Vietnamese uses a lot of classifiers to designate categories (as in "a loaf of bread", "a sheet of paper"). Probably the broadest category is "caí" which classfies objects, but besides this they have more categories than you could ever imagine - e.g. depending on whether a piece of paper is big, small, framed, on the wall, in a book with other paper, how big that book is, whether the book is printed, and so on. I think they have a very precise way of thinking.
My favourite classfier is "cục". This is the classifer for little round things, like rubbers, pebbles and ice cubes. The dot under the u makes it a little short round word, like a little pebble in your mouth. The c is pronounced almost like a b, and you have to do the Vietnamese puffed-out-cheeks face when you finish. It is a cute word. I will show you some time.
I also like "con tem". This means "stamp", but "con" is the classifier for animals - a stamp is like an animal because it moves around, all over the world. "Con dao" means knife - also like an animal because it darts around. I now imagine knives like little fish, or maybe like a small but viscious predator. (I'm not allowed a pet...I have to compensate somehow...)
I will explain to anyone that'll listen my theory about Vietnamese animal names being onomatopoeic, but this is best saved for another day, as now I am going to have a nap.
