nhẻm nhèm nhem
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Interjection:
- A teasing phrase used by children when showing food to make another child envious: "nhẻm nhèm nhem" is a playful, childish taunt used when one child holds out food to provoke desire or envy in another.
Usage Examples
- Interjection:
- Nhẻm nhèm nhem, có thèm cho một miếng. (Nhẻm nhèm nhem, want a bite? Too bad, you can't have any.)
- Đứa trẻ cầm kẹo và nói: "Nhẻm nhèm nhem!" (The child held the candy and said: "Nhẻm nhèm nhem!")
Advanced Usage
- This word is almost exclusively used in the specific context of children's playful teasing. It is not used in formal or adult conversation.
Variants and Related Words
- Nhem: This is the root component. In some childish or colloquial contexts, "nhem" alone can imply something messy or, in this specific reduplicated form, functions as a taunt.
Synonyms
- Chê: (to scorn, to disdain) - but this lacks the specific playful, teasing connotation.
- Trêu chọc: (to tease) - a general verb for teasing.
Notes on Meaning
- The word is an example of reduplication in Vietnamese, specifically a triplication ("nhẻm nhèm nhem"), which is often used in children's language or for onomatopoeic/expressive effect. Its meaning is entirely dependent on this specific, fixed phrase.
- xem nhem