The Vietnamese Alphabet: All 29 Letters Explained
Vietnamese looks familiar at first glance — it uses the same Latin letters as English — and then it surprises you: ă, â, ê, ô, ơ, ư and đ appear everywhere, and the same spelling with a different small mark becomes a different word. The good news is that the whole system fits on one page. Vietnamese has exactly 29 letters, its spelling is far more regular than English, and once you know the letters, you can read almost any word out loud, even before you know what it means.
This guide lists all 29 letters with a plain-English sound hint and an everyday example word for each one, plus the letter combinations that English speakers always stumble on. Every example also comes with its Telex keystrokes, so you can practise typing as you learn to read — if Telex itself is new, our complete Telex guide explains the keys in a few minutes.
The 29 letters at a glance
Here is the full alphabet in its traditional order. Twenty-two letters will look familiar; seven are modified — six vowels with extra marks, plus đ:
a, ă, â, b, c, d, đ, e, ê, g, h, i, k, l, m, n, o, ô, ơ, p, q, r, s, t, u, ư, v, x, y
Count them and you get 29. Three things are worth noticing right away. First, the letters f, j, w, z are not in the Vietnamese alphabet at all — they appear only in foreign words, and, by a funny coincidence, Telex borrows f, j, w and z as typing keys. Second, Vietnamese treats ă, â, ê, ô, ơ, ư and đ as letters in their own right, not as decorated versions of a, e, o, u and d — that is why they have their own places in the order above. Third, Vietnamese spelling is consistent: unlike English, where “ough” has many sounds, a Vietnamese letter almost always sounds the same wherever it appears.
All 29 letters, with sounds and examples
Sounds are described by the nearest English hint. They are approximations — a Vietnamese speaker will still be your best teacher for the exact sound — but they are close enough to start reading confidently.
| Letter | Sound hint | Example word | Meaning | Type (Telex) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | like “a” in “father” | ba | three; father (South) | ba |
| ă | short, flat “a”, like “a” in “cat” cut short | ăn | to eat | awn |
| â | short “uh”, like the “u” in “cut” but shorter | cân | to weigh; a scale | caan |
| b | like English “b” | bạn | friend; you | banj |
| c | like “k” at the start of a word | cơm | cooked rice | cowm |
| d | like “y” in “yes” (North) or “z” (South) | da | skin | da |
| đ | like English “d” | đi | to go | ddi |
| e | like “e” in “bed” | tre | bamboo | tre |
| ê | like “ay” in “say”, held steady | về | to return | veef |
| g | like “g” in “go” | gà | chicken | gaf |
| h | like English “h” | hoa | flower | hoa |
| i | like “ee” in “see”, shorter | tim | heart | tim |
| k | like “k”; used before e, ê, i | kem | ice cream | kem |
| l | like English “l” | lan | orchid | lan |
| m | like English “m” | mẹ | mother | mej |
| n | like English “n” | nước | water | nuwowsc |
| o | like “o” in “or”, short | bò | beef; cow | bof |
| ô | like “o” in “go”, steady | cô | aunt; Miss | coo |
| ơ | like “uh”, long and relaxed | mơ | apricot; to dream | mow |
| p | like English “p”; mostly in borrowed words | phở | noodle soup | phowr |
| q | always with u: “qu” sounds like “kw” | qua | to pass; to cross | qua |
| r | like “r”, rolled lightly (North) or like “y” (South) | rau | vegetables | rau |
| s | like “sh” (North) or “s” (South) | sữa | milk | suwax |
| t | like English “t”, softer | trà | tea | traf |
| u | like “oo” in “boot”, shorter | thu | autumn | thu |
| ư | no English match: say “ee” with rounded, relaxed lips | thư | letter, mail | thuw |
| v | like “v”, or “y” in the South | vui | happy | vui |
| x | like English “s” | xe | vehicle; bike | xe |
| y | like “ee”; also a vowel in words like “yêu” | yêu | to love | yeeu |
Two pairs deserve a second look, because English speakers mix them up for months. ơ and ư are different vowels, not two spellings of one sound: mơ (to dream) and mưa (rain) are not the same word, and neither is mua (to buy). Likewise, d, gi and r can sound alike in the South, but they are spelled differently and every dictionary keeps them apart — learn the spelling with the word, not just the sound.
The pairs and triples: sounds spelled with two or three letters
Vietnamese also has consonant combinations that work as one sound. You do not need to memorise them all at once — just recognise them when they appear, so you never try to sound out “ngh” as three separate letters:
| Combination | Sound hint | Example | Meaning | Type (Telex) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ch | like “ch” in “chair”, softer | cha | father | cha |
| gh | like “g”; used before e, ê, i | ghi | to write down | ghi |
| gi | like “y” (North) or “z” (South) | gì | what | gif |
| kh | breathy “kh”, like Scottish “loch” made soft | khỏe | well, healthy | khore |
| ng | like “ng” in “sing” | ngon | delicious | ngon |
| ngh | same as “ng”; used before e, ê, i | nghi | to rest; to think | nghi |
| nh | like “ny” in “canyon” | nhà | house | nhaf |
| ph | like English “f” | phở | noodle soup | phowr |
| qu | like “kw” | quê | hometown | quee |
| th | like “t” with a puff of air | thơm | fragrant | thowm |
| tr | like “ch” but with the tongue curled back a little | trà | tea | traf |
Why do gh and ngh exist when g and ng already sound the same? It is a spelling rule, not a sound rule: before the vowels e, ê, i, Vietnamese writes gh and ngh instead of g and ng. The same rule explains k versus c: k appears before e, ê, i (kem, not cem), while c appears before the other vowels. Learn the rule once and hundreds of spellings stop looking random.
How syllables are built
Almost every Vietnamese word is one syllable, and every syllable follows the same small pattern: an opening consonant (optional), a vowel or vowel pair, and an ending consonant (optional) — with one tone mark on the vowel. That is the whole machine. A few endings are allowed and the rest are not: syllables can end in c, ch, m, n, ng, nh, p, t, but never in b, d, g, l, r, s or v. So when you meet a long Vietnamese word, split it into syllables first — Xin chào is Xin + chào, cảm ơn is cảm + ơn — and each piece follows the same pattern.
Vowels also travel in pairs. You will meet ai, ao, au, âu, eo, ia, iê, oa, oe, oi, ôi, ơi, ua, ưa, uô, ươ, uy, ưu and yê constantly. Do not try to memorise the list as a list: meet them inside words you already know — mai (tomorrow), ao (pond; shirt), yêu (to love), trưa (midday) — and the pairs will teach themselves.
A 10-word reading and typing drill
Read each word out loud, then type it in Telex. The typing doubles as a reading test: if the finished word on screen matches the word on the page, your letters and your tones are both right.
- Xin chào — hello. Type: Xin chaof
- Cảm ơn — thank you. Type: Camr own
- Tạm biệt — goodbye. Type: Tajm bieetj
- Bạn khỏe không? — how are you? Type: Banj khore khoong
- Tôi tên là Anna. — my name is Anna. Type: Tooi teen laf Anna
- Phở ngon. — the phở is delicious. Type: Phowr ngon
- Nhà tôi ở Hà Nội. — my home is in Hanoi. Type: Nhaf tooi owr Haf Nooji
- Trà sữa — milk tea. Type: Traf suwax
- Yêu Việt Nam. — love Vietnam. Type: Yeeu Vieetj Nam
- Hẹn gặp lại. — see you again. Type: Hejn gawpj laij
If you want thirty more phrases built exactly this way, our list of 30 essential Vietnamese phrases is the natural next step — same format, more daily life.
Key takeaways
- Vietnamese has 29 letters: 22 familiar ones plus ă, â, ê, ô, ơ, ư and đ. The letters f, j, w, z are not part of the alphabet.
- Spelling is regular: each letter keeps nearly the same sound everywhere, so learning the letters means you can read new words out loud.
- Watch the pairs: ơ vs ư, d vs gi vs r, and c vs k / g vs gh / ng vs ngh before e, ê, i.
- Every syllable is opening consonant + vowel(s) + optional ending (c, ch, m, n, ng, nh, p, t), with one tone mark.
- Reading and typing together is the fastest loop: type what you read, and the screen checks your work instantly.
Frequently asked questions
How many letters are in the Vietnamese alphabet?
29: a, ă, â, b, c, d, đ, e, ê, g, h, i, k, l, m, n, o, ô, ơ, p, q, r, s, t, u, ư, v, x, y. Vietnamese counts the modified vowels and đ as full letters, not as variants.
Is Vietnamese hard to read?
Easier than it looks. Because spelling is regular, a beginner who knows the 29 letters and the six tones can sound out almost any word. Understanding the words is the longer journey; reading them out loud comes quickly.
Why are there no f, j, w, z in the alphabet?
Vietnamese simply never needed those sounds in native words. They appear in borrowed words (for example, “show” or “web”), and Telex reuses f, j, w, z as typing keys — which is why learners sometimes think they are Vietnamese letters. They are not.
Do Northern and Southern pronunciations differ?
Yes, in a few well-known places: d, gi and r, and also s and x, sound different in the North and the South, and v can sound like “y” in the South. The spelling stays the same everywhere, so learn one region’s sounds first and recognise the other later.
What should I learn after the alphabet?
The six tones, then your first phrases. Tones change meanings, so they matter more than a perfect accent on any single letter — and phrases give you something real to say from day one.
Ready to practise? Open our free typing trainer and work through the tone lessons one at a time — your eyes, ears and fingers learn the alphabet together. Then try the Vietnamese typing speed test to see how fast the letters are becoming automatic.
