Definition

Verb: - To frown, to knit (one's brows): To contract the muscles of the forehead, especially the eyebrows, often expressing worry, deep thought, displeasure, or concentration.

Usage

The verb "chau" is used to describe the specific facial expression of frowning or knitting one's eyebrows. It is almost exclusively used in the fixed phrase "chau mày" (to knit one's brows / to frown). It describes a person's expression when they are thinking hard, feeling anxious, angry, or displeased.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Cô ấy chau mày khi đọc bức thư. (She frowned when reading the letter.)
  • Anh ấy chau mày suy nghĩ về vấn đề khó. (He knitted his brows, thinking about the difficult problem.)
  • Đừng chau mày như vậy, mọi chuyện sẽ ổn thôi. (Don't frown like that; everything will be fine.)

Advanced Usage

• "chau mày lại": to frown (emphasizing the action of bringing the eyebrows together).
  • Nghe tin đó, anh ta lập tức chau mày lại. (Upon hearing that news, he immediately frowned.)

Variants and Related Words

• Nhíu mày (verb): A near-synonym meaning "to frown" or "to knit one's brows." It is often interchangeable with "chau mày," though "nhíu" can imply a quicker, tighter contraction.
• Cau mày (verb): Another synonym meaning "to frown," often with a stronger connotation of anger or sternness.
• Chau chau (reduplication - adjective/adverb): Describes a state of being frowning or worried-looking.
  • Mặt nó lúc nào cũng chau chau. (His face always looks frowning/worried.)

Synonyms

• Nhíu mày: to knit one's brows.
• Cau mày: to frown (often with displeasure).

Notes

• Important: In modern Vietnamese, "chau" is very rarely used alone. It is almost always part of the compound phrase "chau mày." Therefore, when explaining or using this word, it is most natural and accurate to present it within this fixed expression.

verb

1. To frown, to knit (one's brows)