cống rãnh
Definition
- Noun:
- Sewer; drain; gutter: A system of underground pipes or open channels designed to carry away wastewater and surface water (like rainwater) from streets and buildings.
- A sewerage or drainage system: Refers to the entire network of such pipes and channels.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Thành phố đang nâng cấp hệ thống cống rãnh. (The city is upgrading the sewer system.)
- Nước mưa chảy đầy cống rãnh. (Rainwater is flowing full in the gutters.)
- Mùi hôi bốc lên từ cống rãnh. (A foul smell is rising from the drain.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is often used metaphorically to describe something very dirty, corrupt, or associated with the lowest levels of society.
- Báo chí vạch trần những vụ làm ăn từ cống rãnh. (The press exposes business dealings from the gutters [i.e., deeply corrupt dealings].)
Variants and Related Words
- Cống (n): A drain, culvert, or larger sewer pipe.
- Nắp cống bị mất. (The manhole cover is missing.)
- Rãnh (n): A ditch, trench, or gutter (often smaller or open).
- Rãnh nước bên vệ đường. (The water ditch by the roadside.)
- Hệ thống thoát nước (n): Drainage system.
Synonyms
- Sewer: An underground conduit for carrying off drainage water and waste matter.
- Drain: A pipe or channel that carries away water or sewage.
- Gutter: A shallow trough or channel, especially at the edge of a street, for carrying off rainwater.
Related Idioms
- Đồ cống rãnh: A strong insult meaning "scum" or "sewer trash," used to describe a vile, despicable person.
- Bọn lừa đảo đó là đồ cống rãnh. (Those scammers are scum.)