How to say thank you in Vietnamese

Both spellings are in everyday use. Cảm ơn is the form you'll see most in writing, and cám ơn is very common in speech and casual messages, especially in the South. Nobody will think either is a mistake.

The word is made of cảm (to feel) and ơn (a kindness, a favour), the same ơn as in làm ơn (please, literally do a kindness). So cảm ơn is, quite literally, feeling the kindness someone did you.

For the sound: the c is a k with no puff of air, which English ears often hear as a g. Cảm has the hỏi tone, which dips, and ơn is flat. If tones are new to you, start with our guide to Vietnamese tones.

On its own, cảm ơn is fine with shop staff or a stranger who holds a door. With anyone else, add their pronoun after it: Cảm ơn anh, Cảm ơn chị, Cảm ơn em, Cảm ơn bạn. It sounds warmer and more natural, a bit like adding someone's name in English.

To be more polite, put your own pronoun first and ạ at the end: Em cảm ơn chị ạ. With anyone your parents' age or older, this is the form to use. Not sure which word fits? Our guide to Vietnamese pronouns has a simple chart.

To make it stronger, add nhiều (a lot) or rất nhiều (very much). To make it lighter and friendlier, add nhé in the North or nha in the South.

Xin cảm ơn is the formal version, for speeches, announcements and the end of a presentation. For deep gratitude, use biết ơn (to be grateful), which is weightier than cảm ơn.

Young people, especially in Saigon, also say the English thanks, often mixed with Vietnamese (Thanks nha!), and type tks in messages.

To say what you're thankful for, use cảm ơn + person + đã + what they did. Đã shows it has already happened: Cảm ơn bạn đã giúp đỡ, thanks for your help.

Or use a noun with của (of): Cảm ơn lời khuyên của anh, thanks for your advice. Both patterns work in speech, messages and emails.

After a meal at someone's home, thank them and praise the food in one go: Cảm ơn bác, bác nấu ngon quá! (Thank you, your cooking is delicious!). At the end of a formal email, the usual closing is Trân trọng cảm ơn (With sincere thanks).

You'll need this one in tourist areas, where motorbike taxi drivers and vendors offer you things all day. Không, cảm ơn is polite and clear. Thôi, cảm ơn is softer, like I'm fine, thanks. Say it with a smile and keep walking.

At a Vietnamese home, your host will keep filling your bowl. To stop, say you're full (no rồi) and thank them. You may need to say it twice: offering more is part of being a good host.

The standard reply is Không có gì, literally it's nothing: the Vietnamese you're welcome. Add đâu to make it warmer: Không có gì đâu. In the South you'll also hear Không có chi, and among friends Có gì đâu (no big deal).

If someone thanks you very formally, you can tell them not to stand on ceremony: đừng khách sáo (don't be so formal). With someone older, start with dạ and end with ạ: Dạ, không có gì ạ.

Don't mix it up with không sao (it's OK, no problem). That's the answer to xin lỗi (sorry), not to thanks.

Among family and very close friends, Vietnamese say cảm ơn less often than English speakers say thanks. Thanking your mother for dinner, or your best friend for a lift, can sound oddly formal, as if you were a guest. That's exactly what khách sáo means: acting polite like a guest with people who are close to you. Care is shown by doing things back.

With everyone else, thanks are welcome, and foreigners who use them are appreciated. Thank the street vendor, the Grab driver and the person who shows you the way. Take a gift or a cup of tea from an elder with both hands and say Cháu cảm ơn bác ạ. It's also usual not to open a gift in front of the giver unless they ask you to.

When someone compliments your Vietnamese (and they will, after two words), cảm ơn is fine, but a modest Bạn quá khen rồi (you're too kind) sounds even more natural.

In the easy1000words app, cảm ơn, không có gì and không sao are among the 1,000 most common words, each with recorded audio and examples. Pair them with hello in Vietnamese and the Introductions phrasebook, and you can handle a whole first conversation.