Vietnamese is tonal and challenging, but even basic attempts earn genuine appreciation from locals. Here are the phrases that will actually help your trip.

Pronunciation Note

Vietnamese has six tones. Getting them wrong can completely change meaning. Don’t worry about perfection – context helps, and the effort matters more than accuracy.

Basic Greetings

• Xin chào (sin chow) – Hello
• Cảm ơn (cam un) – Thank you
• Xin lỗi (sin loy) – Sorry/Excuse me
• Không sao (kohng sao) – No problem
• Tạm biệt (tam bee-et) – Goodbye

Essential Survival Phrases

• Vâng/Dạ (vung/ya) – Yes
• Không (kohng) – No
• Tôi không hiểu (toy kohng hee-oh) – I don’t understand
• Bạn nói tiếng Anh không? (ban noy tyeng ang kohng) – Do you speak English?
• Giúp tôi (yup toy) – Help me

Numbers

• 1 – Một (moht)
• 2 – Hai (hi)
• 3 – Ba (ba)
• 4 – Bốn (bohn)
• 5 – Năm (nam)
• 10 – Mười (moo-ee)
• 100 – Một trăm (moht tram)
• 1000 – Một nghìn (moht ngeen)

Food & Drinks

• Ngon quá! (ngon kwa) – Delicious!
• Tính tiền (tin tyen) – The bill please
• Không cay (kohng kai) – Not spicy
• Ít cay (eet kai) – A little spicy
• Nước (noo-erk) – Water
• Bia (bee-a) – Beer
• Cà phê (ca fay) – Coffee
• Cà phê sữa đá (ca fay sua da) – Iced coffee with milk

Shopping & Bargaining

• Bao nhiêu tiền? (bao nyew tyen) – How much?
• Đắt quá! (dat kwa) – Too expensive!
• Rẻ hơn được không? (re hun dwok kohng) – Can you lower the price?
• Tôi muốn mua cái này (toy moo-on moo-a kai nai) – I want to buy this

Getting Around

• Ở đâu? (uh dow) – Where?
• Bao xa? (bao sa) – How far?
• Rẽ trái (ray try) – Turn left
• Rẽ phải (ray fai) – Turn right
• Thẳng (tang) – Straight
• Dừng ở đây (yung uh day) – Stop here

Emergency Phrases

• Cấp cứu! (cap coo) – Emergency!
• Gọi cảnh sát (goy kang sat) – Call the police
• Tôi bị bệnh (toy bee beng) – I’m sick
• Bệnh viện (beng vyen) – Hospital

Pro Tips

1. Google Translate: Download Vietnamese for offline use. The camera feature translates menus.
2. Point and smile: Works better than butchered pronunciation sometimes
3. Younger locals: More likely to speak English
4. Write it down: Show your destination name in Vietnamese to taxi drivers