kiến

Level ≈B2 (approx.) noun Top 5,000 most common

Hanoi [kiən˧˦]Huế [kiəŋ˦˧˥]Saigon [kiəŋ˦˥] browser voice

Syllables · tones

kiếnrisingsắc

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

kiến means ant.

Classifier: con — e.g. một con kiến (one ant)

Meanings of kiến in English

Noun

Words with kiến

kiến ba khoang kiến lửa ruồi bâu kiến đậu kiến thức kiến trúc kiến nghị kiến bò kiến lập kiến quốc kiến tạo kiến tập

Example sentences with kiến

Kiến là côn trùng. Ants are insects.

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, kiến could be written as 見, 蜆. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

From Proto-Vietic *gɛːnʔ ~ *kɛːnʔ. Cognate with Thavung แก้น. Compare Bolyu ɣəːn³³.

Frequently asked questions

What does kiến mean in English?

kiến (noun) means "ant".

How do you pronounce kiến?

IPA: Hanoi [kiən˧˦]; Saigon [kiəŋ˦˥]. Tones: kiến — rising tone (sắc).

What classifier is used with kiến?

Common classifiers: con — for example "một con kiến" (one ant).

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.