Thùng rác ở ngoài.

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Breakdown of Thùng rác ở ngoài.

• ngoài: outside
• thùng rác: the trash bin

Questions & Answers about Thùng rác ở ngoài.

What does each word in Thùng rác ở ngoài do in the sentence?

A natural word-by-word breakdown is:

• thùng rác = trash can / garbage bin
  • thùng = a container, bin, barrel
  • rác = trash, garbage
• ở = a location marker meaning to be at / in / on / located at
• ngoài = outside

So the structure is basically:

• thùng rác = the thing being talked about
• ở ngoài = its location

That gives the full idea: The trash can is outside.

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

Vietnamese often does not use a separate verb like English to be when talking about location.

In English, you say:

• The trash can is outside.

In Vietnamese, you say:

• Thùng rác ở ngoài.

Here, ở already handles the idea of location, so you do not need a separate word for is.

This is very common in Vietnamese:

• Tôi ở nhà. = I am at home.
• Sách ở trên bàn. = The book is on the table.

So in location sentences, think of ở as doing the work that English expresses with is at / is in / is on.

What exactly does ở mean here?