# Ngay khi: as soon as in Vietnamese (B1)

> Ngay khi means "as soon as", "the moment": Ngay khi về tới nhà, em sẽ gọi cho anh. As soon as I get home, I'll call you.

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/ngay-khi-as-soon-as/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**as soon as**

Pattern: `Ngay khi + [sentence], …`

Level: B1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Situations: [At work](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/?use=work)

*Ngay khi* means "as soon as", "the moment": *Ngay khi về tới nhà, em sẽ gọi cho anh.* As soon as I get home, I'll call you. *Ngay* is "right, immediately" and *khi* is "when", so it's literally "right when".

The *ngay khi* part usually comes first, followed by a comma. It can also come second, which is common in work messages: *Em sẽ báo chị ngay khi có kết quả.* I'll let you know as soon as I have the results. In writing, *ngay sau khi* means "right after".

In relaxed speech you'll often hear *vừa … là* instead, with *vừa* before the first verb and *là* before the second: *Vừa ra khỏi nhà là trời mưa.* The moment I stepped out, it started to rain. *Liền* (right away; in Hà Nội *ngay*) often ends the second half: *Vừa về tới nhà là em gọi anh liền.*

## Examples

- Saigon: Ngay khi về tới nhà, em sẽ gọi cho anh. | Hà Nội: Ngay khi về đến nhà, em sẽ gọi cho anh. — As soon as I get home, I'll call you.
- Em sẽ báo chị ngay khi có kết quả. — I'll let you know as soon as I have the results.
- Ngay khi thấy cảnh sát, anh ta bỏ chạy. — The moment he saw the police, he ran off.
- Vừa ra khỏi nhà là trời mưa. — The moment I stepped out of the house, it started to rain.

## Compare

- [No sooner … than: vừa … đã, chưa … đã](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/vua-da-no-sooner/): no sooner … than

Previous in Time and when things happen: [While: trong khi, and khi … đang for an interrupted action](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/trong-khi-while/)
Next in Time and when things happen: [Completely, for good: verb + hẳn](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/han-completely/)

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