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🎨 Colors & Descriptions Cheat Sheet

All colors, sizes, adjectives, patterns, and descriptive vocabulary — the words that multiply everything else you know.

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🎨 All Colors
The xanh problem: Vietnamese uses xanh for both blue AND green. Add a clarifier to remove ambiguity:
xanh dương (ocean blue) = blue  ·  xanh lá (leaf green) = green  ·  xanh da trời (sky color) = sky blue
ColorVietnamesePronunciationNote
Red đỏdawNational color of Vietnam
Blue xanh dươngsahn yuh-ungLiterally "ocean blue"
Green xanh lásahn lahLiterally "leaf color"
Yellow vàngvahngAlso means gold
White trắngchung
Black đenden
Orange camkahmAlso means orange (the fruit)
Pink hồnghohng
Purple tímtim
Brown nâunoh
Grey xámsahm
Dark red đỏ đậmdaw dumđậm = dark/deep
Light pink hồng nhạthohng nyatnhạt = light/pale
💡 Making shades: Add nhạt (nyat) for light/pale or đậm (dum) for dark/deep after any color. "Xanh nhạt" = light blue · "Đỏ đậm" = dark red.
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📏 Sizes & Dimensions
EnglishVietnamesePronunciationOpposite
Big / large to / lớntaw / luhnnhỏ / bé (small)
Small / little nhỏ / bényaw / behto / lớn (big)
Medium / just right vừavyuh-ah
Long dàidiengắn (short)
Short (length) ngắnngundài (long)
Wide / broad rộngrawnghẹp (narrow)
Narrow hẹpheprộng (wide)
Thick dàydaymỏng (thin)
Thin mỏngmawngdày (thick)
Tall (height) caokowthấp (short)
Short (height) thấptupcao (tall)
Heavy nặngnungnhẹ (light)
Light (in weight) nhẹnyehnặng (heavy)
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⭐ Essential Adjectives
EnglishVietnamesePronunciation
Beautiful / pretty / handsome đẹpdep
Ugly xấusoh
Good tốttote
Bad xấu / tệsoh / teh
New mớimuh-ee
Old / usedkoo
Expensive đắtdat
Cheap rẻreh
Hot nóngnawng
Cold lạnhlahn
Fast / quick nhanhnyan
Slow chậmchum
Easy dễyeh
Difficult khókhaw
Clean sạchsahk
Dirty bẩnbun
Interesting thú vịthoo vee
Boring chánchan
💡 Intensifiers: Add lắm (lahm) or quá (kwah) after any adjective to mean "very" or "too". "Đẹp lắm" = very beautiful · "Đắt quá" = too expensive.
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🔲 Patterns & Textures
EnglishVietnamesePronunciation
Stripedcó sọckaw sawk
Floral / with flower patterncó hoakaw hwah
Plain / solid colortrơnchuhn
Polka dotcó chấm bikaw chum bee
Checkeredcó ô vuôngkaw oh voo-ung
Smooth / softmịnmin
Rough thôthoh
Soft (feel) mềmmem
Hard / firmcứngkyung
Shiny / glossy bóngbawng
Matte / dullmờmuh
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📐 How Adjectives Work in Vietnamese
Key rule: In Vietnamese, adjectives come AFTER the noun — opposite of English.

🇺🇸 English: red shirt (adjective first)
🇻🇳 Vietnamese: áo đỏ (shirt red) — noun first

More examples:
"big house" = nhà to (house big)
"beautiful woman" = người đẹp (person beautiful)
"new phone" = điện thoại mới (phone new)
💡 Adding "very" and "too":
lắm (lahm) = very → "đẹp lắm" = very beautiful
quá (kwah) = too/so → "đắt quá" = too expensive / "đẹp quá" = so beautiful
Both go AFTER the adjective.
Asking About Colors & Descriptions
EnglishVietnamesePronunciation
What color is it? Màu gì?mow yee
Do you have another color? Có màu khác không?kaw mow khahk khome
I like this color Tôi thích màu nàytoy tick mow nay
Which one is better? Cái nào đẹp hơn?kai now dep huhn
What size is this?Cái này size mấy?kai nay size may
Is there a bigger one? Có cái lớn hơn không?kaw kai luhn huhn khome
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