# Vừa … vừa: both … and / while in Vietnamese (A2)

> Put vừa before each of two words and you get "both … and": Quán này vừa rẻ vừa ngon. This place is both cheap and good.

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

**both … and / while**

Pattern: `[person] + vừa + [A] + vừa + [B]`

Level: A2 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: vua … vua

Put *vừa* before each of two words and you get "both … and": *Quán này vừa rẻ vừa ngon.* This place is both cheap and good. The two are qualities of the same person or thing, and usually both are good or both are bad: *vừa mệt vừa đói*, tired and hungry. For a good point against a bad one, use *nhưng*: *rẻ nhưng xa*.

With two actions, it means "at the same time" or "while": *Em vừa ăn vừa coi phim.* I eat while watching a film. *Đừng vừa chạy xe vừa nhắn tin.* Don't text while you're riding (in Hà Nội, *đi xe*).

The person comes first, and each *vừa* goes right before its word. The parts can be longer: *vừa đi làm vừa học tiếng Anh*, working and studying English at the same time.

For two people or things, use *cả … lẫn*: *cả phở lẫn bún bò*. To pile a second point on the first, "and what's more", use *đã … lại còn*. And a single *vừa* before a verb means "just": *Em vừa ăn xong.* I've just eaten.

## A common mistake

✗ Em vừa ăn và coi phim.

✓ Em vừa ăn vừa coi phim.

Put *vừa* before both actions. With only one, *vừa* means "just": I've just eaten and watched a film.

## Examples

- Quán này vừa rẻ vừa ngon. — This place is both cheap and good.
- Saigon: Em vừa ăn vừa coi phim. | Hà Nội: Em vừa ăn vừa xem phim. — I'm eating and watching a film at the same time.
- Saigon: Đừng vừa chạy xe vừa nhắn tin nha. | Hà Nội: Đừng vừa đi xe vừa nhắn tin nhé. — Don't text while you're riding, OK?
- Hôm nay em vừa mệt vừa đói. — Today I'm tired and hungry.

## Words in this pattern

- [vừa](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/vua-just/#s_vua_both): both … and

## Compare

- [Both X and Y (nouns): cả … lẫn / cả … và](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/ca-lan-both/): both … and (nouns)
- [And what's more: đã … lại còn …](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/da-lai-con/): not only … but also (same direction)

Previous in Linking ideas: [Besides, what's more: ngoài … ra, còn … nữa](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/ngoai-ra/)
Next in Linking ideas: [Both X and Y (nouns): cả … lẫn / cả … và](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/ca-lan-both/)

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