Definition

1. Interjection:

   • Hey; Oh: A word used to call out to someone, often from a distance, to get their attention. It expresses a summons or a call.
   • An exclamation of emotion: Used to express surprise, complaint, or lament, often in a plaintive or emphatic tone.

2. Verb:

   • To call out to; to hail: To shout or call someone's name, typically to summon them or to communicate over a distance.

Usage Examples

• Interjection:

  • Ới! Bạn ơi, đợi tôi với! (Hey! My friend, wait for me!)
  • Ới trời ơi! Sao lại thế này? (Oh my goodness! Why is it like this?)

• Verb:

  • Có ai ở nhà không? Hãy ới lên một tiếng. (Is anyone home? Please call out.)
  • Người lái đò ới khách qua sông. (The ferryman hails passengers for the river crossing.)

Advanced Usage

• The interjection "ới" is often used in combination with other words like "trời ơi" or names/titles to form emotional exclamations.
  • Ới dì ơi, con đói quá! (Oh auntie, I'm so hungry!)

Variants and Related Words

• Ơi: A closely related interjection used as a vocative particle attached to a name or title (e.g., - "hey friend"), often used in tandem with "ới" for emphasis.
• Gọi: The standard verb for "to call." "Ới" as a verb is a more specific, colloquial form of calling out loudly.

Synonyms

• Interjection: Hey, Oh, Oi.
• Verb: To hail, to call out, to shout to.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Ơi ới: To call repeatedly; a reduplicated form emphasizing persistent calling.
  • Nghe tiếng ơi ới ngoài đồng. (To hear the sound of repeated calls from the field.)
• Ới làng ới xóm: To call out to the whole village; to raise an alarm or call for communal help.
  • Cháy nhà, mọi người ới làng ới xóm. (When the house was on fire, people called out to the whole village for help.)

1. cảm thán. hey; call repeatedly
   • ơi ới gọi đò
     to call repeatedly for the ferry-boat