Verb + hết

Do All of It

Level 3

Hết means "completely" or "all used up." It sits right after the verb to show that the quantity of something has reached zero.

How It Works

1. Exhausting an Object
When you consume, use, or process an entire quantity of something, place hết directly after the verb: Verb + hết + Object. It is frequently paired with rồi at the end of the sentence to emphasize a completed change of state (that the object is completely gone).
Example: Tôi ăn hết cơm rồi (I ate all the rice).

2. All Members of a Group
When a plural subject does something and no one is left behind, hết follows the verb or object to mean "all of them," regardless of whether the verb is transitive or intransitive.
Example: Khách về hết rồi (The guests have all left) or Học sinh nộp bài hết rồi (The students have all submitted their assignments). Note that sentences like the latter can be ambiguous out of context, as hết could refer to the subject (all students) or the object (all assignments). Context usually dictates which one is meant.

3. Hết vs. Xong
This is a crucial distinction to become confident with. xong focuses on the completion of a task (e.g., Tôi đọc sách xong rồi means you finished your reading session). Hết focuses on the depletion of a quantity. However, when applied to a specific object with verbs of consumption, processing, or experiencing (like đọc, ăn, xem), they are practically interchangeable: Tôi đọc xong cuốn sách and Tôi đọc hết cuốn sách both mean you finished reading the entire book. For other verbs, they carry different meanings (e.g., Tôi sửa xong cái xe means you finished the task of repairing the car, whereas Tôi sửa hết cái xe means you repaired every single part of the car, or all the cars).

4. Inability to Finish
To express that a quantity is too large to finish, use Verb + không + hết. If you simply haven't finished it yet but intend to, use Verb + chưa + hết instead.
Example: Nhiều đồ ăn quá, tôi ăn không hết (There is too much food, I cannot eat it all).

5. Emphasizing the Object (Topicalization)
In spoken Vietnamese, it is very common to move the depleted object to the front of the sentence: Object + Subject + Verb + hết.
Example: Cơm tôi ăn hết rồi (The rice, I ate it all).

6. Cost and Time
A very common everyday usage is expressing how much time or money an action consumes using the pattern Verb + hết + [Amount].
Example: Đi taxi hết năm mươi ngàn (Taking a taxi costs fifty thousand). You will also frequently hear mất used in this context. While often interchangeable, mất (literally "to lose") carries a slight nuance of a negative loss or taking a toll, whereas hết is a neutral depletion.

7. Note on Word Order
While this guide focuses on hết after a verb, you will also encounter hết placed before a verb or adjective. In that position, it means "no longer" (e.g., hết mưa = no longer raining, hết buồn = no longer sad).

8. Out of Something (Hết + Noun)
A core usage is placing hết directly before a noun to mean you have run out of that item.
Example: Tôi hết tiền rồi (I am out of money) or Xe hết xăng (The car is out of gas).

9. Colloquial Task Completion
In colloquial speech, placing hết after the object (Verb + Object + hết) can mean you have finished a task, functioning similarly to xong.
Example: Làm bài tập hết chưa? (Have you finished doing the homework?).

10. Emphatic Negation
Hết is also used at the end of negative sentences to mean "not at all" or "none at all." Common patterns include Không + Verb + gì + hết or Không có + Noun + nào + hết.
Example: Tôi không biết gì hết (I don't know anything at all).

11. Stacking Xong and Hết
In spoken Vietnamese, it is very common to stack xong and hết together (Verb + xong + hết + rồi) to emphasize that a task is completely finished and all quantities are depleted.
Example: Tôi làm bài tập xong hết rồi (I completely finished all my homework).

12. "Everything" (Scope of Action)
You can use Verb + hết without a specific noun to mean doing something to "everything" in an abstract sense or covering the entire scope of a situation.
Example: Tôi biết hết (I know everything) or Kể hết đi (Tell me everything).

13. Doing Something to the Fullest
A common idiomatic pattern is Verb + hết + sức or Verb + hết + mình to express doing something to the fullest extent of one's ability.
Example: Chúng tôi sẽ làm hết sức (We will do our best) or Chơi hết mình (Play to the fullest).

Examples (6)

  1. Tôi ăn hết cơm rồi.

    I ate all the rice already.

    Word by Word: I eat all rice already.

    Shows that the quantity of rice has been completely consumed, paired with rồi to emphasize the completed change of state.

  2. Khách về hết rồi.

    The guests have all left.

    Word by Word: Guest return all already.

    Used with an intransitive verb to show that 100% of the group performed the action.

  3. Tôi đã đọc hết cuốn sách này.

    I read this entire book.

    Word by Word: I past read all classifier book this.

    Emphasizes that every single page was read. For a specific object like a book, this is practically interchangeable with "đọc xong".

  4. Nhiều đồ ăn quá, tôi ăn không hết.

    There is too much food, I cannot eat it all.

    Word by Word: Much food too, I eat not all.

    Uses "không hết" to express the inability to finish a large quantity.

  5. Tiền tôi tiêu hết rồi.

    The money, I spent it all.

    Word by Word: Money I spend all already.

    An example of topicalization, moving the depleted object to the front of the sentence for emphasis.

  6. Đi taxi hết năm mươi ngàn.

    Taking a taxi costs fifty thousand.

    Word by Word: Go taxi finish fifty thousand.

    Demonstrates the pattern Verb + hết + [Amount] to express how much money an action consumes.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'hết' when you mean you finished fixing one car.

    Different MeaningTôi sửa hết xe rồi.
    Tôi sửa xong xe rồi.

    This sentence is correct, but it means 'I have fixed all the cars'. Hết says the whole quantity is used up or done. To say you finished the job of fixing the car, use xong.

  • Using 'không rồi' to say 'no more' or 'all gone'.

    Nước không rồi.
    Nước hết rồi.

    Beginners often translate "no more" literally. In Vietnamese, when a resource is depleted, you must use hết.

  • Using 'xong' when you mean the water is all gone.

    Different MeaningTôi uống xong nước.
    Tôi uống hết nước.

    This sentence is correct, and it means 'I finished drinking (my) water'. xong says the action is complete, while hết says the whole amount is used up: 'Tôi uống hết nước'.

How It Connects

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Verb + hếtLevel 3Do All of It

Learn This First

To understand 'Verb + hết', learners need to be comfortable with the basic Vietnamese sentence structure where verbs remain unchanged and can be followed by resultative particles. It is also helpful to understand the concept of 'remaining' (còn) to appreciate how 'hết' indicates the total depletion or completion of an action.

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