Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Sad and fretful: A state of being simultaneously sorrowful and restless, irritated, or uneasy. It describes a complex emotional condition where sadness is mixed with a sense of agitation or mental discomfort.
   • Melancholy and vexed: Feeling downhearted and troubled, often by specific worries or unspoken concerns that cause inner turmoil.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Cô ấy cảm thấy rất buồn bực sau cuộc tranh cãi. (She felt very sad and fretful after the argument.)
  • Thời tiết xấu kéo dài khiến mọi người buồn bực. (The prolonged bad weather made everyone melancholy and vexed.)
  • Anh ấy buồn bực vì đau ốm luôn. (He is sad and fretty because of frequent illness.)

Advanced Usage

• The term often implies a lingering, low-grade emotional distress that is not easily resolved, more persistent than momentary sadness.
• It can describe a mood caused by a combination of factors, such as boredom () and specific annoyances (), leading to a general sense of dissatisfaction.

Variants and Related Words

• Buồn (adj): Sad, sorrowful.
  • Cô ấy buồn khi nghe tin đó. (She was sad to hear that news.)
• Bực bội (adj): Irritated, annoyed.
  • Sự chậm trễ khiến anh bực bội. (The delay made him irritated.)
• Bứt rứt (adj): Restless, fidgety (often due to worry or guilt).
  • Lòng anh bứt rứt không yên. (His heart was restless and unsettled.)

Synonyms

• Dejected and irritable: Feeling low in spirits and easily annoyed.
• Downcast and agitated: Sad and emotionally stirred up or troubled.
• Glum and disgruntled: Sullenly sad and dissatisfied.

Related Idioms

• Buồn bực trong lòng: To be sad and fretful in one's heart.
  • Chuyện gia đình khiến ông buồn bực trong lòng. (Family matters made him sad and fretful in his heart.)
• Buồn bực không yên: To be so sad and fretful that one cannot find peace.
  • Lo nghĩ về tương lai, cô buồn bực không yên. (Worrying about the future, she was sad and fretful without peace.)

1. Sad and fretty
   • buồn bực vì đau ốm luôn
     to be sad and fretty because of frequent illness
   • không nói ra được càng thấy buồn bực
     the inability to speak out his resentment made him sadder and frettier