chày

noun

Hanoi [t͡ɕaj˨˩]Huế [t͡ɕaj˦˩]Saigon [ca(ː)j˨˩] browser voice

Syllables · tones

chàyfallinghuyền

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

chày means pestle; bat.

Classifier: cây, cái, chiếc — e.g. một cây chày (one pestle)

Meanings of chày in English

Noun

pestle (instrument used with a mortar to grind things)
bat
- bóng chàybaseball

Words with chày

bóng chày cãi chày cãi cối xương chày

Example sentences with chày

Bạn có chơi bòng chày không? Do you play baseball?

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, chày could be written as 持, 㭙, 𣖖, 鈙. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

From Proto-Vietic *tʃ-r-eː, the infixed nominal derivative of Proto-Vietic *tʃeː (“to grind”) (> xay (“to grind”)), from Proto-Austroasiatic *ɟeːʔ (“pestle”). Cognate with Muong Bi khày, Pacoh ntray, Khasi synrei, Khmer អង្រែ (ʼɑɑʼɑngrɛɛ), Riang tᵊnrɛʔ¹, Hu ŋʁíʔ, Semai renééq.

Frequently asked questions

What does chày mean in English?

chày (noun) means "pestle; bat".

How do you pronounce chày?

IPA: Hanoi [t͡ɕaj˨˩]; Saigon [ca(ː)j˨˩]. Tones: chày — falling tone (huyền).

What classifier is used with chày?

Common classifiers: cây, cái, chiếc — for example "một cây chày" (one pestle).

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. Spotted a mistake? Let NgonNgu know.