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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 301 | bốn | 5,831 | four |
| 302 | xuống | 5,818 | to go down, come down, get out (of a car, vehicle) |
| 303 | bán | 5,791 | (1) to sell; (2) half, demi-, semi-, hemi- |
| 304 | vàng | 5,778 | gold, yellow |
| 305 | chính trị | 5,723 | politics, political, policy |
| 306 | chiếm | 5,712 | to occupy, take up, make up, seize, take possession, gain, usurp, win |
| 307 | tập | 5,709 | (1) to practice, drill, edit; (2) ream of paper, volume (of prose) |
| 308 | thông qua | 5,705 | by, through, via; to approve, ratify, pass |
| 309 | đánh | 5,700 | to beat, strike, hit, type, brush, play (games) |
| 310 | yêu cầu | 5,686 | requirement; to ask, request, require |
| 311 | sinh | 5,679 | to give birth; to be born, create |
| 312 | vụ | 5,675 | [CL for accidents, disasters]; business, duty, affair; case (of) |
| 313 | phụ nữ | 5,665 | woman |
| 314 | kết thúc | 5,663 | to conclude, end, finish |
| 315 | cậu | 5,653 | mother’s brother, uncle |
| 316 | nga | 5,625 | Russia |
| 317 | không được | 5,607 | don’t have; is not; can’t |
| 318 | lớp | 5,580 | (1) class, grade, rank, layer, bed; (2) classroom |
| 319 | trở lại | 5,574 | to come back, return; again |
| 320 | giảm | 5,564 | to decrease, cut down, reduce, lessen, drop, fall |
| 321 | quốc tế | 5,561 | international |
| 322 | quản lý | 5,560 | manager, manage, administer |
| 323 | giờ | 5,547 | time (of the clock), hour, o’clock; now is the time (for sth) |
| 324 | hầu hết | 5,534 | nearly (all), almost (all) |
| 325 | địa phương | 5,476 | local, region, district, area |
| 326 | xảy ra | 5,466 | to happen, occur |
| 327 | diễn ra | 5,460 | to take place, occur, happen, unfold |
| 328 | đơn vị | 5,438 | unit, district (political) |
| 329 | không phải | 5,433 | there is not, there are not; not correct |
| 330 | chạy | 5,430 | to run, drive, flow, go, operate; to rescue, save |
| 331 | hoàn toàn | 5,402 | perfect, clean, entirely, flawless, entire, complete; completely, totally |
| 332 | tuyên bố | 5,380 | to declare, state, announce |
| 333 | nhận | 5,374 | to acknowledge, admit, accept, confess, receive, recognize to claim (land) |
| 334 | dành | 5,369 | to set aside, put aside, reserve; to save, rescue |
| 335 | lúc | 5,368 | moment, instant, time; when, at the moment that |
| 336 | quận | 5,368 | county, district |
| 337 | phổ biến | 5,345 | to distribute, diffuse, make public, announce, spread, disseminate; popular, ... |
| 338 | tự | 5,334 | (1) Chinese character; (2) Buddhist temple, pagoda; (3) from, since; (4) ones... |
| 339 | quan hệ | 5,316 | relation, connection; to be important, affect, concern, correlate |
| 340 | nhằm | 5,308 | (1) in order to; mistakenly, incorrectly; on (a date); (2) to fall |
| 341 | cũng được | 5,294 | that’s ok, that’s alright |
| 342 | mẹ | 5,271 | mother |
| 343 | làng | 5,265 | village, community |
| 344 | bảng | 5,263 | bulletin, board, notice, placard, sign, table (of figures, etc.) |
| 345 | bắc | 5,257 | (1) to build (across something), put up; (2) north, northern, Chinese; (3) fe... |
| 346 | giai đoạn | 5,241 | stage, period, phase |
| 347 | đưa | 5,230 | to take, give, conduct, lead, bring (something or someone) |
| 348 | thị trấn | 5,223 | town, community |
| 349 | do đó | 5,218 | because of this or that, therefore, consequently, hence |
| 350 | the | 5,198 | (1) silk, gauze; (2) borax |
| 351 | còn lại | 5,192 | to remain, be left; remaining |
| 352 | một cách | 5,185 | in a ~ manner, ~ly |
| 353 | trang | 5,167 | (1) page; (2) decoration |
| 354 | a | 5,143 | (1) (exclamation of surprise, regret, etc.); (2) sickle; (3) to rush, dash; (... |
| 355 | tự nhiên | 5,133 | natural, automatic; suddenly; nature; of course, naturally |
| 356 | lời | 5,093 | (1) spoken words, statement; (2) interest, profit |
| 357 | duy nhất | 5,090 | single, only, unique, sole |
| 358 | khá | 5,085 | very, rather; well, good, enough |
| 359 | ít | 5,073 | little, few, rare |
| 360 | luôn | 5,059 | continuously, non-stop, on and on, often, frequently, right away, immediately... |
| 361 | trò chơi | 5,058 | game |
| 362 | gì | 5,048 | what |
| 363 | người ta | 5,026 | people (in general), they, one, you |
| 364 | trường hợp | 5,024 | case, circumstance, example |
| 365 | con người | 5,010 | person, human being |
| 366 | mối | 4,975 | (1) termite, white ant; (2) house lizard; (3) end (of entangled thread or str... |
| 367 | nền | 4,967 | [CL for political, social ideals, concepts, institutions]; foundation, base, ... |
| 368 | trung bình | 4,954 | average, mean; on average |
| 369 | thông tin | 4,946 | information, report; to inform |
| 370 | sản phẩm | 4,943 | product, produce, production, result, outcome |
| 371 | mạnh | 4,918 | strong, healthy, well, robust |
| 372 | độ | 4,907 | (1) about, approximately, around (a time); (2) degree, measure |
| 373 | trở nên | 4,906 | to turn, become |
| 374 | giành | 4,887 | to dispute, secure, reserve, set aside |
| 375 | hỗ trợ | 4,887 | to support, help (one another); help, support; aid, assistance; mutual |
| 376 | miền | 4,877 | district, area, part; region |
| 377 | vài | 4,868 | some, few, several |
| 378 | phòng | 4,852 | (1) room, office; (2) to prevent |
| 379 | hòa | 4,851 | (1) to mix, blend; (2) to draw, tie, be even (not indebted); (3) peace, harmo... |
| 380 | m | 4,849 | con chữ thứ mười lăm của bảng chữ cái chữ quốc ngữ |
| 381 | km | 4,835 | kilomet [viết tắt] |
| 382 | hướng | 4,822 | way, direction |
| 383 | trẻ | 4,816 | young |
| 384 | vai trò | 4,780 | role, part |
| 385 | cơ sở | 4,779 | (1) base (also math); (2) installation, establishment, basis, branch, facility |
| 386 | quay | 4,779 | (1) to roast (fowl, pig); (2) to turn (wheel, crank), revolve, go around, swi... |
| 387 | hội đồng | 4,762 | council, assembly, meeting, board |
| 388 | đơn | 4,753 | application, petition, request; single; to file |
| 389 | cổ | 4,749 | (1) neck, collar; (2) ancient, old, out of date, old fashioned; (3) drum; (4)... |
| 390 | xác định | 4,734 | to confirm, affirm, determine, fix, define |
| 391 | số lượng | 4,730 | quantity, amount |
| 392 | mở | 4,729 | to open, start, begin, turn on, set up |
| 393 | kỹ thuật | 4,725 | technology, technical |
| 394 | nay | 4,725 | (1) this, these; (2) today, at present, nowadays, now, at this time |
| 395 | toàn bộ | 4,724 | whole, all, entire |
| 396 | cá | 4,722 | (1) fish; (2) individual, part, unit; (3) to bet, gamble, wager |
| 397 | đĩa | 4,708 | record, disk, plate, plateful |
| 398 | âm nhạc | 4,685 | music |
| 399 | môi trường | 4,649 | environment, medium |
| 400 | chất | 4,640 | matter, material, substance, matter, agent |