Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Slovenly, slipshod: Describes a person's appearance or actions that are messy, careless, and lacking in tidiness or order.
   • Squalid: Describes living conditions or an environment that are dirty, run-down, and unpleasant due to neglect.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Ăn mặc trông bệ rạc. (To look slovenly in one's clothes.)
  • Sống bệ rạc. (To live in squalor.)
  • Nhà cửa bệ rạc. (The house is squalid/dilapidated.)

Advanced Usage

• The word "bệ rạc" often carries a moral judgment, implying not just physical untidiness but also a lack of dignity, propriety, or character in one's way of life.
  • Lối sống bệ rạc. (A squalid/slovenly way of life.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lôi thôi (adj): Messy, troublesome, complicated (often for situations or appearance).
• Luộm thuộm (adj): Untidy, sloppy (primarily for appearance).

Synonyms

• Untidy: Not neat or orderly.
• Shabby: In poor condition from long use or lack of care.
• Dilapidated: In a state of disrepair or ruin (especially for buildings).
• Sordid: Involving ignoble actions and motives; also dirty or squalid.

Related Idioms

• Ăn ở bệ rạc: To live in a morally and physically degraded manner.
  • Khu phố đó nổi tiếng vì những kẻ ăn ở bệ rạc. (That neighborhood is notorious for people who live in a sordid manner.)

adj

1. Slovenly, slipshod Squalid
   • ăn mặc trông bệ rạc
     to look slovenly in one's clothes
   • sống bệ rạc
     to live in squalor