10 Simple Games and Exercises to Practise Your Vietnamese Skills
Full disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. ?
In the summer of 2015, a Vietnamese production company asked me to be the main character on a children’s TV show called Lớp Tiếng Anh Vui Vẻ, or “Funny English Class”. We spent much of the show singing songs and playing games, and the children were learning while they played.
That experience made me wonder why adults do not use playful exercises more often. A game does not replace clear explanations, good audio or feedback, but it can make another round of practice easier to start.
If you are learning Vietnamese, try the ten activities below. They cover pronouns, tones, diacritics, vocabulary, listening and writing. You can adapt most of them to another language too.
A note from the Fluent in 3 Months team before we get started: You can chat away with a native speaker for at least 15 minutes with the “Fluent in 3 Months” method. All it takes is 90 days. Tap this link to find out more.
1. Play the Family Tree Game
Vietnamese speakers often use kinship terms where English uses “I” and “you”. The choice depends on the speakers’ relationship, relative age, gender, social setting and region, so there is no single pair that works for every conversation.
For example, a younger speaker might address a slightly older man as anh and refer to themself as em. With a man of an older generation, chú and cháu are a common pairing. You will also hear con used for “I” in some family, regional and respectful settings. Bạn can mean “friend” or work as a friendly form of address, but it is not a universal default for every person of a similar age.
Draw a family tree and label each person in Vietnamese. Then choose two people and write the terms each would use for themself and the other person. Repeat the exercise from a different relative’s point of view. Have a teacher or trusted speaker check the pairs before you memorise them.
2. Move Your Body With the Tones
Vietnamese spelling distinguishes six tones: ngang, sắc, huyền, hỏi, ngã and nặng. Their pronunciation varies by region. Standard northern descriptions distinguish all six in speech, while many southern speakers merge hỏi and ngã.
You can give each written tone a simple movement:
- Ngang: hold your hand level.
- Sắc: raise your hand.
- Huyền: lower your hand.
- Hỏi: dip your hand, then bring it back up.
- Ngã: make a quick broken upward movement.
- Nặng: make a short downward tap.
These gestures are memory cues, not exact diagrams of how every speaker produces a tone. Play a recording from the variety you are studying, make the matching movement, then repeat the whole syllable. For biết, “to know”, you would use the sắc movement.
If Vietnamese tones are new to you, read this introduction to how tonal languages work before you begin.
3. Circle the Tone and Vowel Diacritics
Vietnamese uses a Latin-based alphabet, but that does not make its spelling identical to English. It has 29 letters. For example, d and đ are different letters, as are a, ă and â.
Take a short Vietnamese text and circle every tone mark in one colour. Then use another colour for marks that are part of a vowel letter, as in ă, â, ê, ô, ơ and ư. Every written syllable has a tone, including the unmarked ngang tone.
This distinction matters: a tone mark and a vowel diacritic do different jobs, and a vowel can carry both. Copy five examples exactly, then compare your version with the source character by character.
4. Sing Vietnamese Karaoke
Choose a Vietnamese song with on-screen lyrics. Listen once, then sing along while following the written words. On the next pass, pause after each line and mark any vocabulary you recognise.
Karaoke is useful for listening, rhythm and recall, but melody can change the pitch contour you would use in ordinary speech. After singing a line, listen to a spoken recording or ask a teacher to say it naturally, then repeat the spoken version. The wider technique is explained in this guide to learning a language through songs.
5. Hunt for Loanwords
Vietnamese has borrowed words from several languages. Look through a menu, advert or short article and see which words you can recognise before checking a dictionary.
- cà phê: coffee
- sô-cô-la: chocolate
- ghi-ta: guitar
- ra-đi-ô: radio
These are Vietnamese spellings, not a separate romanisation system. Do not create a Vietnamese-looking spelling from how an English word sounds. Record only forms that you find in a reliable Vietnamese dictionary or edited source, complete with their diacritics.
6. Learn With Annie, Then Teach It Back
Learn Vietnamese With Annie has lessons on tones, grammar, pronouns and vocabulary, with attention to northern and southern usage.
Watch one short lesson and take notes. Then close the video and explain the point aloud as if you were teaching someone else. Reopen the lesson, find what you missed and correct your explanation. You can do the same with my Vietnamese-learning playlist.
7. Play “I Spy” in Vietnamese
Look around and name what you can see in Vietnamese: a bus is xe buýt, clouds are mây, and a hat is mũ. If you do not know a word, note the object and look it up later.
Next, turn a label into a description: một chiếc xe buýt lớn màu xanh dương, “a big blue bus”. Then build a sentence: Một người đàn ông đang mua bánh mì. This means “A man is buying bread.”
Check the word order and classifiers with a teacher or reference before adding your sentences to a review deck.
8. Turn One New Word Into a Sentence
Choose one word from your current lesson or a service such as VietnamesePod101. Instead of copying the word on its own, write a short sentence that connects it to your life.
At the end of the week, cover your notes and try to recall the words and sentences. Check them afterwards, correct the diacritics and ask for feedback on any sentence you are unsure about.
9. Take the 30-Second Tone Challenge
Choose an open syllable that can combine with all six written tones. A common practice set is ma, má, mà, mả, mã, mạ. Give yourself 30 seconds to write the full set with the correct marks.
Then listen to each form in a reliable dictionary or course recording and repeat it. Changing a tone does not necessarily create a common word, and not every consonant and vowel combination can take all six tones. Vietnamese syllable structure limits which combinations occur.
10. Watch and Write
Pick a short Vietnamese video that suits your level. Watch once for the main idea. On the second pass, write down words or short phrases you recognise. Then turn on Vietnamese captions or use a transcript, check what you heard and replay the difficult lines.
Finish by choosing one line, copying it exactly and shadowing the speaker. Keep the clip short enough that you can check every tone mark rather than guessing. This is active listening, not a test of how much you can endure. The same principle appears in this guide to learning languages with films.
Beginner Vietnamese Videos
Use a learner video with slow, clear audio and Vietnamese text on screen. Work with one or two sentences at a time.
Intermediate Vietnamese Videos
Try a short vlog or interview with Vietnamese captions. Summarise the clip in two Vietnamese sentences after checking the transcript.
Advanced Vietnamese Videos
Use a brief news, drama or unscripted clip. Watch without captions first, then compare your notes with the Vietnamese captions or a transcript.
Make Vietnamese Practice Easier to Start
Choose one game that matches the skill you need today. If tones are slipping, do the gesture or 30-second challenge. If you understand lessons but freeze when listening, use one short video. Ten focused minutes that you can repeat tomorrow are more useful than an elaborate game you only play once.
Additional Vietnamese Resources
YouTube
General Resources
Community
Social