Meaning & Usage
The Vietnamese word giống is one of the most versatile and frequently used words at the A2 level. It expresses similarity or resemblance between two things, people, actions, or situations. In English, it covers a range of expressions including similar to, looks like, sounds like, reminds me of, and the same as. Understanding giống will immediately improve your ability to make comparisons and describe the world around you in Vietnamese.
At its core, giống answers the question: In what way are these two things alike? When you say A giống B, you are stating that A shares qualities, appearance, behavior, or characteristics with B. This is different from saying two things are identical — giống implies similarity, not necessarily perfect sameness. For exact sameness, Vietnamese speakers often add the word nhau (each other) or use giống hệt (exactly like, identical).
One important nuance is that giống can function as both a verb and a preposition-like connector in Vietnamese sentences. As a verb, it means to resemble or to be similar to. As a linking word in comparisons, it works similarly to like or similar to in English. Native speakers use it fluidly in both roles, so you will encounter it in many different sentence patterns.
In terms of formality, giống is perfectly appropriate in both casual spoken Vietnamese and more formal written contexts. It is used equally in the North and the South, making it a reliable, universally understood word regardless of regional dialect. There are no strong Hán-Việt (Sino-Vietnamese) connotations — giống is a native Vietnamese word used in everyday conversation, literature, business communication, and academic writing alike.
A helpful mental model: think of giống as a bridge connecting two items that share something in common. Whenever you want to draw a parallel between two things in Vietnamese — whether describing a person's appearance, comparing food flavors, or noting that two situations feel the same — giống is your go-to word.
Structure & Formation
The basic structure of giống follows Vietnamese's Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) word order. Below are the most important patterns you should learn at the A2 level:
| Pattern | Meaning |
|---|---|
| A + giống + B | A is similar to / looks like B |
| A + giống + B + lắm | A is very similar to B |
| A + giống + B + quá | A looks so much like B! (exclamation) |
| A + trông giống + B | A looks like B (visual resemblance) |
| A + nghe giống + B | A sounds like B (auditory resemblance) |
| A + giống hệt + B | A is exactly like / identical to B |
| A + không giống + B | A is not similar to / does not look like B |
| A + giống + B + nhau | A and B are similar to each other |
| A + giống như + B | A is just like B / A is as if B |
Note that giống như is a slightly more emphatic or literary variation that adds the flavoring particle như (like, as). It is extremely common in spoken Vietnamese and is interchangeable with plain giống in most contexts. When used with nhau, both subjects must share the similarity mutually, similar to using each other or alike in English.
Example Sentences
Basic Similarity — People and Appearance
Anh ấy trông giống bố anh ấy lắm.
He looks a lot like his father.
Em gái tôi giống tôi về tính cách.
My younger sister is similar to me in terms of personality.
Hai chị em họ trông giống nhau quá!
The two cousins look so much alike!
Comparing Objects and Things
Chiếc túi này giống túi của bạn tôi.
This bag is similar to my friend's bag.
Màu sơn này giống hệt màu sơn trong phòng khách.
This paint color is exactly the same as the color in the living room.
Điện thoại mới của cô ấy không giống điện thoại cũ chút nào.
Her new phone doesn't look anything like her old one.
Comparing Food and Taste
Món này nghe giống phở nhưng thực ra không phải.
This dish sounds like phở but it's actually not.
Hương vị của bánh này giống như bánh mẹ tôi hay làm.
The flavor of this cake is just like the cake my mom used to make.
Comparing Situations and Actions
Tình huống này giống như lần trước.
This situation is similar to last time.
Cách anh ấy nói chuyện giống một diễn viên nổi tiếng.
The way he talks is like a famous actor.
Expressing Strong or Exact Similarity
Bài hát này nghe giống hệt bài hát tôi nghe hồi nhỏ.
This song sounds exactly like the song I used to listen to as a child.
Hai căn nhà đó giống nhau từ kiến trúc đến màu sắc.
Those two houses are similar to each other from architecture to color.
Trời hôm nay giống như mùa thu ở Hà Nội.
Today's weather is just like autumn in Hanoi.
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Confusing giống with như alone
❌ Anh ấy như bố anh ấy.
✅ Anh ấy giống bố anh ấy.
While như can mean like or as in Vietnamese, using it alone to express physical or behavioral resemblance sounds unnatural or incomplete to native speakers. Giống is the correct word for similarity and resemblance. Như is better used in comparisons of manner or degree (for example, nhanh như gió — fast like the wind), not to state that one person resembles another. When in doubt, use giống for resemblance and như for manner comparisons.
Mistake 2: Adding an extra verb before giống unnecessarily
❌ Cô ấy là giống mẹ cô ấy.
✅ Cô ấy giống mẹ cô ấy.
English speakers sometimes insert [là (to be) before giống because in English we say She IS similar to her mother. In Vietnamese, giống already functions as the main verb in the sentence and does not need là before it. Adding là makes the sentence grammatically awkward and unnatural.
Mistake 3: Misplacing lắm or quá in the sentence
❌ Anh ấy rất giống bố anh ấy.
✅ Anh ấy giống bố anh ấy lắm.
While using rất (very) before adjectives is standard in Vietnamese, with giống it sounds more natural to place intensifiers like lắm or quá at the end of the sentence rather than using rất before it. Rất giống is not wrong and will be understood, but giống lắm sounds significantly more natural in everyday spoken Vietnamese.
Mistake 4: Forgetting nhau when comparing two subjects mutually
❌ Hai anh ấy giống.
✅ Hai anh ấy giống nhau.
When you want to say that two people or things resemble each other, you must include nhau at the end of the sentence. Without nhau, the sentence feels incomplete or requires a direct object to follow. This is a common omission for Korean and Japanese learners whose languages handle mutual actions differently.
Mistake 5: Using giống to mean exactly the same (identical)
❌ Hai cái này giống. (when meaning they are 100% identical)
✅ Hai cái này giống hệt nhau.
Giống alone implies similarity, not perfect identity. If you want to stress that two things are exactly the same or identical, you should use giống hệt or giống y hệt. This is a subtle but important distinction, especially in contexts like shopping, legal documents, or technical descriptions.
Cultural Notes
In Vietnamese daily life, commenting on physical resemblance within families is very common and considered a warm, positive form of conversation. Saying Con bé giống mẹ quá! (The little girl looks so much like her mother!) is a typical compliment Vietnamese people pay when meeting a family for the first time. It signals that you are paying attention and creates an immediate sense of warmth and connection.
Vietnamese people also frequently use giống when discussing food — comparing a restaurant dish to a home-cooked version, or noting that a new dish reminds them of something from their hometown. Food is deeply tied to identity and memory in Vietnamese culture, so phrases like ngon giống như mẹ nấu (delicious, just like mom's cooking) carry significant emotional weight.
Regarding regional differences: giống is used consistently across Northern, Central, and Southern Vietnamese dialects. However, in the South, you may hear y or y chang used interchangeably with giống hệt to mean exactly the same. For example, Southern speakers might say y chang nhau where a Northern speaker would say giống hệt nhau. Both are widely understood throughout Vietnam.
In business and professional settings, giống is frequently used when making comparisons during presentations or negotiations — for example, comparing a new product to a competitor's, or noting that a contract clause is similar to a previous agreement. It is a neutral, professional word suitable for all contexts.
Related Grammar Points
- vì...nên — Because...So (Cause & Effect) (Grammar A2)
- nếu...thì — If...Then (Conditionals) (Grammar A2)
- và, hoặc, nhưng — And, Or, But (Grammar A2)
- từng — Past Experience (Have Ever) (Grammar A2)
- bằng — Equal Comparison (As...As) (Grammar A2)
- hay — Often, Usually (Habit) (Grammar A2)
Practice Tips
For the NLTV A2 level exam, you are expected to recognize and produce basic comparison sentences. Giống frequently appears in reading comprehension passages describing people, objects, and everyday situations. Practice identifying it in context before focusing on production.
A highly effective practice technique is the photo comparison exercise: find two similar images — two buildings, two meals, two people — and write three to five sentences using giống, giống nhau, không giống, and giống hệt to describe them. This forces you to use all major patterns in one sitting.
For speaking practice, try the game of celebrity comparisons with a language partner: describe which Vietnamese actor or singer someone reminds you of. This creates natural, motivated use of giống in real conversation.
On NLTV A2 listening tests, pay close attention when speakers compare two options — for example, when discussing which restaurant, product, or place to choose. Giống and khác (different) often appear as contrasting key words that determine the correct answer.
Finally, keep a small notebook of giống sentences you hear in Vietnamese media — dramas, YouTube cooking videos, or travel vlogs are excellent sources. Write down each sentence with its context, and review them weekly. Seeing the word in authentic, meaningful contexts is the fastest path to making it a permanent part of your active vocabulary.