Definition

1. Noun:
   • Kapok, silk-cotton: The silky, fibrous substance that surrounds the seeds inside the seed pods of the kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra). This fiber is light, buoyant, and water-resistant, traditionally used for stuffing pillows, mattresses, and life jackets.
   • Absorbent cotton wool: In common Vietnamese usage, especially in medical and household contexts, "bông gòn" often refers to processed, bleached, and sterilized cotton (from the cotton plant, Gossypium) used for cleaning wounds, applying medicine, or personal care. This meaning is a semantic extension from the original kapok fiber due to the similar fluffy, white appearance.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Chiếc gối này được nhồi bằng bông gòn thật. (This pillow is stuffed with real kapok.)
  • Cô y tá dùng bông gòn để thấm vết thương. (The nurse used cotton wool to dab the wound.)
  • Cây bông gòn trước nhà đang nở hoa. (The kapok tree in front of the house is flowering.)

Advanced Usage

• "bông gòn thấm nước": Highly absorbent cotton wool.
  • Mua ít bông gòn thấm nước để tẩy trang. (Buy some highly absorbent cotton wool for makeup removal.)
• "sợi bông gòn": Kapok fiber / cotton wool fiber.
  • Sợi bông gòn rất nhẹ và xốp. (Kapok fiber is very light and fluffy.)

Variants and Related Words

• cây bông gòn (n): The kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra).
• bông (n): A more general term for cotton, kapok, or any fluffy, cotton-like substance (e.g., cotton plant flower, cotton wool). "Bông gòn" is a specific type of "bông".
• gòn (n): Can be used alone as a shortened, colloquial form of "bông gòn", primarily for the kapok tree or its fiber.
• bông tẩy trang: Makeup remover cotton pads (a specific product made from cotton wool).

Synonyms

• bông (for the "cotton wool" meaning): Cotton, cotton wool.
• bông kapok (for the "kapok" meaning): Kapok, silk-cotton.

Related Phrases

• gòn (as a standalone noun in Southern Vietnamese): Often used to refer to the kapok tree or its fiber.
  • Cây gòn cao lắm. (The kapok tree is very tall.)

Notes on Meaning

The word "bông gòn" carries two primary meanings in modern Vietnamese: 1. The original, botanical meaning: The fiber from the seed pods of the kapok tree (kapok). 2. The common, practical meaning: Processed, absorbent cotton wool, which is ubiquitous in daily life. This usage is dominant in contexts like medicine, cosmetics, and cleaning. The connection is based on the visual and textural similarity between the fluffy kapok fiber and processed cotton.

1. Kapok, silk-cotton
2. Absorbent cotton-wool