con
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
con means child; (classifier for animals).
Meanings of con in English
Noun
- child (daughter or son)
- con cáichildren
- con nuôiadopted child
- gà conchick
- rare, in translations of ancient texts son
- in compounds, in fixed expressions build; stature
Noun
- in compounds, rare a small thing
- con quaya spinning top
- con lắca pendulum
Classifier
- Indicates animals (including humans).
- disrespectful Indicates female people.
- một thằng, hai conone guy, two girls
- Indicates knives, ships, boats, trains and eye pupils.
- con daoa knife
- Indicates roads, rivers, streams and waves.
- trên con đường đến hạnh phúcon the road/path to happiness
- literary Indicates written characters.
- con chữa character or letter
- colloquial Indicates electronic devices. (Indicates any piece of technology, especially with the brand name)
- Con Iphone của em đấy.This is my Iphone.
- colloquial Indicates wheeled vehicles. (Indicates any piece of technology, especially with the brand name)
- Anh mày có hẳn hai con xe Honda đấy nhớ!I have two Honda motorbikes!
- colloquial Indicates video games and movies. (Indicates any piece of technology, especially with the brand name)
- Ông chơi con game này chưa?Have you played this game?
Pronoun
- I/me (used by children when talking to their parents)
- Central Vietnam, Southern Vietnam I/me (used when talking to someone significantly older than the speaker)
- you (used by parents when talking to their children)
- Central Vietnam, Southern Vietnam you (used when talking to some significantly younger than the speaker)
- Là con thật!It's you for real!
Words with con
Idioms and sayings with con
- con dại cái mang — the child's mistakes fall on the parents
Synonyms and antonyms of con
Synonyms
Antonyms
Example sentences with con
- Cô ấy đã mua một con gà. She bought a chicken.
- Một con la đã đá vào Tom. A mule kicked Tom.
- Con tôi có thể tự mặc đồ. My baby can dress herself.
- Đó là một con thỏ hung ác. That was an evil bunny.
- Mẹ của con có ở nhà không? Is your mother at home?
- Con gà đó bị nấu quá chín. The chicken is overcooked.
- Có bao nhiêu con bò và gà? How many cows and chickens are there?
- Tom đã bỏ đói mấy con chó. Tom was letting the dogs go hungry.
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, con could be written as 𡥵, 昆. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.
Etymology
Inherited from Proto-Vietic *kɔːn, from Proto-Austroasiatic *koan. Cognate with Muong Bi con, Thavung กอน, Mon ကွေန် (kon), Khmer កូន (koun), Bahnar kon, Khasi khun, Central Nicobarese kōan. Doublet of non (“young, juvenile”), which is from an infixed form of the root.
Frequently asked questions
What does con mean in English?
con (noun) means "child; (classifier for animals)".
How do you pronounce con?
IPA: Hanoi [kɔn˧˧]; Saigon [kɔŋ˧˧]. Tones: con — level tone (ngang).
What classifier is used with con?
Common classifiers: đứa — for example "một đứa con" (one child).