Definition

1. Noun:
   • Leech: A small, worm-like animal that lives in water and attaches itself to animals or people to suck their blood.
   • Figuratively, a persistent, annoying person: Used to describe someone who clings to others, often to exploit them financially or socially, and is hard to get rid of.

Usage Examples

• Noun (literal):

  • Khi tắm ở ao, tôi sợ bị đỉa bám. (When bathing in the pond, I'm afraid of leeches attaching to me.)
  • Đỉa là một loài động vật hút máu. (A leech is a blood-sucking animal.)

• Noun (figurative):

  • Anh ta là một kẻ đỉa, lúc nào cũng bám lấy bạn bè để xin tiền. (He is a leech, always clinging to friends to ask for money.)
  • Đừng có làm đỉa với người khác như thế. (Don't be such a leech to others like that.)

Advanced Usage

• "Bám như đỉa": To stick/cling to someone like a leech. This idiom vividly describes someone who is extremely persistent, annoying, and hard to shake off.

  • Thằng bé đó bám tôi như đỉa suốt cả buổi chiều. (That boy stuck to me like a leech the whole afternoon.)
  • Cô ấy bám lấy vấn đề đó như đỉa, không chịu buông tha. (She clung to that issue like a leech, refusing to let it go.)

• "Dai như đỉa": As tenacious/persistent as a leech. This idiom emphasizes stubborn persistence and refusal to give up.

  • Lão ấy dai như đỉa, đuổi thế nào cũng không đi. (That old man is as tenacious as a leech; he won't leave no matter how you try to chase him away.)

Variants and Related Words

• Đỉa đói (noun phrase): A "hungry leech"; often used figuratively to describe someone who is extremely greedy or insatiable in their demands.
  • Bọn cho vay nặng lãi đó là một lũ đỉa đói. (Those usurers are a bunch of hungry leeches.)

Synonyms

• Con vắt (noun): Another type of land leech or blood-sucking worm. (Note: While similar, often refers to land leeches found in forests, whereas typically refers to aquatic leeches.)
• Kẻ bám víu (noun phrase): A hanger-on; a person who depends on another, especially for financial support.
• Kẻ ăn bám (noun phrase): A parasite; a person who lives off others without contributing.

Related Idioms

• "Bám như sam": To stick like a limpet. Similar to "bám như đỉa," it describes someone who clings very tightly, though (limpet) implies a stronger, more physical attachment.
• "Cứng đầu cứng cổ": Stubborn, obstinate. Shares the connotation of being unyielding like in "dai như đỉa," but focuses more on refusing to listen rather than persistent clinging.

1. Leech
   • Bám như đỉa
     To stick like a leech