cán bộ

Vietnamese

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 幹部.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [kaːn˧˦ ʔɓo˧˨ʔ]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [kaːŋ˦˧˥ ʔɓow˨˩ʔ]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [kaːŋ˦˥ ʔɓow˨˩˨]

Noun

cán bộ

1. a communist government employee

   làm cán bộ

   to be a communist government employee; to work for the communist government

Pronoun

cán bộ

1. (especially by prisoners) you, a communist government employee

Usage notes

• Even though the notion of communism isn't explicit, this term is used only for communist government employees, especially those in Vietnam. On state-run TV, televised prisoners or fictitious depictions of them tend not to address their supervisors (wardens, guards, etc.) directly with plain pronouns, but with this term, either to humble themselves or to appear respectful.