tết
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
tết means New Year.
Meanings of tết in English
Noun
- New Year (either the first few days of the calendrical New Year or Lunar New Year)
- Tết Dương lịch; Tết TâyNew Year's Day
- Tết âm lịch; Tết taLunar New Year
- Chúc bạn có một kì nghỉ Tết vui vẻ.Wish you a happy Lunar New Year holiday.
- used in names of commemorative or meaningful festivals that have rituals
- Tết Nguyên đánLunar New Year
- Tết Đoan ngọDuanwu Festival
- Tết Trung thuMid-Autumn Festival
Verb
- to plait; to twist (rope, hair, etc.)
Noun
- rare, in quotations a festival
- "tết" con traiTango no Sekku
- "tết" con gáiHinamatsuri
Words with tết
Historical script (chữ Nôm / Hán)
Before the Latin alphabet (chữ Quốc ngữ) became standard, tết could be written as 節, 緤. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.
Usage note: tết
Tết usually means Tết Nguyên Đán, the Lunar New Year — the most important holiday in Vietnam.
- ăn Tết — celebrate Tet (literally "eat Tet")
- về quê ăn Tết — go home to the countryside for Tet
- Chúc mừng năm mới! — Happy New Year!
- lì xì — lucky money given in red envelopes
Other festivals also use the word: Tết Trung thu — Mid-Autumn Festival; Tết Dương lịch — 1 January (solar New Year).
Practical for visitors: around Tet many shops, restaurants and offices close for several days, transport is crowded, and prices for travel rise. Cities can feel quiet as people return to their hometowns.
Common wishes: An khang thịnh vượng — health and prosperity; Vạn sự như ý — may everything go as you wish.
The dates follow the lunar calendar, so Tet falls on a different solar date each year, usually late January or February.
Etymology
Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 節 (“festival”, SV: tiết). Doublet of tiết.
Frequently asked questions
What does tết mean in English?
tết (noun) means "New Year".
How do you pronounce tết?
IPA: Hanoi [tet̚˧˦]; Saigon [təːt̚˦˥]. Tones: tết — rising tone (sắc).