ít ngọt
[ʔit̚˧˦ ŋɔt̚˧˨ʔ]word by word
In Vietnamese, "less sweet" is ít ngọt.
ít ngọt is used to describe a food or drink item that has a smaller amount of sugar than usual. It is common to use the phrase ít ngọt hơn when you want to be more explicitly comparative, meaning "less sweet than [something else]."
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of ít, meaning "less" or "few" and ngọt, meaning "sweet".
Which one should you use?
While ít ngọt refers to the flavor profile (less sweet), you can also use ít đường to refer specifically to the ingredient (less sugar). Ít đường is a very common way to make this request when ordering.
Did you know?
- In Vietnamese culture, sweetness is often associated with kindness or harmony, so describing someone's voice as ngọt means they are speaking in a sweet or persuasive manner.
- Ordering a drink ít ngọt in Vietnam may still result in a beverage that tastes very sweet to Westerners due to the high sugar baselines in traditional recipes.
- The word ít is a cognate with the Koho word 'it' and the Khmer word អាត់, both of which mean 'little' or 'tiny'.
Examples in context
- Có thể giảm đường xuống không? Tớ thích bánh không ngọt lắm.Can you decrease the sugar level? I prefer the cake to be less sweet.
- Tôi muốn uống cà phê ít ngọt.I want to drink coffee that is less sweet.
- Làm ơn làm ít ngọt giúp tôi.Please make it less sweet for me.
Example conversation
Hương and Minh are ordering drinks at a cafe.
- HươngMinh, bạn uống gì?Minh, what are you drinking?
- MinhTôi gọi một ly bạc xỉu ít ngọt.I'll order a less sweet white coffee.
- HươngTôi cũng vậy, ít ngọt thôi.Me too, just less sweet.
- MinhVậy chúng ta cùng gọi nhé.Let's order together then.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (ít, ngọt) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ngọt, ít, CC BY-SA 4.0.
