# Nỗi / niềm: turning a feeling into a noun in Vietnamese

> Some feelings turn into nouns with a word in front: nỗi for feelings that hurt, niềm for feelings that lift you.

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/noi-niem-feeling-nouns/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**turning a feeling into a noun**

Pattern: `nỗi + [painful feeling] (nỗi buồn, nỗi nhớ) · niềm + [glad feeling] (niềm vui, niềm tin)`

Level: B1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: noi, niem

Some feelings turn into nouns with a word in front: *nỗi* for feelings that hurt, *niềm* for feelings that lift you. *Buồn* (sad) gives *nỗi buồn*, sadness; *nhớ* (miss) gives *nỗi nhớ*, longing; *lo* (worry) gives *nỗi lo*, a worry. *Vui* (glad) gives *niềm vui*, joy; *tin* (believe) gives *niềm tin*, trust or faith; *tự hào* (proud) gives *niềm tự hào*, pride.

Use them where English needs a noun, as the subject or after *là*, *có* or *mất*: *Nỗi lo lớn nhất của em là tiền nhà.* My biggest worry is the rent. *Con là niềm tự hào của ba mẹ.* You're your parents' pride and joy. The feeling decides the word, so *nỗi vui* sounds wrong. Songs sometimes bend this, as in *niềm đau* (pain).

In conversation, Vietnamese usually keeps the plain word: *Em buồn quá* (I'm so sad), rather than a sentence about *nỗi buồn*. The nouns are at home in songs, stories, speeches and posts, and in a few everyday phrases such as *niềm vui* and *nỗi nhớ nhà* (homesickness).

*Sự* makes nouns from many verbs and adjectives, mostly in writing: *sự giúp đỡ*. *Nỗi* and *niềm* are only for feelings. *Tới nỗi* (so much that) is a different job.

## Examples

- Saigon: Con là niềm tự hào của ba mẹ. | Hà Nội: Con là niềm tự hào của bố mẹ. — You're your parents' pride and joy.
- Nỗi lo lớn nhất của em là tiền nhà. — My biggest worry is the rent.
- Chăm vườn là niềm vui của ông ngoại. — Gardening is Grandpa's great joy.
- Ai cũng có nỗi buồn riêng. — Everyone has their own sorrows.

## Compare

- [Turning a verb or adjective into a noun: sự + word](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/su-nominal/): the … (abstract noun)
- [Events and sessions: cuộc + word, buổi + word (cuộc họp, buổi học)](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/cuoc-event-noun/): an event / a session
- [So … that: đến nỗi, đến mức](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/den-noi-so-that/): so … that

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