See also: ngoái, ngoài, and ngoải

Vietnamese

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Etymology

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Sino-Vietnamese word from (outside). Doublet of ngoài. Compare Chinese (wài, outside; maternal), Korean 외(外) (oe, outside; maternal). A woman once married is considered belonging to a different family, hence the "inside" father's side and "outside" mother's side. See also xuất giá (to get married, literally to "get out" and get married).

Pronunciation

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Preposition

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ngoại

  1. (rare) Synonym of ngoài (except for)

Adjective

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ngoại

  1. (usually in compounds) foreign
    hàng ngoại
    foreign goods; imported goods; goods bought abroad
  2. related to the mother's side of the family
    bên ngoại(people on) one's mother's side of the family
    bà ngoạia maternal grandmother
    quê ngoạimother's birthplace

Noun

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ngoại

  1. (usually in compounds) everything foreign
    sính ngoạito love everything foreign, such as foreign goods or foreign language words, especially in an ignorant or tacky way
  2. (Southern Vietnam, used as a kinship "pronoun") maternal grandparent
    Ngoại ơi! Con đến rồi nè!Grandpa/Grandma! I'm here!
    Ngoại ơi! Con chích rồi nhé!Grandpa/Grandma! I got my (Covid-19) vaccine!

Derived terms

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Antonyms

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