# Cho: send / buy / sell to, work for in Vietnamese (A2)

> Most verbs of sending, buying, selling or making put the thing first, then cho and the person: Em gửi tiền cho ba mẹ. I send money to my parents.

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/cho-to-for/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**send / buy / sell to, work for**

Pattern: `[verb] + [thing] + cho + [person] · [verb] + cho + [person] + [long object] · làm việc cho + [company]`

Level: A2 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Most verbs of sending, buying, selling or making put the thing first, then *cho* and the person: *Em gửi tiền cho ba mẹ.* I send money to my parents. *Cho* works like "to" or "for" here: *Anh mua hoa cho vợ.* I bought flowers for my wife.

When the thing is long, *cho* and the person can come straight after the verb, and the thing goes last: *Chị gửi cho em cái hình hôm qua nha.* Can you send me yesterday's photo? (In Hà Nội, *ảnh*.) Both orders are common in speech.

Two everyday uses: *gọi cho* is "phone someone": *Tối anh gọi cho em nha.* And *làm cho* or *làm việc cho* is "work for": *Chị làm cho một công ty Nhật.* I work for a Japanese company.

*Cho* means "for someone's benefit", so it doesn't translate the "for" in "wait for": *chờ em* (wait for me) needs nothing in between.

*Cho* as the main verb, "give", is different: the person comes first, *cho em cái này*. And with *kể* (tell a story), the person after *cho* is followed by *nghe*: *Kể cho em nghe đi.* Tell me.

## A common mistake

✗ Anh mua vợ hoa.

✓ Anh mua hoa cho vợ.

English can say "bought my wife flowers", but *mua* can't put the person first. The thing comes first, then *cho* and the person.

## Examples

- Saigon: Em gửi tiền cho ba mẹ mỗi tháng. | Hà Nội: Em gửi tiền cho bố mẹ mỗi tháng. — I send money to my parents every month.
- Hôm qua anh mua hoa cho vợ. — I bought my wife flowers yesterday.
- Saigon: Chị gửi cho em cái hình hôm qua nha. | Hà Nội: Chị gửi cho em cái ảnh hôm qua nhé. — Can you send me yesterday's photo?
- Chị làm cho một công ty Nhật. — I work for a Japanese company.
- Saigon: Tối anh gọi cho em nha. | Hà Nội: Tối anh gọi cho em nhé. — I'll call you tonight.

## Words in this pattern

- [cho](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/cho-for/#s_cho_for): for

## Compare

- [Give someone something: cho / tặng + person + thing](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/cho-give-order/): give (no 'to')
- [Telling someone: kể / nói … cho … nghe](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/cho-nghe/): tell (to someone)

Previous in Là, có, and how verbs work together: [The very, exactly: chính](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chinh-very/)
Next in Là, có, and how verbs work together: [Try doing: verb + thử (coi / xem)](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/thu-try/)

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