Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Extremely thin and gaunt: Describes a person or animal that is excessively skinny, emaciated, or bony, often to a pitiable or unhealthy degree. It emphasizes a state of being all skin and bones.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sau trận ốm dài, nó trông còm nhỏm còn nhom. (After the long illness, he looks extremely thin and gaunt.)
  • Con chó hoang ăn đói cả tuần, thân hình còm nhỏm còn nhom. (The stray dog went hungry for a week, its body was all skin and bones.)

Advanced Usage

• This phrase is a reduplicative idiom, combining "còm nhỏm" and "còn nhom" for strong emphatic effect. It is more expressive and vivid than using a single word like "gầy" (thin).

Variants and Related Words

• Còm cõi (adj): Frail, weak, and thin due to age or sickness.

  • Cụ già sống một mình, trông có vẻ còm cõi. (The old man lives alone and looks quite frail.)

• Còn nhom (adj): Very skinny, emaciated (often used independently).

  • Đứa trẻ suy dinh dưỡng người còn nhom. (The malnourished child is very skinny.)

Synonyms

• Emaciated: Abnormally thin or weak, especially because of illness or lack of food.
• Gaunt: Lean and haggard, especially because of suffering, hunger, or age.
• Skin and bones: Extremely thin.

Related Idioms

• Gầy như que củi: As thin as a stick.

  • Nó nhịn ăn để giảm cân, giờ gầy như que củi. (He starved himself to lose weight, now he's as thin as a stick.)

• Xương bọc da: Skin wrapped around bones (a vivid description of extreme thinness).

  • Bệnh nhân giai đoạn cuối chỉ còn xương bọc da. (The terminal patient is just skin and bones.)