Ways to say it
| Vietnamese | IPA |
|---|---|
| con gái | [kɔn˧˧ ɣaːj˧˦] (Hà Nội, narrow) [kɔŋ˧˧ ɣaːj˨˩˦] (Huế, narrow) |
| cô gái | [ko˧˧ ɣaːj˧˦] (Hà Nội, narrow) [kow˧˧ ɣaːj˨˩˦] (Huế, narrow) |
| gái | [ɣaːj˧˦] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ɣaːj˨˩˦] (Huế, narrow) |
The terms used to say girl in Vietnamese depend heavily on whether you are emphasizing a person's gender, their relationship to a family or their role in a sentence. Cô gái is used to refer to a young woman or girl as a subject or object in a sentence. Con gái can mean girl, but it is also the standard term for daughter in a family context. The shortened form gái is used colloquially to mean girl or woman.
What does it mean word for word?
In the phrase con gái, the word con acts as a classifier typically used for children or animals.
Which one should you use?
Cô gái is used when a girl is the subject or object of a sentence. In contrast, con gái often emphasizes gender or a relationship, such as being a daughter. The form gái is a colloquial way to say girl.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Gái is informal and used in colloquial compounds, but be aware that it can sometimes carry a derogatory or overly sexualized connotation depending on the context, such as in the phrase gái hư for a bad girl.
Did you know?
Examples in context
- Cô gái đã mở cửa.The girl opened the door.This sentence shows the use of cô gái to identify the subject of an action.Tatoeba #13980667 by leucammieuvu, translation #13971607 by rul
- Cô gái đó gội đầu.The girl washed her hair.This sentence demonstrates how cô gái functions as the subject of the sentence.Tatoeba #9546945 by dotheduyet1999, translation #680019 by szaby78
- Tôi là cô gái Đức.I'm a German girl.This sentence shows how cô gái can be used to describe a person's nationality.Tatoeba #13924475 by leucammieuvu, translation #13924222 by rul
- Tôi đã gặp một cô gái xinh đẹp ở quán cà phê.I met a beautiful girl at the coffee shop.
- Con gái của tôi rất thông minh.My daughter is very intelligent.
- Có một nhóm bạn gái đang đi mua sắm.There is a group of girls going shopping.
- Em gái của tôi rất dễ thương.My younger sister is very cute.
- Hôm qua tôi gặp một cô gái đến từ Hà Nội.Yesterday, I met a girl from Hanoi.
- Em gái tôi thích nghe nhạc pop.My younger sister likes to listen to pop music.
- 39 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hương and Hùng are looking at a photograph of a child.
- HươngĐứa bé này là con gái của anh à?Is this baby your daughter?
- HùngĐúng vậy, con gái tôi rất đáng yêu.Yes, my daughter is very lovely.
- HươngCon gái trông giống anh quá.The girl looks just like you.
- HùngCảm ơn Hương, cô ấy rất ngoan.Thank you Huong, she is very well-behaved.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “girl” translations and entries con gái, cô gái, gái, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries con, con gái, cô, cô gái, gái, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
