xe than

Vietnamese

Etymology

xe (“vehicle”) +‎ than (“coal”). Than also means "to moan", which is how some have described the vehicles.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [sɛ˧˧ tʰaːn˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [sɛ˧˧ tʰaːŋ˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [sɛ˧˧ tʰaːŋ˧˧]

Noun

xe than

1. (historical) A minibus that has been converted to run on coal.