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chưa

Level ≈A1 (approx.) particle Top 1,000 most common
Hanoi [t͡ɕɨə˧˧]Huế [t͡ɕɨə˧˧]Saigon [cɨə˧˧] browser voice
Syllables · tones
chưalevelngang

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

chưa means not yet; yet (question particle).

Meanings of chưa in English

Particle

  1. not yet
    • Mày chưa chết hử?You're not dead yet, huh?
  2. yet
  3. Interrogative completive particle
    • Em thấy buồn ngủ chưa?Do you feel sleepy yet?

Words with chưa

chưa hề

Example sentences with chưa

  • Bạn đã rửa xe ô tô chưa? Have you washed the car yet?
  • Tom và Mary đã ở đó chưa? Are Tom and Mary there already?
  • Bạn đã nói với cô ấy chưa? Did you tell her?
  • Bạn đã tìm được cô ấy chưa? Were you able to find her?
  • Tớ vẫn chưa gọi lại cho họ. I haven't called them back.
  • Tôi chưa bao giờ nằm mơ cả. I never dream.
  • Bạn đã xin phép bố mẹ chưa? Did you ask for your parents' permission?
  • Chưa bao giờ là muộn để học. It is never too late to learn.

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, chưa could be written as 猪, 諸, 𣗓, 𬄞. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Usage note: chưa

chưa means "not yet", and as a question word it asks "yet?". The answers are rồi (yes, already) or chưa (not yet).

  • Anh ăn cơm chưa? — Have you eaten yet? → Rồi. / Chưa.
  • Chị có gia đình chưa? — Are you married (yet)?
  • Tôi chưa đi Huế bao giờ. — I've never been to Hue (so far).

Why chưa and not không? chưa leaves the door open: it assumes it might still happen. Asking Anh có vợ chưa? (married yet?) is the normal, polite question; Anh có vợ không? sounds more like a flat yes-or-no check.

Negative answer politely: Dạ, em chưa ạ. — Not yet.

✗ Tôi không ăn sáng (I don't eat breakfast — a habit) when you mean "I haven't had breakfast yet" → ✓ Tôi chưa ăn sáng.

Anh ăn cơm chưa? is also a friendly greeting, a bit like "How are you?" It is not necessarily an invitation.

Frequently asked questions

What does chưa mean in English?

chưa (particle) means "not yet; yet (question particle)".

How do you pronounce chưa?

IPA: Hanoi [t͡ɕɨə˧˧]; Saigon [cɨə˧˧]. Tones: chưa — level tone (ngang).

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.