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sự

prefix Sino-Vietnamese Top 1,000 most common
Hanoi [sɨ˧˨ʔ]Huế [ʂɨ˨˩ʔ]Saigon [ʂɨ˨˩˨] browser voice
Syllables · tones
sựheavynặng

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

Chinese characters: 事

Meanings of sự in English

Prefix

  1. collective affairs (abstract)
    • sự đờilife affairs
    • sự nghiệpcareer
  2. nominalizes verbs or adjectives
    • sự sống cònsurvival
    • sự đau đớnpain
    • sự tương tácinteraction

Words with sự

cán sựchiến sựchính sựcộng sựdân sựđại sựhậu sựhình sựkhởi sựkí sựlí sựnhân sựphụng sựquân sựsự kiệnsự nghiệpsự thựcsự tíchsự tìnhsự vậtsự việctâm sựthời sựthực sựtự sựvô sựsự thậtsự cốsự biếnsự vụ

Example sentences with sự

  • Tom đã đưa ra sự lựa chọn. Tom made his choice.
  • Đó là sự lựa chọn của bạn. That was your choice.
  • Tom không kìm được sự tò mò. Curiosity got the better of Tom.
  • Tom cần tìm kiếm sự giúp đỡ. Tom needs to seek help.
  • Nhẹ là sự trái lại của nặng. Light is the opposite of heavy.
  • Tom đã mất hết sự tín nhiệm. Tom has lost his credibility.
  • Tôi muốn sự tôn trọng của bạn. I want your respect.
  • Tom đang chiến đấu vì sự sống. Tom is fighting for his life.

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, sự could be written as 亊. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 事 (“abstract thing”), from Literary Chinese 事. Per Chinese morphology, it's used as a suffix and is fossilized in borrowings. In Vietnamese, it became a prefix to conform to native morphology. Compare other verbal nominalizers such as Rade klei and Japanese 事 (koto). Also see một cách (adverbializer).

Frequently asked questions

How do you pronounce sự?

IPA: Hanoi [sɨ˧˨ʔ]; Saigon [ʂɨ˨˩˨]. Tones: sự — heavy tone (nặng).

Is sự a Sino-Vietnamese word?

Yes. sự is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 事.

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.