Tiếng Việt · Word Attested

vái

[vaːj˧˦] 🎙 Say it

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

(verb) to express one's respect or worship by pressing the palms together in front of one's chest while bowing, to perform a wai

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

bày tỏ sự tôn trọng hoặc thờ phụng bằng cách ép lòng bàn tay lại với nhau

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Where it’s used: Used Toàn quốc & hải ngoại · Vietnam-wide & diaspora

Examples

– Bần đạo quả thật rất thô lỗ, xin tạ lỗi ở đây. / Nói xong lại vái dài một vái."I'm really very rude, please accept my apologies," he said and gave a long bow, his hands together in front of his chest.

Nhiều người chỉ biết đứng lặng ở ngoài cửa đền chắp tay vái ba vái rồi lặng lẽ ra về.Many people have no choice but to stand outside the temple doors in silence, bring their hands together, do the three bows of worship, and silently go home.

Wiktionary example (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources & notes

Imported from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-29); community review pending. source ↗

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

(noun) instance of such an expression, a wai

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

hành động thể hiện sự tôn trọng hoặc thờ phụng

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Common questions

What does “vái” mean?

(verb) to express one's respect or worship by pressing the palms together in front of one's chest while bowing, to perform a wai

Is “vái” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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