van

nounverb

Hanoi [vaːn˧˧]Huế [vaːŋ˧˧]Saigon [vaːŋ˧˧] browser voice

Syllables · tones

vanlevelngang

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

van means valve.

Classifier: cái — e.g. một cái van (one valve)

Meanings of van in English

Noun

valve

Noun

waltz ≈ van-xơ

Verb

to beg, to implore

Words with van

van vỉ van-xơ

Example sentences with van

Nó có hình ô-van. It's oval-shaped.

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, van could be written as 𠹚, 喛. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

Borrowed from French valve.

Frequently asked questions

What does van mean in English?

van (noun) means "valve".

How do you pronounce van?

IPA: Hanoi [vaːn˧˧]; Saigon [vaːŋ˧˧]. Tones: van — level tone (ngang).

What classifier is used with van?

Common classifiers: cái — for example "một cái van" (one valve).

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.