chiếc

Vietnamese

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 隻 (“classifier; single, alone”; SV: chích).

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕiək̚˧˦]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕiək̚˦˧˥]
(Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [ciək̚˦˥]

Classifier

chiếc (隻)

(formal or literary) Indicates generic inanimate nouns
Synonym: cái

Chiếc lược ngà
The Ivory Comb
(colloquial) Indicates popular vehicles, such as bicycles, motorcycles, cars, etc.
Synonym: con

Nó có hai chiếc xe máy.
He's got two motorcycles.

Usage notes

As a classifier, chiếc is usually considered as a formal, or even literary, counterpart to cái. It is mostly used colloquially when indicating some types of vehicles such as bicycles, motorcycles, cars, etc.
Also note that only cái can be used to indicate zoological body parts, except for teeth.

Derived terms

đơn chiếc

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