lá
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
lá means leaf.
Meanings of lá in English
Noun
- leaf ≈ lá cây
- Chiếc lá cuối cùngThe Last Leaf
Classifier
- Used for thin and flat and/or leaf-like objects, such as letters, cards, flags, leaf-shaped organs (such as the liver, the lungs, the spleen, the pancreas), etc.
- lá thư/bài/cờ/gana letter/card/flag/liver
- Rừng mưa A-ma-dôn là lá phổi xanh của Trái Đất.The Amazon rainforest is the green lung of the Earth.
Adjective
- literary, rare green
Words with lá
Idioms and sayings with lá
- lá lành đùm lá rách — the strong protect the weak
Example sentences with lá
- Cô ta đã đọc xong lá thư. She finished reading the letter.
- Họ đã viết lá thư khi nào? When did they write the letter?
- Tôi đã viết một lá thư rồi. I've already written a letter.
- Tôi cần phải viết một lá thư. I have to write a letter.
- Cô ấy phải dừng hút thuốc lá. She has to stop smoking.
- Đây là lá cờ Hà Lan. This is a Dutch flag.
- Đây là lá thư của bạn. Here is your letter.
- Ấn nút màu xanh lá đi. Push the green button.
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, lá could be written as 蘿, 𦲿. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.
Etymology
From Proto-Vietic *s-laːʔ, from Proto-Austroasiatic *slaʔ. Cognate with Thavung ซะล้า, Khmer ស្លា (slaa, “areca”), Bahnar hla, Mon သၠ (hlaˀ), Khasi sla, Semai sela. Related to Chinese 茶 (chá, “tea”), which was a Loloish loan that in turn was borrowed from Austroasiatic.
Frequently asked questions
What does lá mean in English?
lá (noun) means "leaf".
How do you pronounce lá?
IPA: Hanoi [laː˧˦]; Saigon [laː˦˥]. Tones: lá — rising tone (sắc).
What classifier is used with lá?
Common classifiers: chiếc — for example "một chiếc lá" (one leaf).