tứ

See also: Appendix:Variations of "tu"

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [tɨ˧˦]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [tɨ˨˩˦]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [tɨ˦˥]

• Audio (Hà Nội):

  (file)

Etymology 1

Romanization

tứ

1. Sino-Vietnamese reading of 四 (“four”)

Usage notes

• Like all Sino-Vietnamese numerals smaller than triệu (“million”), the "standard" reading tứ itself is never used as a cardinal number (for counting, etc.), where native numerals are used instead; its use therefore is restricted to compounds.

  bốn căn nhà (never *tứ/tư căn nhà) ― four houses

• However, the variant tư is used in titles (e.g. chú tư) and in forming numerals bigger than 10.

  bốn mươi tư ― forty-four

• Comparing to Chinese and other Sino-Xenic languages, there is little to no taboo regarding the number "four" (tetraphobia) in Vietnamese. In fact, tứ/tư is actually one of the few Sino-Vietnamese numerals that enjoy usages outside of fixed compounds, and the one of the two Sino-Vietnamese items (along không (“zero”)) that had penetrated into the (lower) cardinal counting system, where it coexists with native bốn.

Derived terms

• bộ tứ
• đệ tứ
• tứ chi
• tứ diện
• tứ đức
• tứ giác
• Tứ Hải
• tứ kết
• Tứ Linh
• tứ phía
• Tứ Phủ
• tứ quý
• tứ trụ
• tứ tung
• tứ tuyệt
• Tứ Xuyên
• tứ xứ

 

See also

• bốn; tư

Etymology 2

Romanization

tứ

1. Sino-Vietnamese reading of 思 (“thought”)

Derived terms

• lao tâm khổ tứ
• thi tứ
• tình tứ
• ý tứ

 

Etymology 3

Romanization

tứ

1. Sino-Vietnamese reading of 肆

Derived terms

• thị tứ

 

Etymology 4

Romanization

tứ

1. Sino-Vietnamese reading of 賜

Derived terms

• hạ tứ