăm (3:45). Ordinary minutes: hai giờ mười phút. The part of day goes AFTER the hour: chín giờ sáng, hai giờ chiều, tám giờ tối. "Đúng" = exactly: ba giờ đúng.
Examples
- Mấy giờ rồi? — Ba giờ.What time is it? — Three o'clock.
- Hai giờ rưỡi.Half past two.
- Bốn giờ kém mười lăm.A quarter to four (3:45).
- Lớp học lúc chín giờ sáng.The class is at nine in the morning.
Script & tones
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Thanh điệu trong từ chỉ giờ— Tones in the Time Words
Read the time phrases aloud, keeping the tones:
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