Learn about dipthongs and triphthongs in Vietnamese
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Intro |
|---|
| Michael: What are triphthongs? |
| Nguyet: And how are they used? |
| Michael: At VietnamesePod101.com, we hear these questions often. Imagine the following situation: Ben Lee is studying Vietnamese and asks his friend Nguyet Ngo about something he does not understand, |
| "What are triphthongs?" |
| Ben Lee: Nguyên âm ba là gì? |
| Dialogue |
| Ben Lee: Nguyên âm ba là gì? |
| Nguyệt Ngô: Ba nguyên âm kết hợp lại. |
| Michael: Once more with the English translation. |
| Ben Lee: Nguyên âm ba là gì? |
| Michael: "What are triphthongs?" |
| Nguyệt Ngô: Ba nguyên âm kết hợp lại. |
| Michael: "Three combined vowels." |
Lesson focus |
| Michael: In this lesson, we will talk about triphthongs in Vietnamese, or |
| Nguyet: Nguyên âm ba |
| Michael: Triphthongs are an important aspect of any language, at least those that use them. While most languages have diphthongs, only a few languages have triphthongs, including English, Danish, and, of course, Vietnamese. |
| [Recall 1] |
| Michael: Let’s take a closer look at the dialogue to understand what triphthongs are. |
| Do you remember how Ben Lee says, "What are triphthongs?" |
| Nguyet: Nguyên âm ba là gì? |
| Michael: And do you remember how Nguyet Ngo says "Three combined vowels?" |
| Nguyet: Ba nguyên âm kết hợp lại. |
| Michael: "Three combined vowels." This is the simplest definition of what Triphthongs are. Think of the word "flour," for instance. The sound produced by the letters o, u, and r is a triphthong—so is the sound produced by the letters i, r, and e, in the word "desire." |
| [Summary] |
| Michael: So far, you have learned that triphthongs refer to monosyllabic combinations of vowel sounds that involve a quick movement of sound between one vowel to a second and third vowel. |
| Expansion |
| Michael: We learned that triphthongs are very important in Vietnamese. Now, we'll have a closer look at some of the triphthongs you may encounter on your journey with Vietnamese. The first on our list is |
| Nguyet: iêu |
| Michael: You’ll find this in words like |
| Nguyet: siêu thị |
| Michael: or "super market." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) iêu |
| Michael: The second one is |
| Nguyet: oai |
| Michael: which you’ll find in words like |
| Nguyet: hoa oải hương |
| Michael: or "lavender." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) oai |
| Michael: Another Vietnamese triphthong is |
| Nguyet: oao |
| Michael: such as in the word |
| Nguyet: ngoao ngoao |
| Michael: or "meow," like the sound made by cats. |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) oao |
| Michael: Next, we have |
| Nguyet: oay |
| Michael: such as in the word |
| Nguyet: xoay, |
| Michael: which means "to turn" or "to swivel." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) oay |
| Michael: and then there’s the triphthong, |
| Nguyet: oeo |
| Michael: which you’ll find in words like |
| Nguyet: ngoằn ngoèo |
| Michael: which means "zigzagging," |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) oeo |
| Michael: Next, there’s the triphthong |
| Nguyet: uây |
| Michael: such as in the word, |
| Nguyet: quầy hàng |
| Michael: or "kiosk." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) uây |
| Michael: Another one is the triphthong, |
| Nguyet: uôi |
| Michael: such as in the word, |
| Nguyet: chuối |
| Michael: the Vietnamese word for "banana," |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) uôi |
| Michael: There’s also the triphthong, |
| Nguyet: ươi |
| Michael: which you’ll find in words like |
| Nguyet: lười |
| Michael: meaning "lazy." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) ươi |
| Michael: Next, we have |
| Nguyet: ươu |
| Michael: as in the word, |
| Nguyet: con hươu |
| Michael: which means "deer." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) ươu |
| Michael: And then there’s the triphthong, |
| Nguyet: uya |
| Michael: such as in |
| Nguyet: khuya |
| Michael: a word that means "late at night." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) uya |
| Michael: Next, we have |
| Nguyet: uyê |
| Michael: such as in the word |
| Nguyet: khuyên nhủ |
| Michael: which means "advise." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) uyê |
| Michael: And, finally, we have the triphthong |
| Nguyet: uyu |
| Michael: such as in the word |
| Nguyet: khuỷu |
| Michael: which is Vietnamese for "elbow." |
| Nguyet: (SLOW) uyu |
| Cultural Insight |
| Michael: Just as the pronunciation of vowels differs between Northern and Southern Vietnamese, so does the pronunciation of triphthongs. You might hear a specific pronunciation of triphthongs in each one, although, most of the time, the pronunciation differs from person to person. For instance, one would pronounce each vowel in a triphthong more distinctly while another one would pronounce them in a smoother way, producing a seamless sound. |
Outro |
| Michael: Do you have any more questions? We’re here to answer them! |
| Nguyet: Tạm biệt! |
| Michael: See you soon! |
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