Definition

1. Noun:

   • Child, offspring, young: Refers to a human child or the young of an animal in relation to its parents.
   • Sapling, seedling: A young plant or sprout.
   • (Generic classifier): A word used before nouns to denote a single unit of animals, certain objects (like roads, knives, boats), or sometimes people (often with a derogatory or familiar nuance).

2. Adjective:

   • Small, minor: Indicates something is smaller in size or of secondary importance.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Child/Offspring):

  • Cô ấy có hai con. (She has two children.)
  • Mèo mẹ và con của nó. (The mother cat and its kitten.)

• Noun (Classifier for animals):

  • Một con chó. (A dog.)
  • Hai con chim. (Two birds.)

• Noun (Classifier for objects):

  • Một con dao. (A knife.)
  • Một con đường. (A road.)

• Adjective (Small):

  • Chiếc xe con. (A small car.)
  • Cột con. (A minor/pillar.)

Advanced Usage

• "con một": an only child.

  • Anh ấy là con một. (He is an only child.)

• "to con": having a large body build.

  • Người to con. (A large-built person.)

• "nhỏ con": having a small body build.

  • Cô ấy nhỏ con. (She is petite.)

Variants and Related Words

• Con cái (n): children, offspring (collectively).

  • Ông bà ấy có nhiều con cái. (They have many children.)

• Con đẻ (n): biological child; (figuratively) one's own creation.

  • Đứa bé là con đẻ của họ. (The baby is their biological child.)

• Con nuôi (n): adopted child.

  • Họ yêu thương con nuôi như con đẻ. (They love their adopted child as their own.)

Synonyms

• Đứa trẻ: child (specifically a young human).
• Đứa bé: baby, young child.
• Cái: (classifier for many inanimate objects; contrast with 'con' for animals and certain objects).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

• Con bế con bồng: (idiomatic) to have many young children to carry and hold; signifies having a lot of small children.

  • Thời con bế con bồng thật vất vả. (The time of having many toddlers was very hard.)

• Con hơn cha là nhà có phúc: (proverb) It is a family's blessing when the child surpasses the father.

Related Idioms

• Con dại cái mang: (idiom) Literally "the child is foolish, the mother bears (the responsibility)." Means parents are responsible for their children's actions.

  • Phải dạy con cẩn thận, con dại cái mang mà. (You must teach your children carefully, because parents are held accountable for their children's mistakes.)

• Con nhà tông không giống lông cũng giống cánh: (proverb) Literally "A child from a bird family, if not similar in feathers, is similar in wings." Means children inherit traits from their parents.

noun

1. Child, offspring, young, son, daughter
   • con một
     an only child
2. Sapling, seedling con rau a vegetable seedling
3. (Generic particle denoting a unit of animal or animal-like thing) A, an, the
   • con voi
     an elephant
   • hai con chim
     two birds
   • con đường
     a road
4. (Denoting derogatorily a person of some social category)
   • con buôn