e, ê, g, h, i, k, l

Two e letters, not one

Vietnamese has e and ê, and they are two letters, not one letter with a hat. e is the open sound of em, made with the mouth wide; ê is the closed sound of ghế, made with the mouth narrow. Getting them the wrong way round changes the word, so learn each one with a word attached.

The same body, and the roof on the second one. The roof is written last, like every mark in this language.

Two letters that often work together: g on its own before a, o, u, and gh before e, ê, i.

Three straight letters. The i takes its dot last, and the l is only a tall post.

WrittenMouthA word with it
ewide openem
ênarrowghế
inarrow and smilingkia
gbefore a, o, ugà
ghbefore e, ê, ighế

con gàthe chicken

cái ghếthe chair

Words in this lesson

WordMeaningExample
emyounger siblingEm tôi còn nhỏ.
My younger sibling is still small.
ghếchairCái ghế gỗ.
A wooden chair.
gàchickenCon gà trắng.
A white chicken.
hoaflowerBông hoa đẹp.
A beautiful flower.
kemice creamTôi thích kem.
I like ice cream.
láleafChiếc lá xanh.
A green leaf.

Exercises

This lesson has 8 exercises in the app:

  • multiple choice: 3
  • trace the letter: 2
  • fill the gap: 1
  • match the pairs: 1
  • listen and type: 1

Try the first one

Before the vowels e, ê and i, the letter g changes its spelling. Which spelling is used there?

  1. gh
  2. g
  3. k
  4. h

The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.