No. 311 in Vietnamese
cố
"To try," "to make an effort," or "deceased (ancestor)" depending on context.
In a sentence
Cố gắng lên, bạn sẽ thành công.
Keep trying, you will succeed.
Here, 'cố' means 'try' and is part of the phrase 'cố gắng,' which emphasizes putting effort into something.
Tôi muốn nhờ cố vấn giúp đỡ.
I want to ask for the advisor's help.
Here, 'cố' is part of 'cố vấn,' which means 'advisor.' It implies the role of someone providing guidance or advice.
Anh ấy cố giữ bình tĩnh sau khi nghe tin.
He tried to remain calm after hearing the news.
Here, 'cố' means 'try' with a connotation of striving or making an effort, used in context with an action.
Hear it in real podcasts
The recording above is a synthetic voice. Hear how people say “cố” in actual Vietnamese podcasts.
Find “cố” in podcastsLearn it from shows you like
LangTurbo plays Vietnamese podcasts with a transcript and the English under every line. Tap a word like this one and it tells you what it means right there. For iPhone, iPad and Android.
Learning English?
LangTurbo plays real English podcasts with every line translated into Tiếng Việt, and tells you what any word means in that sentence. For iPhone, iPad and Android.
Vietnamese books and courses on Amazon (an affiliate link: a purchase through it supports this site).