# Trừ khi / trừ phi: unless in Vietnamese (B2)

> Trừ khi + a sentence means "unless": Mai em đi Vũng Tàu, trừ khi trời mưa, I'm going to Vũng Tàu tomorrow, unless it rains.

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/tru-phi-unless/ · Updated 2026-10-17

**unless**

Pattern: `[sentence] + trừ khi / trừ phi + [sentence]`

Level: B2 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: tru khi, tru phi

*Trừ khi* + a sentence means "unless": *Mai em đi Vũng Tàu, trừ khi trời mưa*, I'm going to Vũng Tàu tomorrow, unless it rains. It usually comes after the main sentence and adds the one case that would change things.

*Trừ phi* means the same but sounds bookish; you'll see it in older writing and now and then in careful speech. *Trừ khi* is the one to use.

Don't confuse it with *trừ* on its own, which goes before a noun and means "except": *Ai cũng đi, trừ Nam*, everyone's going except Nam. Before a whole sentence, one with its own verb, you need *trừ khi*.

You can often say the same with *nếu … không*: *Mai em đi, nếu trời không mưa.* *Trừ khi* puts the exception last, almost as an afterthought, which suits warnings and conditions: *Đừng gọi giờ đó, trừ khi có chuyện gấp.*

It can also open the sentence, with *chứ* (otherwise) bringing in the main part: *Trừ khi anh đi cùng, chứ em không đi một mình*, unless you come with me, I'm not going alone.

## A common mistake

✗ Mai em đi, trừ trời mưa.

✓ Mai em đi, trừ khi trời mưa.

*Trừ* alone goes before a noun and means "except". Before a sentence, use *trừ khi*.

## Examples

- Mai em đi Vũng Tàu, trừ khi trời mưa. — I'm going to Vũng Tàu tomorrow, unless it rains.
- Saigon: Quán mở tới khuya, trừ khi bán hết sớm. | Hà Nội: Quán mở đến khuya, trừ khi bán hết sớm. — The place stays open late, unless it sells out early.
- Đừng gọi giờ đó, trừ khi có chuyện gấp. — Don't call at that hour unless it's urgent.
- Hồ sơ sẽ không được xét, trừ khi có đủ giấy tờ. — Applications won't be considered unless all the documents are included.

## Compare

- [Except: trừ, ngoại trừ](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/tru-except/): except

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