Tôi uống ít nước.

I

Breakdown of Tôi uống ít nước.

• uống: to drink
• nước: the water
• ít: little; few

Questions & Answers about Tôi uống ít nước.

What is the basic word order in Tôi uống ít nước?

The sentence follows normal Vietnamese Subject + Verb + Object/quantity phrase order:

• Tôi = subject
• uống = verb
• ít nước = quantity phrase meaning a small amount of water

So the structure is very close to English I drink little water.

What does tôi mean, and is it always the right word for I?

Tôi is a common, neutral way to say I in Vietnamese. It is safe in many situations, especially if you do not know the relationship between speakers.

However, Vietnamese pronouns depend a lot on age, social relationship, and context. In real life, people may use other words instead of tôi, such as:

• mình
• em
• anh
• chị
• con
• cháu

So tôi is correct, but it is not the only possible word for I.

Why is ít placed before nước?

In Vietnamese, quantity words usually come before the noun they modify.

So:

• ít nước = little water
• nhiều nước = much/a lot of water
• một ít nước = a little water

This is different from some structures in English, but it is normal in Vietnamese.

What exactly does mean here?