Cảnh này xấu.

This view is ugly.

Breakdown of Cảnh này xấu.

• này: this
• cảnh: the scene; view
• xấu: ugly (in appearance)

Questions & Answers about Cảnh này xấu.

Why is này after cảnh instead of before it?

In Vietnamese, demonstratives like này (this) usually come after the noun.

So:

• cảnh này = this scene
• literally: scene this

This is normal Vietnamese word order. English says this scene, but Vietnamese usually says scene this.

You can compare:

• nhà này = this house
• người này = this person
• cảnh này = this scene

Where is the verb to be?

Vietnamese often does not use a word like English is when an adjective is the predicate.

So:

• Cảnh này xấu literally works like This scene ugly
• natural English: This scene is ugly / bad

The adjective xấu can directly describe the subject without needing a copula.

This is very common in Vietnamese:

• Trời đẹp = The weather is nice
• Nhà lớn = The house is big
• Cảnh này xấu = This scene is ugly / bad

What exactly does cảnh mean here?