căn

See also: Appendix:Variations of "can"

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [kan˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [kaŋ˧˧]
• (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [kaŋ˧˧]

Etymology 1

Sino-Vietnamese word from 根.

Noun

căn

1. (only in compounds) root; cause, origin, source
2. (arithmetic) (clipping of căn thức) root

   căn bậc 2

   square root

   Căn bậc 2 của 4 bằng 2.

   The square root of 4 is 2.

   căn bậc 3

   cube root

3. (arithmetic, colloquial, usually not followed by của (“of”)) (short for căn (thức) bậc hai) square root

   Căn (của) 4 bằng 2.

   The square root of 4 is 2.

Derived terms

• căn bậc hai - square root
• căn cớ - reason; ground
• căn bản (根本) - basic; elementary
• căn cơ (根基) - foundation; basis
• căn cước (根腳) - identity card
• căn cứ (根據) - reason; basis, grounds
• căn nguyên (根源) - origin; source; initial cause
• căn thức (根式) - (arithmetics) root
• căn tố (根素) - (linguistics) root
• di căn (移根) - (medicine) to metastasize
• thâm căn cố đế - embedded; deep-rooted; lodged
• vô căn (無根) - (medicine, of disease) primary; essential; idiopathic
• Á Căn Đình (阿根廷) - (dated) Argentina

 

See also

rễ (“root”)

Classifier

căn

1. (pathology) indicates diseases, illnesses

Etymology 2

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 間 (SV: gian).

Noun

căn

1. (Northern Vietnam) room

Classifier

căn

1. indicates houses, apartments, rooms

Etymology 3

Verb

căn

1. to align; to time (to choose when something begins)

   căn đều hai bên

   to justify (e.g., text) on both sides

   đứng căn giờ

   to stand and wait for the right moment

Synonyms

• (to adjust): canh, điều chỉnh