Definition

Noun: 1. A pen: A writing instrument used to apply ink to a surface, typically paper. This is the primary and most common meaning. 2. A writer, an author: A person who writes professionally, especially a journalist or columnist. This is a figurative and informal usage, highlighting a person's skill or prominence in writing.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Pen):
  • Tôi quên mang cây viết. (I forgot to bring a pen.)
  • Cô ấy mượn cây viết của tôi để ký tên. (She borrowed my pen to sign her name.)
• Noun (Writer):
  • Anh ấy là một cây viết nổi tiếng của tờ báo đó. (He is a famous writer for that newspaper.)
  • Chúng tôi cần thêm một cây viết cho chuyên mục thể thao. (We need another writer for the sports column.)

Advanced Usage

• "cây viết trẻ": A young or up-and-coming writer.
  • Cô ấy được đánh giá là một cây viết trẻ đầy triển vọng. (She is considered a very promising young writer.)
• "cây viết kỳ cựu": A veteran or seasoned writer.
  • Bài báo được phân tích bởi một cây viết kỳ cựu. (The article was analyzed by a veteran writer.)

Variants and Related Words

• Bút: The more standard and universally used word for "pen" in Vietnamese. "Cây viết" is more common in Southern Vietnamese dialects.
• Viết: A shortened, very colloquial form of "cây viết" (pen), used primarily in speech in Southern Vietnam.
• Cây bút: A synonym for "cây viết," also meaning "pen." It can also be used figuratively to mean "writer."

Synonyms

• Bút: Pen (the standard synonym).
• Tác giả: Author (more formal synonym for the "writer" meaning).
• Nhà báo: Journalist (specific type of writer).

Related Phrases

• Cây viết chì: Pencil (literally "lead pen"). This is a compound word and a separate vocabulary item.
• Cây viết mực: Fountain pen (literally "ink pen"). This is a compound word and a separate vocabulary item.
• Cây viết bi: Ballpoint pen (literally "ball pen"). This is a compound word and a separate vocabulary item.

Related Idioms

• Lực bất tòng tâm: (Idiom meaning "the will is willing but the flesh is weak," sometimes humorously applied when a writer has writer's block, though not directly containing "cây viết").
• Có bút có nghiên: (Idiom meaning to have the full tools for writing/scholarship, referring to "brush and inkstone," not directly using "cây viết").

noun

1. Pen