Lan nhắn là cô ấy sẽ đón em gái ở trường trước, rồi đưa em ấy về nhà.

Here nhắn means to send a message / to tell someone by message.

So Lan nhắn là... is like:

• Lan messaged that...
• Lan said in a message that...

In everyday Vietnamese, nhắn is often used for sending a text or leaving a message.

In this sentence, là introduces the content of the message: what Lan said.

So:

• Lan nhắn là cô ấy sẽ đón em gái... = Lan messaged that she would pick up her younger sister...

It works a lot like that in English.

In casual speech, là is sometimes omitted, especially if the meaning is already clear. But keeping it makes the sentence feel more explicit and natural in many contexts.

Cô ấy means she.

Vietnamese can repeat the name:

• Lan nhắn là Lan sẽ...

but that often sounds less natural than switching to a pronoun. So after introducing Lan, the sentence uses cô ấy to refer back to her.

That said, Vietnamese also often drops pronouns when the subject is obvious, so in real conversation you might also hear a shorter version.

Sẽ marks the future.

• cô ấy sẽ đón em gái... = she will pick up her younger sister...

It tells you the action has not happened yet at the time of speaking.

Vietnamese does not always need a future marker if the time is already clear from context, but sẽ is very common when the speaker wants to make the future meaning explicit.

Yes, here em gái most naturally means younger sister.

Breakdown:

• em = a younger sibling / younger person
• gái = female

So em gái = younger sister.

A learner should also know that Vietnamese family words are heavily context-based. In some situations, kinship terms can be used more loosely, but in this sentence the most natural reading is younger sister.

In this sentence, the most natural interpretation is her younger sister, meaning Lan’s younger sister.

Why? Because the subject is cô ấy (she), and there is no other clear owner given. Vietnamese often leaves possession unstated when it is obvious from context.

So:

• cô ấy sẽ đón em gái is naturally understood as
• she will pick up her younger sister

If the speaker wanted to make the possessor extra clear, they could say:

• em gái của cô ấy = her younger sister

But that is not necessary here.

Em ấy means something like her / that younger sibling or simply her in this context.

After em gái has already been introduced, Vietnamese often uses a shorter referring expression:

• đón em gái..., rồi đưa em ấy về nhà = pick up her younger sister, then take her home

So em ấy refers back to em gái.

Using ấy helps point back to someone already mentioned, similar to how English uses her or that person depending on context.

Yes. ở trường means at school / from school here, and it goes with đón.

So:

• đón em gái ở trường = pick up her younger sister at school

Vietnamese ở often means at / in, but in English we may translate it more naturally as from school depending on the verb.

Trước means first / before that here.

In the sentence:

• sẽ đón em gái ở trường trước, rồi đưa em ấy về nhà = will first pick up her younger sister at school, then take her home

So trước tells you the first action in the sequence.

It does not mean in front here. Vietnamese words often have more than one meaning, and context tells you which one is intended.

Here rồi links two actions in sequence and means then / after that.

So:

• đón em gái ở trường trước, rồi đưa em ấy về nhà = pick up her younger sister at school first, then take her home

Important note: rồi can also mean already in other sentences, but not here. In this sentence it is a connector showing the next action.

These two verbs are easy to confuse.

• đón = go and receive/pick someone up
• đưa = take/bring/escort someone somewhere

So in this sentence:

• đón em gái ở trường = pick up her younger sister at school
• đưa em ấy về nhà = take her home

A useful way to remember it:

• đón focuses on meeting the person and getting them
• đưa focuses on accompanying or transporting them to a destination

Because về shows movement back to a place, especially home.

• về nhà = go home / back home

So:

• đưa em ấy về nhà = take her home

Without về, the sentence would sound incomplete or unnatural. Vietnamese usually needs that movement word to show the direction.

Yes, very often it could be omitted in natural Vietnamese if the subject is already clear.

For example, people might say:

• Lan nhắn là sẽ đón em gái ở trường trước, rồi đưa em ấy về nhà.

This is still very natural because once Lan has been introduced, the listener can understand that the later actions are hers.

Vietnamese commonly drops subjects and pronouns when they are recoverable from context.

It is fairly neutral and natural.

• nhắn is common in everyday speech and messaging
• cô ấy is a normal written/spoken pronoun for she
• rồi is very common in conversational Vietnamese

In very casual speech, speakers might shorten or drop some elements, but the sentence as given is a good standard model for learners.

The main small ambiguity is em gái.

Most naturally, it means Lan’s younger sister, but Vietnamese often leaves possession unstated, so technically context is what fully confirms it.

Also, cô ấy and em ấy are both third-person references, so if there were more female people in the conversation, Vietnamese might need extra clarification. But in this standalone sentence, the meaning is clear enough:

• Lan is the one doing the actions
• em gái / em ấy is the younger sister being picked up and taken home