As demonstrated in the alphabet, the Vietnamese writing system uses seven modified letters. Four have separated diacritical marks: ă, â, ê, and ô. Three have connected diacritical marks: đ, ơ, and ư. This chapter provides further details of the modified letters.
Modified Letters
Letter Ă
The ă has a breve placed above the letter a. The a-breve can take on an additional acute (ắ), grave (ằ), hook above (ẳ), tilde (ẵ), or underdot (ặ). A breve is curved and must not be mistaken for a pointed caron, which does not exist in the Vietnamese writing system.
ă ắ ằ ẳ ẵ ặ
ă ắ ằ ẳ ẵ ặ
ă ắ ằ ẳ ẵ ặ
ă ắ ằ ẳ ẵ ặ
Letter Â
The â has a circumflex placed above the letter a. The a-circumflex can take on an additional acute (ấ), grave (ầ), hook above (ẩ), tilde (ẫ), or underdot (ậ). In Vietnamese, a chevron-shaped circumflex is also used on e (ê) and o (ô).
â ấ ầ ẩ ẫ ậ
â ấ ầ ẩ ẫ ậ
â ấ ầ ẩ ẫ ậ
â ấ ầ ẩ ẫ ậ
Letter Đ
The đ has a cross bar through the letter d. The đ is an initial-only consonant. The uppercase Đ has a horizontal bar in the middle of the cap height of the letter D. The lowercase đ has a bar centered between the ascender and the x-height of the letter d.
Letter Ê
The ê has a circumflex placed above the letter e. The e-circumflex can take on an additional acute (ế), grave (ề), hook above (ể), tilde (ễ), or underdot (ệ). In Vietnamese, a chevron-shaped circumflex is also used on a (â) and o (ô).
ê ế ề ể ễ ệ
ê ế ề ể ễ ệ
ê ế ề ể ễ ệ
ê ế ề ể ễ ệ
Letter Ô
The ô has a circumflex placed above the letter o. The o-circumflex can take on an additional acute (ố), grave (ồ), hook above (ổ), tilde (ỗ), or underdot (ộ). In Vietnamese, a chevron-shaped circumflex is also used on a (â) and e (ê).
ô ố ồ ổ ỗ ộ
ô ố ồ ổ ỗ ộ
ô ố ồ ổ ỗ ộ
ô ố ồ ổ ỗ ộ
Letter Ơ
The ơ has a horn attached and aligned to the right of the letter o. The o-horn can take on an additional acute (ớ), grave (ờ), hook above (ở), tilde (ỡ), or underdot (ợ). In Vietnamese, a horn is also used on u (ư).
ơ ớ ờ ở ỡ ợ
ơ ớ ờ ở ỡ ợ
ơ ớ ờ ở ỡ ợ
ơ ớ ờ ở ỡ ợ
Letter Ư
The ư has a horn attached and aligned to the right of the letter u. The u-horn can take on an additional acute (ứ), grave (ừ), hook above (ử), tilde (ữ), or underdot (ự). In Vietnamese, a horn is also used on o (ơ).
ư ứ ừ ử ữ ự
ư ứ ừ ử ữ ự
ư ứ ừ ử ữ ự
ư ứ ừ ử ữ ự