bốc phép
Definition
- Adjective (slang, vulgar):
- To be boastful, to be a braggart: Describes a person who talks excessively about their own abilities, achievements, or possessions in an exaggerated and often annoying manner. It implies empty, showy talk intended to impress others.
- To be full of hot air, to be a windbag: Suggests that the person's speech is insubstantial, not backed by action or truth, and is primarily for self-aggrandizement.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Đừng nghe nó nói, nó chỉ là đứa bốc phép thôi. (Don't listen to him; he's just a boastful windbag.)
- Anh ta bốc phép về chuyện kiếm tiền của mình. (He's full of hot air about how much money he makes.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is informal, vulgar, and carries a strongly negative and dismissive connotation. It is used to criticize someone's character, specifically their manner of speaking, rather than to describe a single instance of boasting.
Variants and Related Words
Khoác lác (v/adj): to brag, to boast. This is a more standard, though still informal, synonym.
- Nó thích khoác lác về chiếc xe mới. (He likes to brag about his new car.)
Nói phét (v): to talk big, to shoot one's mouth off.
- Thằng đó toàn nói phét. (That guy is always talking big.)
Synonyms
- Braggart: a person who boasts about achievements or possessions.
- Windbag: a person who talks a lot but says little of value.
- Blowhard: a boastful or pompous person.
Related Idioms
Nổ như pháo: to "explode like firecrackers"; meaning to boast loudly and excessively.
- Cả buổi tối nó chỉ ngồi nổ như pháo. (All evening he just sat there boasting loudly.)
Vẽ rắn thêm chân: to "draw legs on a snake"; meaning to add unnecessary, exaggerated details when telling a story, often to make it more impressive.
- Câu chuyện đó bị vẽ rắn thêm chân nhiều rồi. (That story has been exaggerated a lot.)