chìm lỉm
Definition
- Adjective/Adverb:
- Completely sunk, sunk without a trace: Describes an object that has sunk entirely beneath the surface of water, leaving no visible part above.
- Utterly silent, to fall completely silent: Used figuratively to describe a person or thing that becomes completely quiet or stops making any sound, often suddenly or after some activity.
Usage Examples
Literal (Sinking):
- Chiếc thuyền bị đắm và chìm lỉm xuống đáy biển. (The boat sank and went straight to the bottom of the sea.)
- Sau vụ nổ, con tàu chìm lỉm trong vòng vài phút. (After the explosion, the ship sank like a stone within minutes.)
Figurative (Silence):
- Nghe thấy tiếng giáo viên, cả lớp chìm lỉm. (Upon hearing the teacher's voice, the whole class fell dead silent.)
- Đang ồn ào tranh cãi, anh ta bỗng chìm lỉm khi bị hỏi đến bằng chứng. (He was arguing noisily but suddenly clammed up when asked for evidence.)
Advanced Usage
"chìm lỉm xuống lòng đất": to wish the ground would swallow one up (from extreme embarrassment or shame).
- Cô ấy xấu hổ đến mức muốn chìm lỉm xuống lòng đất. (She was so embarrassed she wished she could disappear into the ground.)
Used to emphasize the totality and finality of the sinking or silencing.
Variants and Related Words
Chìm (verb): to sink, to submerge.
- Cục đá chìm xuống nước. (The rock sank in the water.)
Lỉm (This is a descriptive component, rarely used alone, that intensifies "chìm" to mean a swift, total submersion).
Synonyms
- Chìm nghỉm: (synonym) completely sunk, vanished beneath the surface.
- Im bặt: (for the figurative meaning) to fall silent abruptly.
- Câm như hến: (idiomatic for silence) to be as silent as a clam.
Related Idioms
- Chìm xuồng nổi: (contrasting idiom) to sink or to swim; to fail or to succeed. This idiom uses "chìm" but refers to broader failure, not the specific total submersion of "chìm lỉm".
- Công ty mới của họ không biết sẽ chìm xuồng nổi. (It's unclear whether their new company will sink or swim.)