Learn Hardcore Vietnamese: Chúng tôi uống cà phê vào buổi sáng.

Chúng tôi is the first-person plural pronoun in Vietnamese, meaning we or us. It’s built from chúng (“group”) + tôi (“I”), and it excludes the listener.

What’s the difference between chúng tôi, chúng ta, and chúng mình?

chúng tôi: “we/us” excluding the listener.
chúng ta: “we/us” including the listener.
chúng mình: informal “we/us,” usually inclusive in the South (but can be exclusive in the North). It’s friendlier or more casual.

What does uống mean? Can it be used for anything besides drinks?

uống means to drink and is used only with liquids (water, coffee, tea, etc.). For eating solids, Vietnamese uses ăn.

Why is vào used in vào buổi sáng? Is it always required?

vào functions like English “in” or “at” for time expressions. You’ll see it before parts of the day (buổi sáng, buổi chiều), dates (ngày, tháng, năm) and so on. In casual speech or when the time phrase is fronted, you can sometimes drop vào, but including it is standard.

Why do we say buổi sáng instead of just sáng?