Introduction
The NLTV (Năng lực Tiếng Việt) A1 is the entry-level certification for Vietnamese language proficiency, equivalent to CEFR A1. At this level, you are expected to understand and use very basic Vietnamese expressions related to everyday life. The exam tests your ability to introduce yourself, ask and answer simple personal questions, and interact in a basic way with native speakers who speak slowly and clearly. Passing A1 demonstrates that you can handle the most fundamental communication situations in Vietnamese.
Exam Format
| Section | Duration | Questions | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listening | ~20 min | 15-20 | Short dialogues, announcements |
| Reading | ~30 min | 15-20 | Signs, messages, short passages |
| Writing | ~20 min | 10-15 | Fill-in-blanks, short sentences |
| Speaking | ~10 min | 5-8 | Self-intro, daily topics |
What You Need to Know
Grammar Points for A1
- là — the copula verb meaning "to be", used to link nouns and noun phrases (Tôi là sinh viên)
- không vs chưa — two ways to negate: "không" for general negation, "chưa" for "not yet"
- có ... không? — yes/no question pattern meaning "do you have...?" or "is there...?"
- này / đó / kia — demonstrative words for "this", "that", and "that over there"
- Personal pronouns — tôi, bạn, anh, chị, em and when to use each based on age and gender
- Numbers 0–100 — counting, telling prices, and stating quantities with classifiers
- Time expressions — hôm nay, hôm qua, ngày mai and telling the hour with "giờ"
- muốn / thích / cần — basic modal-like verbs meaning "want", "like", and "need"
- ở đâu? / ở — asking and stating location (Bạn ở đâu? / Tôi ở Hà Nội)
- Sentence-final particles — "à", "nhé", "ạ" to express questions, suggestions, and politeness
Essential Vocabulary Topics
- Greetings & Farewells (xin chào, tạm biệt, cảm ơn, xin lỗi)
- Numbers & Counting (một, hai, ba ... mười, hai mươi, một trăm)
- Family Members (bố, mẹ, anh, chị, em, con, ông, bà)
- Food & Drinks (cơm, phở, bánh mì, nước, cà phê, trà)
- Colors & Descriptions (đỏ, xanh, vàng, trắng, đen, lớn, nhỏ)
- Places in the City (trường, chợ, bệnh viện, nhà hàng, khách sạn)
- Daily Routines & Time (sáng, chiều, tối, ăn, ngủ, đi, đến)
- Jobs & Nationalities (giáo viên, sinh viên, Việt Nam, Nhật Bản, người Mỹ)
Sample Questions
Listening Sample
A: Xin chào! Bạn tên là gì?
B: Chào! Tôi tên là Minh. Còn bạn?
Question: What did person A ask?
- A. Where do you live?
- B. What is your name?
- C. How old are you?
Answer
Answer: B. What is your name? Explanation: Person A said "Bạn tên là gì?" which means "What is your name?" — "tên" means name and "là gì" means "is what".
Reading Sample
Read the short message and answer the question:
"Chào Lan! Tôi là Nam. Tôi ở Hà Nội. Tôi là sinh viên. Tôi học tiếng Anh."
Question: What does Nam study?
- A. Vietnamese
- B. Japanese
- C. English
Answer
Answer: C. English Explanation: The sentence "Tôi học tiếng Anh" means "I study English" — "học" means "to study" and "tiếng Anh" means the English language.
Writing Sample
Fill in the blank with the correct word (là / ở / có):
Tôi _____ sinh viên. Tôi _____ Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh.
Answer
Answer: là / ở Explanation: "Tôi là sinh viên" uses "là" (to be) to link the subject to a noun. "Tôi ở Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh" uses "ở" to indicate location (to be at / to live in).
Study Tips
- Master the six tones first — Vietnamese is tonal, and getting tones wrong changes the meaning entirely; practice each tone daily with a recording tool or language partner
- Learn personal pronouns by relationship — unlike English, Vietnamese pronouns depend on your age and relationship to the other person; memorize the core set (tôi, bạn, anh, chị, em) as a priority
- Build vocabulary in themes — group words by topic (food, family, places) rather than memorizing random lists; this matches how the A1 exam is structured
- Listen to slow Vietnamese daily — find beginner podcasts or YouTube channels with clear Southern or Northern pronunciation to train your ear before the listening section
- Practice writing diacritics by hand — being able to write tone marks correctly (à, á, ả, ã, ạ) is tested in the writing section, so don't rely only on typing