Definition

1. Adjective:
   • (Of land) barren, infertile, exhausted: Describes soil or farmland that has lost its fertility and nutrients, becoming unable to support healthy plant growth.
   • (Of plants) stunted, dwarfed: Describes plants that are underdeveloped, small, and unhealthy due to poor growing conditions.
   • (Figurative, of abstract concepts) barren, sterile, stunted: Describes things like ideas, thoughts, culture, or emotions that are unproductive, undeveloped, lacking vitality, or creativity.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Ruộng đất cằn cỗi. (The fields are exhausted/barren.)
  • Đất xấu lại không có phân bón, cây trở nên cằn cỗi. (Because of the impoverished soil and lack of manure, the tree became stunted.)
  • Tư tưởng cằn cỗi. (Stunted/barren thinking.)
  • Văn hoá không bắt rễ thẳng ở đại chúng, kết quả là văn hoá cằn cỗi héo hon. (A culture without deep roots in the broad masses is a stunted, withered culture.)

Advanced Usage

• The word is often used metaphorically to criticize a lack of intellectual, spiritual, or emotional growth.
  • Tâm hồn cằn cỗi. (A barren soul.)
  • Một trí tưởng tượng cằn cỗi. (A sterile imagination.)

Variants and Related Words

• Cằn (adj): Often used alone to mean dry, barren, or harsh (e.g., - a harsh voice; - arid land). "Cằn cỗi" intensifies this meaning, adding a sense of long-term exhaustion or degeneration.

Synonyms

• Barren / Infertile: Lacking the capacity to produce or support growth (for land).
• Sterile: Incapable of producing fruit, offspring, or creative results.
• Stunted / Dwarfed: Having growth stopped or impeded.
• Exhausted: Drained of nutrients or vitality.
• Arid: Extremely dry and lifeless.

Antonyms

• Màu mỡ / phì nhiêu: Fertile, fruitful (for land).
• Tươi tốt: Lush, luxuriant (for plants).
• Phong phú / sáng tạo: Rich, creative (for ideas).

Related Idioms and Phrases

• While "cằn cỗi" itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, it is commonly paired with other adjectives for emphasis, such as:
  • cằn cỗi héo hon: stunted and withered.
  • khô cằn và cằn cỗi: dry and barren.

1. (nói về đất trồng trọt) Exhausted
   • ruộng đất cằn cỗi
     exhausted fields
2. Stunted, dwarfed
   • đất xấu lại không có phân bón, cây trở nên cằn cỗi
     because of the impoverished soil and lack of manure, the tree was stunted
   • tư tưởng cằn cỗi
     stunted thinking
   • văn hoá không bắt rễ thẳng ở đại chúng, kết quả là văn hoá cằn cỗi héo hon
     a culture without deep roots in the broad masses is a stunted, withered culture