Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Viper-tongued; having a sharp/venomous tongue: Describes a person who frequently speaks in a harsh, critical, sarcastic, or malicious manner, often hurting others with their words. The term implies a poisonous or harmful quality to one's speech.
   • To have a "jinxing" mouth (colloquial): In a superstitious context, it describes a person whose negative predictions or comments are believed to inadvertently cause bad things to happen.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Bà ấy nổi tiếng là người độc miệng, chẳng ai muốn trò chuyện cùng. (She is famous for being viper-tongued; no one wants to chat with her.)
  • Đừng có độc miệng, kẻo lại ứng nghiệm. (Don't jinx it with your mouth, or it might come true.)
  • Anh ta bình luận độc miệng về ngoại hình của đồng nghiệp. (He made a venomous comment about his colleague's appearance.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is often used in a disapproving or critical tone to comment on someone's unpleasant speaking habit.
• It can describe both a general character trait ("She is a viper-tongued person") and a specific instance of speech ("That was a viper-tongued remark").

Variants and Related Words

• Độc mồm: A more colloquial, northern Vietnamese variant with the same meaning as "độc miệng."
• Lời nói độc địa: Malicious words.
• Ăn nói độc ác: To speak cruelly.

Synonyms

• Caustic: Bitterly sarcastic.
• Malicious: Intending to do harm.
• Spiteful: Showing malicious ill will.
• Sharp-tongued: Speaking in a severe or critical way.
• Jinxing (for the superstitious connotation).

Related Idioms

• Miệng độc như rắn: (Mouth as poisonous as a snake) - An intensified simile emphasizing the harmful nature of someone's speech.
• While not a direct idiom, the concept is central to the saying: "Lời nói chẳng mất tiền mua, Lựa lời mà nói cho vừa lòng nhau." (Words are free to buy, so choose your words to please each other.) – often cited in contrast to being "độc miệng."

1. Viperish-tongued