Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Small, little, tiny: Describes something with a size, volume, or stature that is not large or significant compared to others of its kind.
   • Young, little: Refers to a person, especially a child, who is of a very young age.
   • Soft, low: Describes a sound, especially a voice, that is quiet or not loud.
   • Secondary, lesser (archaic/formal): Denotes a lower rank or secondary status, historically used for a secondary wife.

2. Noun (informal, affectionate):

   • Baby, little one, kid: Used as a term of endearment for a very young child or baby. Can also function as a first or second-person pronoun ("I" or "you") when speaking to or as a young child.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:

  • Cây có quả bé. (The tree bears small fruit.)
  • Khi tôi còn bé, tôi thích đọc truyện. (When I was little, I liked reading stories.)
  • Cô ấy nói bé quá. (She speaks too softly.)
  • Vợ bé. (A secondary wife.)

• Noun:

  • Bé yêu mẹ lắm. (I love you very much, mommy. / The baby loves its mother very much.)
  • Bé có ăn quả này không? (Will you eat this fruit, sweetie?)

Advanced Usage

• "bé cái lầm": An ironic idiom meaning "that's a big mistake" or "to be gravely mistaken," literally "small the mistake."

  • Anh nghĩ vậy là bé cái lầm rồi. (If you think that, you are gravely mistaken.)

• "bé hạt tiêu": An idiom describing a small person with a great mind or strong personality, literally "small as a peppercorn."

  • Đừng coi thường nó, bé hạt tiêu đấy! (Don't look down on her, she's small but fierce!)

• "việc bé xé ra to": An idiom meaning "to make a mountain out of a molehill," literally "to tear a small matter into a big one."

Variants and Related Words

• be bé (adj): Reduplicated form to emphasize a very small size or a very soft sound.

  • Giọng nói be bé. (A tiny, soft voice.)

• bé bỏng (adj): Very small and pitiful; often used for young children to evoke tenderness.

  • Đứa trẻ bé bỏng. (A tiny, vulnerable child.)

• bé con (n): Affectionate term for a small child.

  • Bé con nhà tôi. (My little kid.)

Synonyms

• Adjective: Small, little, tiny, young, soft, low.
• Noun: Child, baby, toddler, kid.

Related Idioms

• Cá lớn nuốt cá bé: "Big fish eat little fish." A proverb meaning the powerful dominate the weak.
• Bé cái lầm: As above, to be seriously mistaken.
• Bé hạt tiêu: As above, small in size but large in spirit or intellect.

adj

1. Small, little, tiny
   • cây có quả bé
     a tree bearing small fruit
   • cá lớn nuốt cá bé
     great fish eat up small
2. Secondary (nói về người vợ)
   • vợ bé
     a secondary wife, a concubine
3. Soft, low (nói về âm thanh)
   • nói bé quá, nghe không rõ
     to speak too softly, hence inaudibly
   • bé cái lầm
     that's no small blunder
   • bé hạt tiêu
     little body, great mind