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Adjectives & Adverbs

Adjectives follow the noun; degree words

Adjectives follow the noun they modify

NOUN + ADJECTIVE — the reverse of English.

💬 Examples
cái áo đỏ
the red shirt
📝 áo (shirt) + đỏ (red)
ngôi nhà to
the big house
📝 nhà (house) + to (big)
rất precedes; lắm follows the adjective

rất (very) goes before; lắm (very/so) goes after the adjective.

📊 Degree words
Word Position Meaning Example
rất before adj. very rất ngon
lắm after adj. very / so ngon lắm
quá after adj. too / so (excl.) đẹp quá!
hơi before adj. a bit / slightly hơi lạnh
khá before adj. quite / rather khá thú vị
💬 Examples
Cô ấy rất đẹp.
She is very beautiful.
📝 rất before adjective
Hôm nay nóng lắm!
Today is so hot!
📝 lắm after adjective
Reduplicated adjectives soften or intensify meaning

A repeated form signals a lesser degree or vagueness.

💬 Examples
đỏ đỏ
reddish
📝 reduplication = somewhat red
nhanh nhanh
fairly quickly
📝 reduplication softens intensity