Definition

1. Noun:
   • Cluster, Bunch: A group of similar items that are naturally joined together at a single point or gathered and held together. This is the most common meaning.
   • Pencil (Mathematics/Geometry): A set of lines, rays, or planes that all intersect at a single common point.
   • Raceme (Botany): A type of flower cluster where individual flowers are attached by short stalks along a central stem.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Mẹ mua một chùm nho. (Mother bought a bunch of grapes.)
  • Anh ấy làm rơi chùm chìa khóa. (He dropped the bunch of keys.)
  • Bài toán yêu cầu vẽ một chùm đường thẳng đồng quy. (The problem requires drawing a pencil of concurrent straight lines.)
  • Hoa của cây này mọc thành chùm rất đẹp. (The flowers of this plant grow in a raceme, very beautiful.)

Advanced Usage

• In Music ("Tuplet"): In musical notation, a group of notes played in the time usually taken by a different number of notes. The Vietnamese term uses "chùm" with a number.

  • chùm ba: triplet (a group of three notes).
  • chùm sáu: sextuplet (a group of six notes).

• Figurative Use for Projectiles or Streams: Used to describe a group of things emitted or flying together.

  • chùm đạn: a burst or volley of bullets.
  • chùm tia nước: a jet or spray of water.
  • chùm tia sáng: a beam or pencil of light.

Variants and Related Words

• Chùm hoa (n): A bunch or bouquet of flowers.
• Chùm sao (n): A cluster of stars (e.g., a star cluster).
• Chùm rễ (n): A cluster of roots.

Synonyms

• Bunch: A number of things grouped together (e.g., keys, bananas).
• Cluster: A group of similar things growing or collected closely together (e.g., grapes, stars).
• Bundle: A collection of things tied or wrapped together.
• Pencil: A set of converging lines (mathematics).
• Raceme: A type of inflorescence in botany.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Ăn cả chùm: Literally "to eat the whole cluster." This idiom, from the proverb means to accept a large quantity of something of poor quality. It implies that quality is better than quantity. (It's better to eat half a persimmon than a whole cluster of bitter figs.)

noun

1. Cluster, bunch
   • chùm nho
     a bunch of grapes
   • chùm chìa khoá
     a bunch of keys
2. Pencil
   • chùm đường thẳng
     a pencil of straight lines
3. Raceme
   • hoa mọc thành chùm
     the flowers grow in raceme