Vietnamese xin has a lexical core—asking to receive something or asking for permission—and a second life as a polite, often formal preface. It appears in xin phép “ask permission,” xin nghỉ “request leave,” xin việc “apply for a job,” and formulas such as xin chào, xin lỗi, and xin cảm ơn. No single English word covers that network.
The form xin never conjugates. Time and viewpoint come from markers and context: đã xin phép “asked permission,” đang xin việc “is applying for work,” sẽ xin nghỉ “will request leave.” A useful reference therefore maps the construction after xin, not imaginary tense forms. This page focuses on xin; hospitality and invitations with mời belong on the dedicated mời page.
Construction map
| Frame | Core function | Typical example | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| xin + noun | ask to receive something | xin một bản sao | neutral; context controls politeness |
| xin + activity/status | apply for or request it | xin việc, xin nghỉ | neutral |
| xin phép + person + action | ask permission | xin phép cô về sớm | polite |
| xin được + action | formally request permission/opportunity | xin được phát biểu | formal |
| xin + polite act | perform a conventional speech act | xin cảm ơn, xin chia buồn | polite to formal |
| xin vui lòng + action | institutional “please” | xin vui lòng chờ | formal/service language |
Asking to receive something
With a noun phrase, xin presents the subject as seeking to receive it. The person asked can follow the requested thing directly in everyday expressions such as xin tiền bố mẹ “ask one’s parents for money.” When the participants or requested action need to be explicit, Vietnamese often expands the frame, as in xin phòng nhân sự cấp giấy xác nhận “ask human resources to issue a confirmation letter.” In real interactions, kinship pronouns and softeners help make the request socially appropriate.
Cho em xin một bản sao hóa đơn được không ạ?
Could I have a copy of the receipt, please? (polite)
Tôi đã xin phòng nhân sự cấp giấy xác nhận công tác.
I asked the human resources department to issue an employment confirmation letter.
The highly productive service frame cho + speaker + xin + object literally presents the object as something the speaker asks to be given. It is often the natural equivalent of English “Could I have...?” Cho tôi một cà phê can sound abrupt in some settings; cho tôi xin một cà phê is softer, though local service styles and tone still matter.
Xin việc is not “ask for a job” in one particular conversation; it normally means apply or seek employment. Nộp đơn xin việc is “submit a job application.” Similarly, xin học bổng, xin visa, and xin cấp lại giấy tờ name application processes (neutral to formal).
Sau khi tốt nghiệp, chị ấy xin việc ở ba công ty công nghệ.
After graduating, she applied for jobs at three technology companies.
Permission, leave, and requested action
Xin phép + person + action explicitly asks the relevant person for permission. The person can be omitted when obvious. Xin + activity is conventional in institutional contexts: xin nghỉ “request leave,” xin thôi việc “resign/request to leave employment,” xin gia hạn “request an extension.”
Em xin phép thầy ra ngoài gọi điện một lát ạ.
May I step outside to make a quick call? (polite)
Ngày mai tôi phải đưa con đi khám nên muốn xin nghỉ một buổi.
Tomorrow I have to take my child to the doctor, so I’d like to request half a day off.
Xin được + predicate foregrounds the speaker’s request to be allowed or given the opportunity to act. It is common in speeches, meetings, applications, and careful announcements (formal). In ordinary conversation it can sound ceremonious; cho tôi...được không? or tôi có thể...được không? is often more natural.
Tôi xin được trình bày thêm hai điểm trước khi hội đồng biểu quyết.
I would like permission to present two additional points before the committee votes. (formal)
Compare xin ai làm gì, where the speaker appeals to someone to act, with xin phép ai làm gì, where the speaker requests authorization for the speaker or another understood person to act. The former can sound earnest or pleading; everyday favors are frequently framed with nhờ, giúp, or được không instead.
Tôi xin anh giữ kín chuyện này cho đến khi có thông báo chính thức.
I ask you to keep this confidential until there is an official announcement. (earnest/formal)
Polite formulas: conventional wholes
In xin chào, xin lỗi, xin cảm ơn, xin chúc mừng, xin chia buồn, and xin lưu ý, xin does not always describe a literal transfer. It frames the speech act deferentially. These are best learned as constructions.
Xin cảm ơn quý khách đã kiên nhẫn chờ đợi.
Thank you for waiting patiently. (formal service language)
Xin lưu ý, cửa lên máy bay sẽ đóng trước giờ khởi hành mười lăm phút.
Please note that the boarding gate will close fifteen minutes before departure. (formal announcement)
Xin vui lòng + predicate is common on signs, forms, websites, and scripted service announcements (formal). It can be translated as please, but it is not the default way to soften every household request. A parent saying Con đóng cửa giúp mẹ nhé is natural; inserting xin vui lòng would sound bureaucratic or playfully exaggerated.
Aspect, negation, questions, and particles
Aspect scopes over the requesting event, not the requested outcome. Tôi đã xin nghỉ says the leave request was made; it does not say the manager approved it. Đang xin việc describes an ongoing job search/application process. Xin rồi presents the request as already made and currently relevant.
Tôi đã xin gia hạn rồi nhưng chưa nhận được phản hồi.
I’ve already requested an extension, but I haven’t received a response.
Negation can reject the requesting event (không xin) or state that it has not happened yet (chưa xin). Questions normally specify the requested thing, permission, or recipient: xin gì, xin ai, xin phép chưa, xin ở đâu.
A minimal five-way contrast
| Function | Vietnamese | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| affirmative | Tôi xin một bản sao. | I request a copy. |
| negative | Tôi không xin đặc cách. | I am not asking for special treatment. |
| question | Anh đã xin phép quản lý chưa? | Have you asked the manager for permission yet? |
| aspect-marked | Chị ấy đang xin việc. | She is applying for jobs. |
| idiomatic collocation | Xin lỗi vì đã để anh chờ lâu. | I’m sorry for keeping you waiting. |
How the frame changes the interpretation
— Em xin gì đấy? — Em xin phép về sớm, chứ không xin nghỉ cả ngày. — Em đã xin trưởng nhóm chưa? — Dạ rồi. Anh ấy bảo em gửi thêm email cho phòng nhân sự. — Được, em cứ làm vậy nhé.
— What are you requesting? — I’m asking permission to leave early, not requesting the whole day off. — Have you asked the team leader yet? — Yes. He told me to send an additional email to human resources. — All right, go ahead and do that.
Here xin phép về sớm requests authorization for an action, xin nghỉ cả ngày requests a leave period, and đã xin trưởng nhóm treats the team leader as the person approached. The stable word xin gets its precise sense from its complement and participants.
Common Mistakes
1. Copying English “ask for” with an unnecessary preposition. The requested object normally follows xin directly.
❌ Tôi xin cho một bản sao hợp đồng.
Incorrect for ‘I request a copy of the contract’—cho wrongly changes the participant structure.
✅ Tôi xin một bản sao hợp đồng.
I request a copy of the contract.
2. Treating xin vui lòng as the universal conversational word for “please.” It sounds institutional in an intimate request.
❌ Con xin vui lòng đưa mẹ lọ muối.
Unnatural in ordinary family conversation—the wording sounds like a public notice.
✅ Con đưa mẹ lọ muối với nhé.
Pass me the salt, please. (informal family conversation)
3. Assuming đã xin entails approval. It completes the request, not the authority’s decision.
❌ Tôi đã xin nghỉ nên sếp chắc chắn đã đồng ý.
Faulty inference—making a leave request does not guarantee approval.
✅ Tôi đã xin nghỉ nhưng sếp chưa trả lời.
I requested leave, but my boss hasn’t replied.
4. Using xin where mời performs hospitality. Xin marks the polite preface; mời performs the invitation or courteous directive.
❌ Xin anh ngồi ạ.
Awkward as a host’s invitation to sit—the hospitality predicate is missing.
✅ Mời anh ngồi ạ.
Please have a seat. (polite)
5. Reading xin việc as a one-off request that someone hand over a job. It is the conventional expression for seeking/applying for work.
✅ Tôi đang xin việc nên tuần này có hai buổi phỏng vấn.
I’m applying for jobs, so I have two interviews this week.
Key Takeaways
- Map xin by its complement: a requested object, permission, leave, employment, or permission to act.
- Use xin phép + person + action for explicit authorization and xin được + action for a formal request to act.
- Learn xin lỗi, xin cảm ơn, and xin vui lòng as register-sensitive formulas, not word-for-word uses of English please.
- Aspect marks the requesting event; it never guarantees that the request was granted.
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- Iconic Order of Sub-eventsA2 — Understand why Vietnamese verb sequences usually present motion, action, direction, and result in the order in which listeners conceptualize them.