bồ
nounpronounprefix Sino-Vietnamese
Hanoi [ʔɓo˨˩]Huế [ʔɓow˦˩]Saigon [ʔɓow˨˩] browser voice
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
bồ means boyfriend; girlfriend; date.
Chinese characters: 葡
Meanings of bồ in English
Noun
- colloquial boyfriend; girlfriend; date; romantic partner ≈ người yêu
Pronoun
- colloquial you, my pal/mate/buddy
Noun
- bamboo basket
Prefix
- idiomatic used to form birds' names
Words with bồ
Example sentences with bồ
- Tao đang đợi bồ của tao. I'm waiting for my boyfriend.
Bilingual example sentences from Tatoeba (tatoeba.org, CC BY 2.0 FR).
Historical script (chữ Nôm / Hán)
Before the Latin alphabet (chữ Quốc ngữ) became standard, bồ could be written as 䈬, 補, 布, 蒲. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.
Etymology
Might be related to the prefixal element in bồ cào, bồ hóng, and bồ nhìn/bù nhìn (see Vũ Đức Nghiệu, 2019)
Frequently asked questions
What does bồ mean in English?
bồ (noun) means "boyfriend; girlfriend; date".
How do you pronounce bồ?
IPA: Hanoi [ʔɓo˨˩]; Saigon [ʔɓow˨˩]. Tones: bồ — falling tone (huyền).
Is bồ a Sino-Vietnamese word?
Yes. bồ is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 葡.