từ ... đến ...

From ... to ...

Level 2

The pattern từ ... đến ... means "from ... to ...". It marks the beginning and end of a specific span, such as time, distance, or a sequence.

How It Works

This pattern is incredibly versatile and is used universally in everyday Vietnamese. It can be applied to:

  • Time: từ sáng đến tối (from morning to night). It is also used in highly frequent pairings like từ đó đến nay (from then until now).
  • Space: từ nhà đến trường (from home to school)
  • Sequence: từ 1 đến 100 (from 1 to 100)
  • Scope/Range: từ người già đến trẻ em (from the elderly to children) or từ lớn đến bé (from big to small) to express a comprehensive range meaning 'everyone' or 'everything'. When used this way to introduce the subject, you must add the adverb đều (all) or cũng (also) right before the main verb (e.g., Từ người già đến trẻ em đều thích...). It is also used for prices, quantities, and durations (e.g., từ 5 đến 10 triệu, từ 3 đến 5 ngày), as well as idiomatic body parts to mean 'entirely' (e.g., từ đầu đến chân).

Important Nuances:

1. Tới vs. Đến: You will often hear đến replaced with tới (từ ... tới ...). They are grammatically interchangeable for both time and space. Đến is the standard word and more common in the North, whereas tới is heavily preferred in everyday spoken Southern Vietnamese.

2. Distance and 'Bao xa': To express distance, the primary and most natural way is using the word cách (e.g., A cách B 5km). Alternatively, you can frame it as a span: Từ A đến B là 5km. To ask about distance, use bao xa (how far): Từ A đến B bao xa?

3. Using with Clauses: When connecting full clauses rather than simple nouns or verbs, you must add khi or lúc (when): từ khi ... đến khi ... (from when ... to when ...). Simple actions (verbs acting as gerunds) can be connected directly without khi (e.g., từ ăn đến ngủ).

4. Adding "cho": If you want to emphasize a long, continuous duration, you can say từ ... cho đến ... (from ... up until ...). This implies an unexpected extent, like working from morning all the way until night.

5. Dropping "Từ": In casual spoken Vietnamese, the word từ is frequently dropped when talking about time or days of the week (e.g., thứ Hai đến thứ Sáu instead of từ thứ Hai đến thứ Sáu).

Examples (5)

  1. Hàng ngày, tôi làm việc từ 8 giờ sáng đến 5 giờ chiều.

    Every day, I work from 8 AM to 5 PM.

    Word by Word: Every day, I work from 8 hour morning to 5 hour afternoon.

    Using the pattern to express a span of time.

  2. Từ nhà tôi đến trường khoảng ba ki-lô-mét.

    It is about three kilometers from my house to school.

    Word by Word: From house my to school about three kilometers.

    Using the pattern to express physical distance between two locations.

  3. Tôi đã xem bộ phim đó từ đầu đến cuối.

    I watched that movie from start to finish.

    Word by Word: I already watch classifier movie that from beginning to end.

    Using the pattern to express a sequence or abstract span.

  4. Từ khách sạn đến sân bay bao xa?

    How far is it from the hotel to the airport?

    Word by Word: From hotel to airport how far?

    Using 'bao xa' with the pattern to ask about the distance between two places.

  5. Từ khi anh ấy đến đây đến khi anh ấy đi, anh ấy không nói gì.

    From when he arrived here to when he left, he didn't say anything.

    Word by Word: From when brother that arrive here to when brother that go, brother that not say what.

    Adding 'khi' (when) to use the pattern with full clauses or actions.

Common Mistakes

  • Translating "A is [distance] from B" word-for-word using "là ... từ".

    Hà Nội là 100 ki-lô-mét từ đây.
    Hà Nội cách đây 100 ki-lô-mét.

    In Vietnamese, you cannot say "A is [distance] from B" using "là ... từ". The primary and most natural way is to use the verb 'cách' (separated by): 'A cách B [distance]'. Alternatively, you can frame it as a continuous span: 'Từ A đến B là [distance]'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

từ ... đến ...Level 2From ... to ...

Learn This First

The pattern 'từ ... đến ...' is a correlative conjunction frame used to express a range in time or space. To use it, you must first understand the individual meanings of the markers 'từ' (from) and 'đến' (to/until), and be familiar with how Vietnamese sentences typically position time and location phrases.

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