cơm
[kəːm˧˧]
The English word rice is translated into Vietnamese as either gạo or cơm depending on its state.
Meaning: seeds used as food (noun)
Ways to say it
| Vietnamese | IPA |
|---|---|
| cơm | [kəːm˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [kəːm˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
| gạo | [ɣaːw˧˨ʔ] (Hà Nội, narrow) [ɣaːw˨˩ʔ] (Huế, narrow) |
In Vietnamese, the word for rice changes based on whether the grains are raw or cooked. Additionally, the phrase ăn cơm is often used idiomatically to mean 'to eat a meal' in general, rather than specifically referring to the act of eating rice.
Which one should you use?
Use gạo to refer to unprocessed, raw rice grains. Use cơm to refer to rice that has been cooked and is ready to eat.
Did you know?
- In Vietnamese culture, asking someone if they have eaten cơm is often a way of greeting them or showing care, rather than a literal inquiry about their diet.
- The word cơm might actually share an ancient root with a Chinese word meaning 'water from washing rice' or 'kitchen slops'.
- The term cơm is used in various compound words to describe family life, such as cơm gia đình for a family meal, emphasizing the social bond of eating together.
Examples in context
- Họ chỉ ăn cơm.They only ate rice.This sentence shows how to express that someone only ate cơm.Tatoeba #13840909 by leucammieuvu, translation #13840629 by maaster
- Tôi đang ăn cơm.I'm eating rice now.This sentence is useful for describing the action of eating cơm.Tatoeba #1550791 by trieuho, translation #1550010 by miflhanc
- Tom ăn cơm mỗi ngày.Tom eats rice every day.This sentence demonstrates using cơm to describe a daily habit.Tatoeba #13980689 by leucammieuvu, translation #8591754 by CK
- Người Việt Nam không thể thiếu gạo trong bữa ăn hàng ngày.Vietnamese people cannot live without rice in their daily meals.
- Hôm nay tôi đã ăn cơm với gia đình.Today, I ate rice with my family.
- Anh ấy ăn cơm mỗi ngày.He eats rice every day.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mai and Hùng are deciding what to eat for dinner.
- MaiHùng ơi, anh muốn ăn cơm không?Hùng, do you want to eat rice?
- HùngCó, tôi muốn ăn cơm với cá.Yes, I want to eat rice with fish.
- MaiĐể em đi nấu cơm nhé.Let me go cook the rice.
- HùngCảm ơn Mai nhiều nhé.Thank you very much, Mai.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “rice” translations and entries cơm, gạo, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cơm, gạo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
