Cà phê này khá ngon.

to be

Breakdown of Cà phê này khá ngon.

• cà phê: the coffee
• này: this
• ngon: delicious

Questions & Answers about Cà phê này khá ngon.

What does này mean in this sentence and why is it placed after cà phê?

này is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “this.” In Vietnamese, demonstratives like này (this) and đó (that) typically follow the noun they modify. So cà phê này literally means “coffee this,” i.e. “this coffee.”

Why is there no word for “is” (like là) in Cà phê này khá ngon?

Vietnamese often omits a copula when an adjective follows the subject. Adjectives can function directly as predicates. Inserting là would be grammatically possible but redundant and less natural in casual speech. You could say Cà phê này khá là ngon, but most speakers simply drop là: Cà phê này khá ngon.

What part of speech is khá, and what nuance does it add to ngon?

khá is an adverb meaning “quite,” “rather,” or “fairly.” It modifies the adjective ngon (“delicious”), softening the praise to indicate the coffee is above average in taste but not necessarily “extremely” delicious.

Why does khá come before ngon instead of after?

In Vietnamese, adverbs of degree (like khá, rất, hơi) precede the adjective they modify. So the order is always: subject + (adverb) + adjective. Placing khá after ngon would be ungrammatical.