câu kéo
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To use flowery or verbose language; to speak in a roundabout, overly elaborate manner: The primary meaning refers to the act of using unnecessarily complex, lengthy, or ornate phrasing, often to impress, obscure meaning, or prolong speech.
- To drag out (a conversation, topic): It can imply prolonging a discussion or topic with excessive or irrelevant words.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Anh ta cứ câu kéo mãi mà không đi vào vấn đề chính. (He keeps using such flowery language and never gets to the main point.)
- Đừng câu kéo nữa, hãy nói ngắn gọn và rõ ràng đi. (Stop being so verbose; please speak concisely and clearly.)
- Bài diễn văn đó câu kéo quá, nghe rất mệt. (That speech was too full of verbiage; it was exhausting to listen to.)
Advanced Usage
- "câu kéo thời gian": to drag out / kill time (with words).
- Ông ấy câu kéo thời gian bằng những câu chuyện dài dòng. (He killed time by telling long-winded stories.)
- Used critically to describe bureaucratic, academic, or political language perceived as unnecessarily complex.
- Ngôn ngữ trong văn bản hành chính đôi khi câu kéo khó hiểu. (The language in administrative documents is sometimes verbose and hard to understand.)
Variants and Related Words
- Câu cú (n): Phrasing, diction. Often used together with "câu kéo" (như câu cú câu kéo) to emphasize ornate or affected language.
- Dài dòng (adj): Long-winded, verbose.
- Hoa mỹ (adj): Flowery, ornate (often describing language).
Synonyms
- Làm dài dòng: to make something long-winded.
- Văn hoa: flowery (language).
- Khoa trương: to be pompous, bombastic.
Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)
- Kéo dài (câu chuyện, thời gian): to prolong (a story, time). This shares the concept of "kéo" (to pull/drag) from "câu kéo".
- Anh ấy có tài kéo dài một câu chuyện đơn giản thành một bài giảng. (He has a talent for prolonging a simple story into a lecture.)
Related Idioms
- Nói vòng vo tam quốc: To beat around the bush (literally: to talk in circles like the Three Kingdoms). This idiom is very close in meaning to "câu kéo", emphasizing indirect and roundabout speech.
- Đừng nói vòng vo tam quốc nữa, cứ nói thẳng đi! (Stop beating around the bush and speak directly!)
- như câu cú