bìm bịp
- Noun:
- Coucal: A type of bird belonging to the cuckoo family (Centropodidae), known for its distinctive call and often found in grasslands and scrublands.
- Figurative, a deceitful or cunning person: In Vietnamese culture and idioms, the bird's call is sometimes associated with deception or trickery.
Noun (Literal - the bird):
- Tiếng kêu của con bìm bịp vang lên trong đêm. (The call of the coucal echoed in the night.)
- Chúng tôi nhìn thấy một con bìm bịp trong bụi tre. (We saw a coucal in the bamboo thicket.)
Noun (Figurative - a deceitful person):
- Đừng tin hắn, hắn là một thằng bìm bịp. (Don't trust him, he is a deceitful person.)
- Lời nói của tên bịp bợm đó nghe như tiếng bìm bịp. (That swindler's words sound like the call of a coucal.)
"Tiếng bìm bịp": Literally "the call of the coucal," often used metaphorically to describe deceitful or untrustworthy talk.
- Anh ta chỉ toàn nói tiếng bìm bịp, đừng có nghe. (He only speaks deceitful words, don't listen.)
"Bịp như bìm bịp": An idiom meaning "to swindle/deceive like a coucal," emphasizing cunning deception.
- Tay buôn đồ cổ đó bịp như bìm bịp, bán toàn hàng giả. (That antique dealer swindles like a coucal, selling only fake goods.)
Chim bìm bịp: A more specific term for the bird, where "chim" means bird.
- Chim bìm bịp thường làm tổ trên mặt đất. (The coucal often nests on the ground.)
Bịp (verb/noun): To swindle, cheat, or a swindle/cheat. This is a colloquial short form derived from the association with the bird.
- Hắn chuyên đi bịp người già. (He specializes in swindling the elderly.)
- Chim cuốc: A term sometimes used regionally for similar wetland birds, though not a precise synonym.
- Kẻ lừa đảo: A swindler, fraudster (for the figurative meaning).
- Kẻ gian manh: A cunning, deceitful person (for the figurative meaning).
"Bìm bịp kêu, chim cuốc khóc": An idiom suggesting that when one bad thing happens (the coucal calls), another follows (the crake cries), often used to describe a chain of unfortunate or deceitful events.
- Công ty phá sản, rồi chủ nợ đến đòi, đúng là bìm bịp kêu chim cuốc khóc. (The company went bankrupt, then creditors came to collect debts, it's truly one misfortune after another.)
"Nghe tiếng bìm bịp mà sợ": To be frightened by the call of the coucal, meaning to be easily scared by rumors or ominous signs.
- Đừng nghe tiếng bìm bịp mà sợ, mọi chuyện vẫn ổn. (Don't be frightened by ominous rumors, everything is still fine.)