nài

nounverbadverb

Hanoi [naːj˨˩]Huế [naːj˦˩]Saigon [naːj˨˩] browser voice

Syllables · tones

nàifallinghuyền

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

nài means mahout; horsekeeper.

Meanings of nài in English

Noun

mahout ≈ quản tượng
horsekeeper

Noun

kind of rope that people tight to their feet in order to climb palm trees

Verb

in compounds to beg

Adverb

obsolete how
obsolete what can be done

Words with nài

kêu nài

Example sentences with nài

Tại sao bạn cứ nài nỉ? Tôi đã nói là không! Why do you insist? I already said no!

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, nài could be written as 㖠, 呢, 奈, 捺. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 奈 (SV: nại).

Frequently asked questions

What does nài mean in English?

nài (noun) means "mahout; horsekeeper".

How do you pronounce nài?

IPA: Hanoi [naːj˨˩]; Saigon [naːj˨˩]. Tones: nài — falling tone (huyền).

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.