Words ranked by frequency from Vietnamese Wikipedia, grouped into proficiency levels. See also: browse all words by rank.
Words every beginner needs. High-frequency function words and basic vocabulary.
Everyday conversation vocabulary. Common nouns, verbs, and adjectives.
Reading comprehension vocabulary. Needed for news articles and general texts.
Academic and nuanced vocabulary. Specialized topics and formal registers.
Domain-specific and rare words. Technical, literary, and regional terms.
| # | word | frequency | definition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 201 | so | 8,119 | to compare, liken |
| 202 | giữ | 7,993 | to keep, hold, stay, guard, maintain, protect, reserve |
| 203 | tôi | 7,987 | I (first person singular pronoun) |
| 204 | tạo ra | 7,950 | to create, bring about |
| 205 | đây | 7,938 | here, this place, this |
| 206 | chưa | 7,937 | not yet, yet (to happen) |
| 207 | bài hát | 7,892 | song |
| 208 | quyết định | 7,881 | decision, resolution; to decide, resolve, determine |
| 209 | không thể | 7,877 | cannot |
| 210 | Trung Quốc | 7,849 | China |
| 211 | tàu | 7,847 | (1) ship, boat; (2) stable; (3) China, Chinese; (4) (classifier for big leaves) |
| 212 | dẫn | 7,838 | to guide, take, conduct, quote, cite; according to |
| 213 | mất | 7,820 | (1) to die, pass away, vanish; (2) to lose, spend, take (money, time) |
| 214 | mật độ | 7,801 | density |
| 215 | màu | 7,798 | color |
| 216 | giúp | 7,783 | to help, aid, assist |
| 217 | trong khi | 7,747 | while, meanwhile |
| 218 | cần | 7,736 | (1) to be urgent, pressing; to need (to), want; to care; (2) hard working, in... |
| 219 | khỏi | 7,734 | (1) to avoid, escape from, not help but (do sth); (2) to recover (from illness) |
| 220 | quân đội | 7,730 | army, armed forces, troops, military |
| 221 | đặt | 7,729 | order; to set up, establish, coin (a new word, name); to place, put |
| 222 | lực lượng | 7,647 | force, strength; strong, robust |
| 223 | trong đó | 7,644 | during which, of which |
| 224 | khu | 7,642 | area, zone, section, site, district, quarter |
| 225 | muốn | 7,607 | (1) to desire, want; (2) to look like (weather) |
| 226 | gồm | 7,597 | to comprise, consist of, include |
| 227 | trận | 7,586 | battle, fight, [CL for battles, earthquakes, conflicts, storms] |
| 228 | vua | 7,579 | king |
| 229 | chuyển | 7,573 | to take, transfer, move, transmit, convert, change, pass, shift, switch (over) |
| 230 | chết | 7,567 | to die, stop working |
| 231 | tăng | 7,555 | (1) to increase, raise; (2) tank, (armored vehicle); (3) Buddhist priest, Bud... |
| 232 | trước khi | 7,515 | before, formerly |
| 233 | cũng như | 7,364 | as well as, the same as, like |
| 234 | cây | 7,351 | (1) plant, tree; (2) [CL for long thin objects, firearms] |
| 235 | đất | 7,336 | earth, soil, territory, land |
| 236 | thời | 7,304 | time(s), era |
| 237 | chính thức | 7,291 | official, formal, legal |
| 238 | ngoài | 7,267 | besides, outside, aside from, in addition; without, exterior, external; up no... |
| 239 | thứ hai | 7,248 | Monday; second |
| 240 | thay đổi | 7,229 | to change, be changed; variable, varying; change |
| 241 | quá trình | 7,196 | process, stage |
| 242 | lịch sử | 7,180 | history, historical |
| 243 | cái | 7,174 | (1) [CL for most inanimate objects, isolated events]; (2) object, thing; (3) ... |
| 244 | máy bay | 7,168 | airplane, plane, aircraft |
| 245 | quan trọng | 7,153 | to be important, vital |
| 246 | xã hội | 7,124 | society; socialist |
| 247 | lấy | 7,118 | by, to, for oneself; to take adopt, charge a price; seize; to pick up, take, ... |
| 248 | xem | 6,947 | to see, watch, look |
| 249 | kinh tế | 6,940 | economy; economic, economical |
| 250 | sông | 6,910 | river, stream |
| 251 | quyền | 6,899 | (1) acting (president, etc.); (2) authority, power; (3) right (to do something) |
| 252 | thiết kế | 6,853 | to plan, design; design |
| 253 | điểm | 6,734 | grades, marks, point |
| 254 | bản | 6,701 | (1) edition, version, tablet, block, copy, print, piece, document, edition, i... |
| 255 | phiên bản | 6,673 | reproduction, version |
| 256 | rồi | 6,671 | already, then, after that, afterwards, next |
| 257 | gọi | 6,667 | to call, summon, order |
| 258 | ban đầu | 6,665 | at first, from the beginning, at the beginning, initially; initial |
| 259 | chủ yếu | 6,597 | essential, important, main, vital, principle |
| 260 | nhân vật | 6,587 | figure, personality, character, person |
| 261 | thành công | 6,565 | to succeed; be successful |
| 262 | đồng | 6,552 | (1) unit of currency, money; coin; (2) field; (3) same, co-, fellow; (4) copp... |
| 263 | hình | 6,495 | form, shape, appearance, photograph, picture |
| 264 | vấn đề | 6,478 | problem, issue, topic, matter, question |
| 265 | hàng | 6,452 | row, rank; merchandise, goods, wares; many; place; several |
| 266 | gây | 6,448 | (1) to cause, bring about, create, set up; (2) to quarrel |
| 267 | gặp | 6,425 | to meet, see, encounter, find |
| 268 | vòng | 6,425 | circle, ring, round |
| 269 | tốt | 6,423 | good |
| 270 | mặt | 6,399 | (1) right; (2) face, surface, dial; (3) side, aspect |
| 271 | cấp | 6,384 | (1) degree, grade, level, rank, step; (2) to confer, obtain, get, issue; (3) ... |
| 272 | chơi | 6,383 | to go out, be out, go for a walk, have a good time, play, amuse oneself (with... |
| 273 | bảo vệ | 6,356 | insurance, protection, defense; to preserve, guard, defend, protect |
| 274 | cho rằng | 6,321 | to say (that), state (that) |
| 275 | Tây | 6,251 | West, Western, Occidental, French |
| 276 | cung cấp | 6,243 | supply (in a market); provide; to furnish, supply, provide |
| 277 | chiến tranh | 6,221 | war, conflict |
| 278 | chọn | 6,215 | to select, choose |
| 279 | tổng | 6,161 | general, total |
| 280 | nữa | 6,144 | more, anymore, further, another |
| 281 | ảnh hưởng | 6,137 | influence, effect, impact; to influence, affect |
| 282 | coi | 6,135 | to look at, see, consider, watch |
| 283 | phát hiện | 6,120 | to discover; discovery |
| 284 | dạng | 6,092 | form, shape, format, air, appearance |
| 285 | bên | 6,073 | (1) side, face, party, team, area, place; (2) in, at (place, country) |
| 286 | ngay | 6,063 | immediately, at once, right away; to be straight, righteous, honest, exact |
| 287 | nổi tiếng | 6,049 | famous, well-known |
| 288 | nữ | 6,022 | woman, female |
| 289 | châu | 6,004 | continent, pearl |
| 290 | cho phép | 5,964 | to permit, allow, authorize, give permission (to do something) |
| 291 | liên quan | 5,959 | to concern, concerning |
| 292 | tác phẩm | 5,948 | creative work, literary work, artistic work, handiwork |
| 293 | làm việc | 5,923 | to work |
| 294 | ngoài ra | 5,918 | besides, beyond, furthermore, in addition |
| 295 | riêng | 5,915 | alone, only, separate, particular, private, personal, independent; as for |
| 296 | kết quả | 5,899 | result, outcome; as a result |
| 297 | thế kỷ | 5,898 | century |
| 298 | vị | 5,869 | (1) [CL for people], polite term for a person; (2) taste, flavor |
| 299 | thấp | 5,864 | short (of height), low, poor |
| 300 | Nhật Bản | 5,857 | Japan, Japanese |