tụi
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
tụi means group.
Meanings of tụi in English
Noun
- Central Vietnam, Southern Vietnam, informal group (of people)
Particle
- Central Vietnam, Southern Vietnam pluralizing particle for pronouns ≈ chúng
Words with tụi
Example sentences with tụi
- Tụi bây nghĩ nó ở với ai? Who do you think she lives with?
- Tối qua tụi bây ngủ ở đâu? Where did you sleep last night?
- Tụi tao ăn bơ trên bánh mì. We eat butter on bread.
- Sau khi ăn, tụi tao đi ngủ. After we ate, we went to sleep.
- Hai tụi mình nên đi ngủ nhở? You and I both should go to sleep, right?
- Tụi tao đang học tiếng Ả Rập. We are learning Arabic.
- Tụi mình đều sẽ đi đến Boston. All of us will go to Boston.
- Sao bạn không tới thăm tụi tôi? Why don't you come visit us?
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, tụi could be written as 對. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.
Etymology
From a form of Chinese 對 (MC twojH) (SV: đối) in a southern Sinitic lect. Southern Min lects (對 /对 (dui³) or 對 /对) are phonetically close, but in these lects, the word for "pair" is usually 雙 (MC sraewng); in Yue, 對 /对 is the chief word for "pair" but phonetically it is less straightforward as far as the prestigious Guangfu lects are concerned. In any case, doublet of đôi.
Frequently asked questions
What does tụi mean in English?
tụi (noun) means "group".
How do you pronounce tụi?
IPA: Hanoi [tuj˧˨ʔ]; Saigon [tuj˨˩˨]. Tones: tụi — heavy tone (nặng).