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căn

Level ≈A1 (approx.) nounclassifierverb Sino-Vietnamese Top 1,000 most common
Hanoi [kan˧˧]Huế [kaŋ˧˧]Saigon [kaŋ˧˧] browser voice
Syllables · tones
cănlevelngang

Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →

căn means bậc hai) square root.

Chinese characters: 根

Meanings of căn in English

Noun

  1. colloquial, not followed by của (“of”) (short for căn (thức) bậc hai) square root
    • Căn (của) 4 bằng 2.The square root of 4 is 2.
  2. in compounds root; cause, origin, source
  3. abbreviation clipping of căn thức
    • căn bậc 2square root
    • Căn bậc 2 của 4 bằng 2.The square root of 4 is 2.
    • căn bậc 3cube root

Classifier

  1. indicates diseases, illnesses

Noun

  1. Northern Vietnam room

Classifier

  1. indicates houses, apartments, rooms

Verb

  1. to align; to time (to choose when something begins) ≈ canhđiều chỉnh
    • căn đều hai bênto justify (e.g., text) on both sides
    • đứng căn giờto stand and wait for the right moment

Words with căn

căn bảncăn bậc haicăn cơcăn cớcăn cứcăn cướccăn docăn nguyêncăn thứccăn tínhcăn tốthâm căn cố đếvô căncăn hộcăn dặn

Example sentences with căn

  • Tom có một căn nhà ở Boston. Tom has a house in Boston.
  • Hãy mua cho tôi một căn nhà. Buy me a house.
  • Tôi đang mua một căn nhà đẹp. I'm buying a beautiful house.
  • Không ai sống trong căn nhà này. No one lives in this house.
  • Anh ấy xây một căn nhà. He built a house.
  • Hãy mua tôi một căn nhà. Buy me a house.
  • Căn nhà này có sáu phòng. This house has six rooms.
  • Căn phòng khá là rộng rãi. The room was fairly spacious.

Bilingual example sentences from Tatoeba (tatoeba.org, CC BY 2.0 FR).

Usage note: căn

căn is the classifier for houses, rooms and apartments — enclosed spaces you live in.

  • một căn nhà — a house
  • căn phòng này rộng quá. — This room is so spacious.
  • căn hộ — apartment, flat: Tôi thuê một căn hộ ở quận 7. — I rent an apartment in District 7.

Compare with ngôi: both can go with nhà, but ngôi nhà sounds more descriptive or literary (a house as a building you see), while căn nhà leans toward a home as a unit you buy, rent or live in.

In everyday speech you often hear cái nhà too.

A different căn appears in căn cước (identity, as in thẻ căn cước — ID card) and căn bản (basic, fundamental: tiếng Việt căn bản — basic Vietnamese).

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 根.

Frequently asked questions

What does căn mean in English?

căn (noun) means "bậc hai) square root".

How do you pronounce căn?

IPA: Hanoi [kan˧˧]; Saigon [kaŋ˧˧]. Tones: căn — level tone (ngang).

Is căn a Sino-Vietnamese word?

Yes. căn is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 根.

Meanings, pronunciation and etymology from English Wiktionary (wiktionary.org, via kaikki.org; CC BY-SA 4.0), reviewed and edited; example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). IPA shown for three accents: Hanoi (Northern), Huế (Central) and Saigon (Southern). The Listen button uses your browser's Vietnamese voice, for reference only. Levels are approximate, estimated from word frequency. Spotted a mistake? Let NgonNgu know.