Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Extremely limp, floppy, or wilted: Describes something that has lost its firmness, stiffness, or freshness, becoming very soft and droopy. Often used for plants, food, or objects.
   • Very dispirited, dejected, or crestfallen: Describes a person's state of being extremely low in spirits, morale, or energy, often due to disappointment, heat, or exhaustion.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Rau để lâu ngày đã ỉu xìu hết. (The vegetables left for too long have all become completely wilted.)
  • Nghe tin đó, tinh thần nó ỉu xìu hẳn. (Hearing that news, his spirits became utterly dejected.)
  • Trời nóng khiến mọi người đều cảm thấy ỉu xìu. (The hot weather made everyone feel very listless.)

Advanced Usage

• The word "ỉu xìu" is an expressive, reduplicative form that intensifies the base adjective "ỉu". It vividly conveys a state of complete physical sagging or emotional deflation.
• It is commonly used in spoken, colloquial Vietnamese to add emphasis and imagery.

Variants and Related Words

• Ỉu (adj): Limp, wilted, or dispirited. "Ỉu xìu" is a stronger, more emphatic version.
  • Bông hoa này bị ỉu rồi. (This flower has wilted.)

Synonyms

• Limp / Floppy: Lacking stiffness.
• Wilted / Droopy: (For plants) lacking freshness and turgor.
• Crestfallen / Dejected / Dispirited: In low spirits, sad and without energy.
• Listless: Lacking energy or enthusiasm.

Related Idioms and Expressions

• Ỉu xìu như chim gãy cánh: (As dejected as a bird with a broken wing) – To be utterly crestfallen and helpless.
  • Thua trận, cầu thủ trở về ỉu xìu như chim gãy cánh. (Having lost the match, the player returned as dejected as a bird with a broken wing.)
• Ỉu xìu như rau héo: (As limp as wilted vegetables) – To be completely lacking vitality or firmness.
  • Cậu làm gì mà mặt mày ỉu xìu như rau héo thế? (What did you do to make your face look as limp as wilted vegetables?)