Ways to say it
| Vietnamese | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| chết | [t͡ɕet̚˧˦] (Hà Nội, narrow) [t͡ɕet̚˦˧˥] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| mất | [mət̚˧˦] (Hà Nội, narrow) [mək̚˦˧˥] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| qua đời | [kwaː˧˧ ʔɗəːj˨˩] (Hà Nội, narrow) [kwaː˧˧ ʔɗəːj˦˩] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| từ vong | formal | |
| viên tịch | [viən˧˧ tïk̟̚˧˨ʔ] (Hà Nội, narrow) [viəŋ˧˧ tɨt̚˨˩ʔ] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| băng hà | [ʔɓaŋ˧˧ haː˨˩] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ʔɓaŋ˧˧ haː˦˩] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| hy sinh | formal | |
| hi sinh | [hi˧˧ sïŋ˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [hɪj˧˧ ʂɨn˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
formal |
| lìa đời | [liə˨˩ ʔɗəːj˨˩] (Hà Nội, narrow) [liə˦˩ ʔɗəːj˦˩] (Huế, narrow) |
|
| từ trần | [tɨ˨˩ t͡ɕən˨˩] (Hà Nội, narrow) [tɨ˦˩ ʈəŋ˦˩] (Huế, narrow) |
euphemistic, honorific |
| khuất bóng | [xwət̚˧˦ ʔɓawŋ͡m˧˦] (Hà Nội, narrow) [kʰwək̚˦˧˥ ʔɓawŋ͡m˦˧˥] (Huế, narrow) |
figuratively, literary |
| thăng thiên | [tʰaŋ˧˧ tʰiən˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [tʰaŋ˧˧ tʰiəŋ˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
figuratively |
| đi bán muối | [ʔɗi˧˧ ʔɓaːn˧˦ muəj˧˦] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) | figuratively |
| đi đời nhà ma | [ʔɗi˧˧ ʔɗəːj˨˩ ɲaː˨˩ maː˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ʔɗɪj˧˧ ʔɗəːj˦˩ ɲaː˦˩ maː˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
idiomatic |
| xuống lỗ | [suəŋ˧˦ lo˦ˀ˥] (Hà Nội, narrow) [suəŋ˦˧˥ low˧˨] (Huế, narrow) |
colloquial, figuratively |
| đi đời | idiomatic | |
| về nơi cửu tuyền | idiomatic | |
| về nơi chín suối | [ve˨˩ nəːj˧˧ t͡ɕin˧˦ suəj˧˦] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) | idiomatic |
| về nơi an nghỉ cuối cùng | idiomatic | |
| về cõi vĩnh hằng | idiomatic | |
| về suối vàng | [ve˨˩ suəj˧˦ vaːŋ˨˩] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) | idiomatic |
The word 'chết' is the most direct and neutral way to say 'to die', but it can sound blunt or even harsh depending on the context.
Which one should you use?
The choice of word depends on the context: – chết is the neutral, direct term for dying. – mất is a common euphemism used to soften the blow of death, similar to saying someone 'passed away' or was 'lost' to the family. – qua đời is a polite and respectful way to say someone has died, often used in news reports or formal announcements. – từ vong, hy sinh and hi sinh are formal terms. – từ trần is an honorific and euphemistic option. – viên tịch is a term used specifically for the death of a Buddhist monk or nun. – băng hà is a highly specific term used exclusively for the death of a king or emperor. – khuất bóng and thăng thiên are figurative terms. – đi đời nhà ma, đi đời and xuống lỗ are idiomatic or colloquial ways to describe death. đi đời nhà ma is a slangy, idiomatic way to say someone is dead or 'done for', often used in a mocking or informal way and xuống lỗ is a very blunt, somewhat disrespectful way to refer to dying and being buried. – về nơi cửu tuyền, về nơi chín suối, về nơi an nghỉ cuối cùng, về cõi vĩnh hằng and về suối vàng are all idiomatic.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Use chết for a neutral statement. Use qua đời, từ trần, hy sinh or hi sinh to be polite or formal. For highly specific contexts, use băng hà for royalty or viên tịch for Buddhist clergy. Conversely, xuống lỗ and đi đời nhà ma are colloquial.
Related words
Did you know?
- A common slang expression for dying is đi bán muối, which literally translates to 'to go sell salt'.
- Vietnamese uses the phrase về nơi chín suối to refer to death, which literally means 'returning to the nine springs'.
- The word chết is a linguistic relative of the word giết, which means 'to kill'.
Examples in context
- Anh ta phải chết.He must die.This illustrates a direct statement of necessity using chết.Tatoeba #13340816 by leucammieuvu, translation #6022819 by mailohilohi
- Cậu không sợ chết ư?Aren't you afraid to die?This uses chết to ask about a fear of dying.Tatoeba #5145630 by truongap, translation #3825364 by CK
- Ai rồi cũng sẽ chết.Everybody will die.This uses chết to state a universal truth about mortality.Tatoeba #13341007 by leucammieuvu, translation #4497305 by CK
- Tin tức cho biết có hàng nghìn người đã chết trong trận động đấtReports state that thousands of people have died in the earthquake
- 23 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a character in a movie.
- LanNhân vật chính sẽ chết trong phim à?Is the main character going to die in the movie?
- MinhĐúng vậy, anh ấy đã chết ở cuối phim.That's right, he died at the end of the movie.
- LanThật là một cái kết buồn.That is such a sad ending.
- MinhTôi cũng thấy rất tiếc.I felt very sorry about it too.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “die” translations and entries chết, mất, qua đời, viên tịch, băng hà, hy sinh, hi sinh, lìa đời, từ trần, khuất bóng, thăng thiên, đi đời nhà ma, xuống lỗ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (đi, bán, muối, về, nơi, chín, suối, vàng) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries chết, mất, qua, qua đời, từ, đời, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
