Questions & Answers about Tôi gọi cho bố.
What does tôi mean here, and is it the normal way to say I?
Tôi means I.
It is a neutral and polite way to refer to yourself, and it works well in textbook Vietnamese. However, in real life, Vietnamese often uses relationship-based pronouns instead of a fixed word for I.
For example, when talking to family, a speaker might say:
- con if speaking to parents
- em if speaking to an older sibling or someone slightly older
- anh or chị depending on gender and relationship
So tôi is correct, but in a real family situation, a Vietnamese speaker might more naturally say something like Con gọi cho bố.
Why is cho used after gọi?
In gọi cho bố, cho marks the person receiving the call.
So the pattern is:
gọi cho + person
This is very common when gọi means to call/phone someone.
Here, cho does not literally mean for in the English sense. It is part of a natural Vietnamese way to show who the action is directed toward.
Can I also say Tôi gọi bố without cho?