phiên

Level ≈B2 (approx.) nounverb Sino-Vietnamese Top 5,000 most common

Hanoi [fiən˧˧]Huế [fiəŋ˧˧]Saigon [fiəŋ˧˧] browser voice

Syllables · tones

phiênlevelngang

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

phiên means turn; time; session.

Chinese characters: 番

Meanings of phiên in English

Noun

turn; time; session

Verb

abbreviation, colloquial short for phiên âm (“to transcribe”)

Words with phiên

phiên dịch phiên bản phiên chế phiên phiến phiên âm

Example sentences with phiên

Phiên gác của tôi sắp bắt đầu. My watch is about to start.
Tôi sẽ gác phiên đầu. I'll stand first watch.

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, phiên could be written as 畨. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 番.

Frequently asked questions

What does phiên mean in English?

phiên (noun) means "turn; time; session".

How do you pronounce phiên?

IPA: Hanoi [fiən˧˧]; Saigon [fiəŋ˧˧]. Tones: phiên — level tone (ngang).

Is phiên a Sino-Vietnamese word?

Yes. phiên is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 番.

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.