nam
[naːm˧˧]
The English word 'south' is translated into Vietnamese as nam. Wiktionary also lists phía nam and hướng nam.
Meaning: compass point (noun)
Ways to say it
| Vietnamese | IPA |
|---|---|
| nam | [naːm˧˧] (Hà Nội, narrow) [naːm˧˧] (Huế, narrow) |
| phía nam | [fiə˧˦ naːm˧˧] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) |
| hướng nam | [hɨəŋ˧˦ naːm˧˧] (Hà Nội, word by word, narrow) |
nam is used as a proper noun within the names of regions or countries, such as in Nam Mĩ (South America).
What does it mean word for word?
In the phrase phía nam, the word phía means 'side' or 'direction', making the phrase literally 'the south side'. In the phrase hướng nam, the word hướng means 'direction', so it literally means 'south direction'.
Which one should you use?
phía nam is used when referring to a general area or side, whereas hướng nam is used specifically when discussing orientation or a compass heading.
Did you know?
- The word nam is a homograph that can mean both the cardinal direction 'south' and the word 'male'.
- The term gió nồm refers to a specific warm, humid wind blowing from the south or southeast, which is a culturally significant weather pattern in Vietnam.
Examples in context
- Gió thổi từ phía Nam.The wind is coming from the south.This sentence shows how to describe wind coming from the direction of phía nam.Tatoeba #13896441 by leucammieuvu, translation #12425252 by sundown
- Bố mẹ tôi sống ở Nam Mĩ.My parents live in South America.This sentence demonstrates the use of nam as a proper noun in a geographical name.Tatoeba #13855695 by leucammieuvu, translation #13855312 by tieguy
- Cửa sổ nhìn ra hướng nam.The window faces south.This sentence illustrates the use of hướng nam when describing the orientation of an object.Tatoeba #11363191 by chaule3, translation #11363190 by chaule3
- Tôi đang đi về phía NamI am heading south
- Hôm nay trời ở phương Nam rất nóngToday, it's very hot in the south
- Tôi đến từ bên NamI come from the south
- Nằm ở phía NamLocated in the south
- Đi từ phía Bắc xuống phía NamTraveling from the north to the south
- Phía Nam của đất nướcThe southern part of the country
- Chạy xuống phía NamRun down south
- 6 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Minh and Lan are looking at a map to find a hiking trail.
- MinhChúng ta nên đi về hướng nào?Which direction should we go?
- LanHãy đi về phía nam, Minh.Go south, Minh.
- MinhĐường đi về phía nam có xa không?Is the road south far?
- LanKhông, nó rất gần thôi.No, it is very close.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “south” translations and entries nam, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (phía, nam, hướng) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hướng, nam, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
