Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Irritable / Grumpy: Having or showing a tendency to be easily annoyed or angered, often resulting in short, sharp, or unfriendly responses.
   • Surly / Gruff: Bad-tempered and unfriendly in manner, often expressed through a harsh tone of voice or abrupt behavior.

2. Verb (to be cáu kỉnh):

   • To be irritable / to act grumpily: To behave in an annoyed, short-tempered manner.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sau một đêm mất ngủ, anh ấy trở nên rất cáu kỉnh. (After a sleepless night, he became very grumpy.)
  • Đừng hỏi ông ấy bây giờ, ông ấy đang có tính khí cáu kỉnh. (Don't ask him now, he is in an irritable mood.)
• Verb:
  • Nó cáu kỉnh với tất cả mọi người. (He is surly with everyone.)
  • Cô ấy thường cáu kỉnh khi đói bụng. (She often gets irritable when she's hungry.)

Advanced Usage

• "cáu kỉnh" is often used to describe a temporary state of irritability rather than a permanent personality trait. It implies a readiness to snap or respond sharply.
• It can describe both a person's general mood and the specific tone of their communication.
  • giọng nói cáu kỉnh (a gruff / surly voice)
  • câu trả lời cáu kỉnh (a grumpy reply)

Variants and Related Words

• Cáu (adj/verb): To be/get angry, annoyed. ( is a more specific and frequent state than just ).
  • Anh ta cáu lên vì bị làm phiền. (He got angry because he was disturbed.)
• Dễ cáu (adj): Short-tempered, easily annoyed.
  • Cô ấy là người dễ cáu. (She is a short-tempered person.)
• Gắt gỏng (adj): Irritable, snappish. Very similar in meaning to , often used interchangeably.
  • Ông chủ tỏ ra gắt gỏng với nhân viên. (The boss was snappish with the employees.)

Synonyms

• Irritable: Having a tendency to be easily annoyed.
• Gruff: Abrupt or taciturn in manner, often with a rough voice.
• Surly: Bad-tempered and unfriendly.
• Crabby: Irritable and complaining.
• Testy: Easily irritated; impatient and somewhat bad-tempered.

Related Idioms

• Nóng tính: Hot-tempered. This describes a more fundamental, quick-to-anger personality trait, whereas often describes the resulting grumpy behavior or mood.
  • Anh ấy nóng tính nhưng không hay cáu kỉnh vô cớ. (He is hot-tempered but doesn't often get grumpy for no reason.)

verb & adj

1. (To be) surly, (to be) gruff
   • giọng cáu kỉnh
     a gruff voice
   • nó cáu kỉnh với tất cả mọi người
     he is surly with everyone