# Gì / cái gì: what? in Vietnamese (A1)

> Gì means "what". It goes where the answer will go, which is usually after the verb: Trưa nay em ăn gì? What are you having for lunch?

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/gi-what/ · Updated 2026-11-09

**what?**

Pattern: `[person] + [verb] + gì? · [thing] + là gì? · Cái gì / Chuyện gì + [verb]? · Có chuyện gì?`

Level: A1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: gi, cai gi

*Gì* means "what". It goes where the answer will go, which is usually after the verb: *Trưa nay em ăn gì?* What are you having for lunch? The answer swaps it for the thing: *Em ăn phở.* *Anh làm gì?* asks what you're doing, or what you do for a living.

To ask what something is, use *là gì*: *Cái này là gì?* What's this?

When "what" is the one doing something, or the thing happening, *gì* can't stand alone. Put *cái* (thing) in front of it for a thing, or *chuyện* (matter) for something happening: *Cái gì ở trong này?* What's in here? *Có chuyện gì vậy?* What's the matter? *Cái gì* also works after a verb, where it sounds more emphatic and can come across as sharp: *Em nói cái gì?*

Straight after a noun, *gì* asks what kind: *món gì?* (what dish?), *tiếng gì?* (what language?). To pick one from a set, use *nào*: *cái nào?* which one?

After *không*, *gì* means "anything": *Em không ăn gì.* I'm not eating anything. *Không có gì.* It's nothing (also the reply to a thank-you: you're welcome).

*Vậy* at the end makes a question sound softer and friendlier: *Anh làm gì vậy?* In Hà Nội you'll more often hear *thế*.

## A common mistake

✗ Gì xảy ra vậy?

✓ Chuyện gì xảy ra vậy?

When "what" is the one doing something, or the thing happening, *gì* needs a word in front: *chuyện gì* for something happening, *cái gì* for a thing.

## Examples

- Trưa nay em ăn gì? — What are you having for lunch today?
- Saigon: Anh làm gì vậy? | Hà Nội: Anh làm gì thế? — What are you doing?
- Cái này là gì? — What's this?
- Saigon: Có chuyện gì vậy em? | Hà Nội: Có chuyện gì thế em? — What's the matter?

## Words in this pattern

- [cái gì](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/cai-gi/#s_cai_gi): what
- [gì](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/gi-what/#lx_gi): what

## Compare

- [Which? nào after the noun](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/nao-which/): which …?
- [What kind of? noun + gì](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/n-gi-what-kind/): what kind of …?

Previous in Asking questions: [What kind of? noun + gì](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/n-gi-what-kind/)
Next in Asking questions: [When? bao giờ / khi nào: first for the future, last for the past](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/bao-gio-when/)

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