Intro After you say hello in Hmong, what comes next? In this lesson, you’ll learn how to continue a natural conversation in White Hmong by asking and answering common follow-up questions. These are the types of questions people use when meeting someone new: asking their name, where they live, where they are from, what they do for work, what they … Read More
Basic Conversation: Clothes and Shopping for Clothes
1. Key Vocabulary 3. Grammar Lesson Asking what someone is wearing: Koj hnav dab tsi? → “What are you wearing?”Answer: Kuv hnav [clothing item]. Talking about price: Tus nqe puas haum? → “Is the price okay?”Answer: Tus nqe haum / Tus nqe kim dhau. Notes: Use classifiers with clothing if needed (e.g., ib lub tsho, ib khub khau). 4. Flashcards
Basic Conversation: Giving simple directions
1. Key Vocabulary 3. Grammar Lesson Asking directions: Koj mus qhov twg? → “Where are you going?”Answer: Kuv mus [destination]. Asking route: Txoj kev mus [destination] nyob qhov twg? → “How do I get to [destination]?”Answer: Los ntawm no, tig mus rau [left/right/straight] … Notes: Hmong uses sab laug for left, sab xis for right, and ntawm hauv ntej for straight ahead. … Read More
Basic Conversation: Making Plans and Appointments
1. Key Vocabulary 3. Grammar Lesson Future tense with time words: Hmong often shows future action by adding time words like hnub rau (Saturday) or thaum ob teev (at 2 o’clock). No extra verb is needed. Arranging to meet: Use Peb sib ntsib [qhov chaw] thaum [sijhawm] → “Let’s meet [place] at [time].” Polite agreement: Phrases like Zoo siab (“Gladly”) and Tau … Read More
Basic Conversation: Where Are You From?
1. Key Vocabulary 3. Grammar Lesson Asking origin: Koj tuaj qhov twg tuaj? → “Where are you from?”Answer: Kuv tuaj ntawm [place]. Asking residence: Koj nyob qhov twg? → “Where do you live?”Answer: Kuv nyob hauv [place]. Notes: Use ntawm when talking about origin (“from”), and hauv when talking about current residence (“in”). 4. Flashcards
Frequently Asked Questions About the Hmong Language
What is This Section? I put this article together based on questions I have heard over the years and Google’s auto-generated questions when you search for the words ‘Learn Hmong’ in Google. I hope to answer the questions here briefly as well as providing links to more complete answers or resources for learning that you can find on this site. … Read More
How to say ‘Where are you from?’ in Hmong
How to say ‘Where are you from?’ in Hmong To ask, ‘Where are you from?” in Hmong you would use the phrase: Koj tuaj qhovtwg tuaj? Where are you from? / Where did you come from? And you would answer with: Kuv tuaj (name of place) tuaj. I come from (name of place). Why the extra ‘tuaj?’ Many wonder, why … Read More
PDF: Post Verbal Intensifiers Reference Sheet
What is this reference sheet? The post verbal intensifier reference sheet is a thoroughly researched list of common post verbal intensifiers in Hmong. It includes an introductory explanation of what post verbal intensifiers are and many reference examples to help clarify the meaning of each word. Download Here
Prepositions by Jean Mottin
The first document above is a translation of the section on prepositions (direction words) in Jean Mottin’s grammar book. It was originally written in French, and the second file is the original French. Enjoy!
Action – Object – Modifier in Hmong
Often in English when we talk about an action we add modifying words to that action to show in what manner it was completed. For example, if you say, ‘kick him’ it has one meaning, but if you say, ‘kick him out‘ it has an entirely different meaning because of that modifier ‘out.’ A few more examples are: Stand up. … Read More
Personal Pronouns in Hmong
VIDEO: Personal Pronouns in Hmong The Basic Personal Pronouns in Hmong. Hmong personal pronouns are similar to English, with a few simple differences. Here are the basics: 1st Person – I, me, we Kuv mus lawm. I went. Lit: I go already. Wb yuav mus. We’ll go. Lit: We(2) will go. Peb tsis tuaj. We’re not coming. Lit: We(3+) not … Read More
Turning a verb into a noun in Hmong
What is a Verb? What is a Noun? A verb is an action word, or a word that describes something that you do as opposed to a ‘thing.’ So a verb could be to run, to eat, to think, to talk, to hear, to like, etc. A noun on the other hand is a person, place, or thing. So a … Read More
Tone Change in Hmong
What is tone change? Tone change in Hmong is a phenomenon where the tone of one word will affect the word that immediately follows it. What causes tone change? Generally it is a ‘b’ tone (cim siab) or a ‘j’ tone (cim ntuj) that will cause the following word to change tone. An example is the word ‘tus’ which … Read More
How to say ‘I can’ in Hmong
Hmong has several ways to say you ‘can’ do something, each with it’s own unique shade of meaning. The basic ‘I can’ with ‘tau.’ The word ‘tau’ in Hmong has a basic meaning of to ‘get’ or ‘achieve.’ It is used somewhat more complexly than that, however. Generally speaking, when ‘tau’ appears after a verb it means it is a … Read More
Hmong Glossary of Grammar
Hmong Glossary of Grammar A usable glossary of grammar with examples. A note for understanding Hmong grammar: Languages are like different brands of cars. They all have the same basic parts, with the same basic functions. Each one is a little different, though. Generally, you can’t take a part out of one brand and just install it in … Read More
The Noun Classifier in Hmong
What is a noun classifier in Hmong? First of all, do you remember what a noun is? A noun is a person, place, or thing. Noun classifiers are special grammatical words placed before a noun to add depth of meaning to it, to grammatically make a reference in a sentence more specific, and to differentiate between homonyms (two words that … Read More
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