Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Frowning, scowling: Describes a facial expression showing displeasure, anger, or deep thought, characterized by contracted eyebrows and a tightened mouth.

Usage

• "Bàu bạu" is used to describe someone's facial expression. It is often used with words like "mặt" (face) to form the common phrase "mặt bàu bạu" (a frowning/scowling face).
• It describes a temporary state or mood, not a permanent characteristic.
• Style/Register: This word is common in spoken and descriptive written Vietnamese. It is neutral but can carry a slightly informal or vivid tone.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sao anh lại bàu bạu thế? Có chuyện gì à? (Why are you scowling like that? Is something wrong?)
  • Cô ấy bước vào phòng với khuôn mặt bàu bạu. (She entered the room with a frowning face.)
  • Đừng có bàu bạu với tôi! (Don't scowl at me!)

Advanced Usage

• "bàu bạu" can sometimes imply a sulky or sullen mood beyond just the physical expression.
  • Nó ngồi một góc, mặt bàu bạu cả buổi. (He sat in a corner with a sulky face all afternoon.)

Variants and Related Words

• Bặm trợn (adj): Describes a fierce, grim, or menacing facial expression, often stronger than "bàu bạu".
• Cau có (adj): Frowning, looking annoyed or irritable. Very similar in meaning and usage to "bàu bạu".
• Nhăn nhó (adj): Making a face, grimacing (often due to pain or distaste). Can overlap with "bàu bạu" but is more about contorting the face.
• Cáu kỉnh (adj): Irritable, grumpy. Refers more to the irritable mood itself rather than specifically the facial expression.

Synonyms

• Cau mày: To frown (literally "to contract eyebrows").
• Nhíu mày: To knit/furrow one's brows.
• Cáu gắt: To be irritable/snappy.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Mặt bàu như bí: (Idiom) Literally "face as swollen as a gourd", meaning to have a very sullen, pouting, or swollen (from anger) face. This is a more vivid and figurative expression than "mặt bàu bạu".

1. Frowning, scowling
   • Mặt bàu bạt
     Frowning face