Bệnh nhân đứng gần y tá.

It follows a very common Vietnamese pattern:

subject + verb + location phrase

So here you have:

• Bệnh nhân = patient
• đứng = stand / be standing
• gần y tá = near the nurse

That makes the sentence structure very close to English: The patient is standing near the nurse.

Vietnamese usually does not use articles the way English does.

So Bệnh nhân can mean the patient, a patient, or just patient/patients in a context-dependent way. The same is true for y tá.

In real use, context tells you whether the speaker means a specific person or just any patient/nurse. If Vietnamese wants to be more specific, it can add other words, such as:

• một bệnh nhân = a patient
• y tá đó = that nurse
• bệnh nhân này = this patient

It can cover both, depending on context.

Vietnamese verbs do not change form the way English verbs do, so đứng can mean:

• stands
• is standing
• sometimes even a more general stands there

If you want to clearly show an action in progress, Vietnamese often adds đang:

• Bệnh nhân đang đứng gần y tá = The patient is standing near the nurse right now.

By context, or by adding time/aspect words.

The sentence Bệnh nhân đứng gần y tá has no explicit tense marker, so it is understood from the situation. If needed, Vietnamese can add words such as:

• đang = ongoing action
• đã = past
• sẽ = future

For example:

• Bệnh nhân đang đứng gần y tá = The patient is standing near the nurse.
• Bệnh nhân đã đứng gần y tá = The patient stood / had stood near the nurse.
• Bệnh nhân sẽ đứng gần y tá = The patient will stand near the nurse.

gần means near or close to.

In this sentence, it tells you where the patient is standing: near the nurse.

A useful point for English speakers: Vietnamese does not need an extra word like to after near here. So:

• gần y tá = near the nurse

not something like near to the nurse.

They are best learned as single vocabulary items, even though they are written with a space.

Vietnamese writing separates syllables, so many words that feel like one unit in meaning appear as two written parts. Here:

• bệnh nhân is one noun meaning patient
• y tá is one noun meaning nurse

So do not try to interpret them the way you would separate English words by spaces.

It specifically says the patient is standing near the nurse.

That is because đứng means to stand / to be in a standing position.

If you only want to say the patient is near the nurse, without mentioning posture, you would use something like:

• Bệnh nhân ở gần y tá = The patient is near the nurse.

So đứng adds real meaning here; it is not just filler.

y tá is generally gender-neutral in everyday Vietnamese. It does not automatically mean male or female nurse.

It is a common word for nurse, but in more formal or modern medical usage, you may also see điều dưỡng.

So:

• y tá = common everyday word
• điều dưỡng = more formal/professional term

For a learner, y tá is perfectly useful and natural to know.

You usually know from context.

As written, Bệnh nhân đứng gần y tá does not explicitly mark singular or plural the way English does. In many situations, it will be understood as singular because of the context or the translation you were given, but Vietnamese itself does not force that reading as strongly as English does.

If the speaker wants to be clearer, Vietnamese can add words such as:

• một bệnh nhân = one patient
• các bệnh nhân = the patients
• một y tá = one nurse
• các y tá = the nurses

You would usually choose a different expression, such as:

• bên cạnh y tá = beside / next to the nurse
• sát bên y tá = right beside the nurse

So the differences are roughly:

• gần y tá = near the nurse
• bên cạnh y tá = beside the nurse
• sát bên y tá = right next to the nurse

That means gần is a bit broader and does not necessarily mean immediately adjacent.