ông bà anh chị em

Vietnamese

Alternative forms

ÔBACE

Etymology

ông bà (“grandparents”) +‎ anh chị em (“siblings”)

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔəwŋ͡m˧˧ ʔɓaː˨˩ ʔajŋ̟˧˧ t͡ɕi˧˨ʔ ʔɛm˧˧]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔəwŋ͡m˧˧ ʔɓaː˦˩ ʔɛɲ˧˧ t͡ɕɪj˨˩ʔ ʔɛm˧˧]
(Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʔəwŋ͡m˧˧ ʔɓaː˨˩ ʔan˧˧ cɪj˨˩˨ ʔɛm˧˧]

Pronoun

ông bà anh chị em

(Christianity, polite) brothers and sisters; you
- 2010: Patrick Joseph McGrath, Diocese of San José in California [1]
  Trên hết, tôi đặc biệt tri ân qúy ông bà anh chị em, tất cả giáo dân trong 53 giáo xứ và họ lẻ trong giáo phận.
  Above all, I am particularly grateful to [marker of respect] you, all the faithful of the 53 parishes and missions of the diocese.

Usage notes

Vietnamese pronouns usually consist of very specific kinship terms that depend on gender, age, and social status, and traditionally the language lacks a generic second person pronoun equivalent to "you". In most formal settings, a speaker usually addresses an audience as "quý vị". However, in a Christian setting where an English speaker might say "brothers and sisters", "ông bà anh chị em" is used, especially if much older people may be present. If the audience consists of people of roughly the same age as the speaker or younger, "anh chị em" is used instead.

Synonyms

Related terms

anh chị em