# Chứ ai: who else, what else, of course in Vietnamese

> Chứ followed by a question word marks an answer as so obvious that the question hardly needed asking.

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chu-ai-who-else/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**who else, what else, of course**

Pattern: `[answer] + chứ ai! · [guess] + chứ gì? (right?) · Chứ sao! · Chứ còn gì nữa!`

Level: B1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday · Medium: spoken

Typed without accents: chu ai, chu gi, chu sao

Saigon: chứ sao; chứ còn gì nữa | Hà Nội: chứ sao; chứ còn gì nữa; chứ lị

*Chứ* followed by a question word marks an answer as so obvious that the question hardly needed asking. *Ai* is "who", so *… chứ ai!* means "…, who else?": *Ai nấu món này vậy?* *Má em chứ ai!* Who cooked this? My mum, who else! The answer comes first, and *chứ ai* closes it.

After a guess, *chứ gì* means "…, I bet" or "…, didn't you?": *Em lại thức khuya coi phim chứ gì?* You stayed up watching films again, didn't you? You're fairly sure, and a little teasing.

To agree strongly, say *Chứ sao!* or *Chứ còn gì nữa!*: "Of course! What else?" In Hà Nội you'll also hear *chứ lị*: *Có chứ lị!* Of course!

These are casual, and most hint that the other person should have known, so keep them for friends and family. With someone older, a plain answer with *dạ* is safer: *Dạ, má em nấu.*

You know the plain *chứ*. At the end of an answer, *Biết chứ!* is a warm "of course". At the end of a question, *Mai em đi chứ?* hopes for a yes. With *ai*, *gì* or *sao* after it, *chứ* treats the answer as obvious.

## Examples

- Saigon: Ai nấu món này mà ngon vậy? | Hà Nội: Ai nấu món này mà ngon thế? — Who cooked this? It's so good!
- Saigon: Má em chứ ai! | Hà Nội: Mẹ em chứ ai! — My mum, who else!
- Saigon: Em lại thức khuya coi phim chứ gì? | Hà Nội: Em lại thức khuya xem phim chứ gì? — You stayed up watching films again, didn't you?
- Saigon: Vậy là mình được nghỉ ba ngày hả? | Hà Nội: Thế là mình được nghỉ ba ngày à? — So we get three days off?
- Chứ còn gì nữa! — Of course! What else?

## Compare

- [Of course! … chứ](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chu-of-course/): of course
- [Expecting yes: … chứ?](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chu-question/): surely …, aren't you?
- [After all, obviously: … (rồi) còn gì](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/con-gi-obviously/): it's obvious, after all (mild reproach)

Previous in Words at the start and end of a sentence: [No wonder: hèn chi / thảo nào](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/thao-nao-no-wonder/)
Next in Words at the start and end of a sentence: [Running into something bad: verb + phải](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/phai-bad-luck/)

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