cũ rích
Definition
- Adjective:
- Extremely old, antiquated, or out-of-date: Describes an object, idea, or style that is not just old, but obsolete, worn out, and often considered useless or laughably outdated. It carries a stronger, more dismissive connotation than simply "cũ" (old).
- Hackneyed, stale: Can refer to a story, joke, or idea that is overly familiar, unoriginal, and no longer interesting.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Chiếc máy đánh chữ này cũ rích rồi, không dùng được nữa. (This typewriter is extremely antiquated and can't be used anymore.)
- Anh kể chuyện cũ rích đó hoài, chán lắm. (You keep telling that stale old story; it's so boring.)
- Phong cách kiến trúc đó giờ đã cũ rích. (That architectural style is now completely passé.)
Advanced Usage
- Often used in informal or colloquial speech to express strong disapproval or mockery towards something outdated.
- Can be used figuratively for non-physical things like customs, methods, or thinking.
- Những quan niệm cũ rích đó không còn phù hợp. (Those antiquated notions are no longer suitable.)
Variants and Related Words
- Cũ kỹ (adj): Also means old and worn-out, but may imply physical deterioration more than "cũ rích," which emphasizes being out-of-fashion or obsolete.
- Lỗi thời (adj): Outdated, out-of-fashion. More formal than "cũ rích."
- Cổ lỗ sĩ (adj): Antiquated, archaic (often for ideas). Similar in strength to "cũ rích" but more literary.
Synonyms
- Antiquated: Old-fashioned or outdated.
- Obsolete: No longer produced or used; out of date.
- Passé: No longer fashionable; out of date.
- Hackneyed: (Of a phrase or idea) lacking significance through having been overused; unoriginal and trite.
Related Idioms
- While "cũ rích" itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, it is used in similar contexts to idioms about old things.
- Đồ cũ như trái đất: Something as old as the earth (i.e., extremely old).