# Bao giờ chưa: have you ever? / never yet in Vietnamese

> You know … chưa? for "yet": Em ăn cơm chưa? To ask "have you ever …?", put bao giờ before chưa: Anh ăn sầu riêng bao giờ chưa? Have you ever eaten durian?

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chua-bao-gio-ever/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**have you ever? / never yet**

Pattern: `[person] + (đã) + [verb] + bao giờ / lần nào + chưa? · [person] + chưa + [verb] + bao giờ · chưa bao giờ + [verb]`

Level: A2 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: bao gio chua, chua bao gio, lan nao chua

Variants:

- (đã) từng / chưa từng + [verb]

You know *… chưa?* for "yet": *Em ăn cơm chưa?* To ask "have you ever …?", put *bao giờ* before *chưa*: *Anh ăn sầu riêng bao giờ chưa?* Have you ever eaten durian? *Lần nào chưa* (any time yet) works the same way.

To answer yes, say *rồi*, often with when or how many times: *Rồi, mấy lần rồi.* To answer no, say *chưa*, or *chưa bao giờ* (never): *Dạ, chưa bao giờ.*

In a statement, *chưa bao giờ* goes before the verb: *Em chưa bao giờ đi máy bay.* I've never been on a plane. You'll also hear *chưa* before the verb and *bao giờ* at the end: *Tôi chưa đi Phú Quốc bao giờ.* Both are everyday. *Từng* means "at some time, ever": *Tôi từng sống ở Hà Nội* (I once lived in Hà Nội), and *chưa từng* is another "never yet".

Keep *chưa bao giờ* and *không bao giờ* apart. *Chưa bao giờ* is "never, up to now", and it may still happen. *Không bao giờ* is "never" as a habit or a firm decision: *Tôi không bao giờ uống rượu.* I never drink alcohol.

## A common mistake

✗ Tôi không bao giờ đi Huế.

✓ Tôi chưa bao giờ đi Huế.

*Không bao giờ* says you never do it, as a rule. For "I've never been, so far", use *chưa bao giờ*.

## Examples

- Anh ăn sầu riêng bao giờ chưa? — Have you ever eaten durian?
- Rồi, anh ăn mấy lần rồi. — Yes, a few times.
- Em chưa bao giờ đi máy bay. — I've never been on a plane.
- Tôi chưa đi Phú Quốc bao giờ. — I've never been to Phú Quốc.
- Saigon: Ba tôi không bao giờ uống cà phê. | Hà Nội: Bố tôi không bao giờ uống cà phê. — My dad never drinks coffee.

## Words in this pattern

- [bao giờ](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/bao-gio/#s_bao_gio_ever): ever

## Compare

- [How often: thường, luôn, thỉnh thoảng before the verb](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/frequency-position/): frequency words
- [Have you … yet? (đã) … chưa](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/da-chua-question/): have you … yet?
- [Each one in turn: từng](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/tung-each-one/): each one, one by one
- [Not at all, never ever: không hề / chưa hề](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/khong-he-never/): not in the least

Previous in Time and when things happen: [Before and after doing: trước khi / sau khi](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/truoc-khi-sau-khi/)
Next in Time and when things happen: [How many times, how often: lần](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/lan-times/)

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