Nghe

Nghe is a Vietnamese verb meaning to hear or to listen. It is used to describe the act of perceiving sound with the ear or paying attention to sounds, and it can be used with or without an explicit object. In Vietnamese, verbs do not conjugate for person or tense; aspect and mood are indicated by context and particles such as đang (present progressive), đã (past), and sẽ (future).

Common uses and phrases include nghe nhạc (to listen to music), nghe tiếng (to hear someone speaking or hear a sound), and nghe thấy (to hear something clearly). The expression nghe nói means “it is said” or “people say.” Another colloquial form is nghe lỏm, meaning to overhear a conversation. Nghe can also describe listening with intent, such as nghe giảng (to listen to a lecture) or nghe lời (to heed someone’s advice).

Phonology and orthography: nghe is written with the digraph ng- to indicate a velar nasal initial, and the word carries tone depending on the surrounding sentence and diacritics in proper writing. It should not be confused with nghệ, a separate root meaning art or craft found in terms like nghệ thuật (art).

See also: Vietnamese verbs, Vietnamese phonology, Vietnamese expressions involving perception.