Definition

Noun: 1. Rat hole; mouse hole: A hole or burrow made and inhabited by rats or mice. 2. Slum; hovel; very poor and squalid dwelling: A small, low, dirty, and overcrowded house or dwelling, typically inhabited by very poor people.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Literal - rat hole):
  • Con mèo đang rình trước ổ chuột. (The cat is lurking in front of the rat hole.)
  • Họ tìm thấy một ổ chuột sau tủ bếp. (They found a mouse hole behind the kitchen cabinet.)
• Noun (Figurative - slum):
  • Khu nhà ấy đã trở thành một ổ chuột. (That housing area has become a slum.)
  • Gia đình họ phải sống trong một căn nhà ổ chuột. (Their family has to live in a hovel.)

Advanced Usage

• Used metaphorically to describe a place of crime or vice: The term can be extended to describe a place known for illegal or immoral activities, functioning as a den or nest.
  • Cảnh sát đột kích vào ổ chuột cờ bạc. (The police raided the gambling den.)

Variants and Related Words

• Ổ (noun): Nest, den, burrow. The core noun indicating an animal's dwelling or a place where something gathers (e.g., = pothole, = outbreak hotspot).
• Chuột (noun): Rat; mouse.
• Nhà ổ chuột (noun phrase): A more explicit phrase for a slum dwelling.
• Tụ điểm tệ nạn (noun phrase): A vice den; a spot for social evils.

Synonyms

• For the literal meaning (hole): Lỗ chuột, hang chuột.
• For the figurative meaning (dwelling): Nhà lụp xụp, túp lều, nhà tồi tàn, khu ổ chuột (slum area).

Related Idioms

• Ổ phản động: A nest of reactionaries.
• Ổ dịch: An outbreak hotspot (e.g., of disease).

noun

1. rat-hole