thư ký

Level ≈B1 (approx.) noun Sino-Vietnamese Top 3,000 most common

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Syllables · tones

thưlevelngang kýrisingsắc

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

thư ký means a non-communist secretary.

Also spelled thư kí — same word, same meaning.

Chinese characters: 書記

Meanings of thư ký in English

Noun

a non-communist secretary
- Nó làm thư kí ở công ti A.She works as a secretary at company A.

Example sentences with thư ký

Chị của tôi làm thư ký ở ngân hàng. My sister works in a bank as a secretary.
Người thư ký giữ biên bản của cuộc họp. The secretary keeps the minutes of the meeting.

Bilingual example sentences from Tatoeba (tatoeba.org, CC BY 2.0 FR).

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 書記, Chinese 書記 /书记 (shūjì, “communist secretary”). Compare bí thư (“communist secretary”). Vietnamese uses an opposite distinction to Chinese's as to whether the secretary in question works for the communist government or not.

Frequently asked questions

What does thư ký mean in English?

thư ký (noun) means "a non-communist secretary".

How do you pronounce thư ký?

Tones: thư — level tone (ngang), ký — rising tone (sắc).

Is thư ký a Sino-Vietnamese word?

Yes. thư ký is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 書記.

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.