# Càng … càng: the more … the more in Vietnamese (B1)

> Càng … càng links two things that grow together, like English "the more …, the more …".

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/cang-cang/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**the more … the more**

Pattern: `[person] + càng + [A] + (thì) + (person 2) + càng + [B]`

Level: B1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: cang … cang

*Càng … càng* links two things that grow together, like English "the more …, the more …". Put *càng* before each of the two verbs or adjectives: *Càng nghĩ càng buồn.* The more I think about it, the sadder I feel. *Tiếng Việt càng học càng thấy hay.* The more I learn Vietnamese, the more I enjoy it.

When the two halves have different subjects, each keeps its own, and *thì* often joins them: *Em càng giải thích thì sếp càng giận.* The more I explained, the angrier my boss got. *Càng* comes after the person and right before the verb or adjective.

With *tốt* (good) at the end, it means "the …er, the better": *Càng sớm càng tốt.* The sooner the better. It's a handy phrase at work: *Anh gửi cho em càng sớm càng tốt nha.*

You know *ngày càng* (more and more): *Sài Gòn ngày càng đông.* That's the same *càng*, with time as the first half. Use *càng … càng* when one change brings the other with it.

## A common mistake

✗ Càng nhiều em học, càng giỏi.

✓ Em càng học nhiều thì càng giỏi.

English starts with "the more". In Vietnamese, *càng* goes right before the verb, and *nhiều* (a lot) comes after it.

## Examples

- Càng nghĩ càng buồn. — The more I think about it, the sadder I feel.
- Tiếng Việt càng học càng thấy hay. — The more I learn Vietnamese, the more I enjoy it.
- Em càng giải thích thì sếp càng giận. — The more I explained, the angrier my boss got.
- Saigon: Anh gửi cho em càng sớm càng tốt nha. | Hà Nội: Anh gửi cho em càng sớm càng tốt nhé. — Please send it to me as soon as you can.

## Compare

- [More and more: (càng) ngày càng](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/ngay-cang/): increasingly

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