# Hẳn: completely in Vietnamese (B1)

> After a verb, hẳn means "completely" or "for good": the change is total and won't be undone. Ba tôi bỏ hẳn thuốc lá rồi.

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

**completely**

Pattern: `[verb] + hẳn (+ [object]) · [adjective] + hẳn + đi / ra`

Level: B1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: han

After a verb, *hẳn* means "completely" or "for good": the change is total and won't be undone. *Ba tôi bỏ hẳn thuốc lá rồi.* My dad has given up smoking for good. *Năm sau chị về hẳn Việt Nam.* Next year I'm moving back to Vietnam for good. *Khỏi hẳn* is to be fully better: *Em khỏi hẳn chưa?*

After an adjective, with *đi* or *ra*, *hẳn* says a change is clear for all to see, "noticeably": *Sơn lại xong, căn nhà nhìn đẹp hẳn ra.* After repainting, the house looks so much nicer. *Đi* goes with losing something (thinner, older, quieter), *ra* with gaining (healthier, prettier, younger).

In Saigon *ốm* means "thin", so *ốm hẳn đi* is "has got much thinner". In Hà Nội the word is *gầy*: *gầy hẳn đi*.

*Hẳn* before a verb, usually as *chắc hẳn* or *hẳn là*, means something else, "surely, must be": *Chắc hẳn chị mệt lắm.* You must be very tired.

## Examples

- Saigon: Ba tôi bỏ hẳn thuốc lá rồi. | Hà Nội: Bố tôi bỏ hẳn thuốc lá rồi. — My dad has given up smoking for good.
- Em khỏi hẳn chưa? — Are you completely better now?
- Năm sau chị về hẳn Việt Nam. — Next year I'm moving back to Vietnam for good.
- Saigon: Dạo này anh ốm hẳn đi. | Hà Nội: Dạo này anh gầy hẳn đi. — You've got much thinner lately.
- Saigon: Sơn lại xong, căn nhà nhìn đẹp hẳn ra. | Hà Nội: Sơn lại xong, căn nhà trông đẹp hẳn ra. — After repainting, the house looks so much nicer.

## Compare

- [Getting more or less: adjective + ra / lên / đi / lại](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/adj-change-ra-di/): become more / less …
- [Not necessarily: chưa hẳn, không hẳn](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chua-han/): not necessarily
- [Probably, must be: chắc (là)](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/chac-probably/): probably

Previous in Time and when things happen: [As soon as: ngay khi](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/ngay-khi-as-soon-as/)
Next in Time and when things happen: [Do this first: verb + đã](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/da-first/)

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