Definition

Noun: 1. A mill: A device or machine used for grinding solid materials into smaller pieces or powder. Traditionally, this refers to a hand-operated or animal-powered stone mill for grinding grains like rice or wheat. 2. (Botany) Indian mallow (Abutilon indicum): A small plant with round, millstone-shaped fruit. Its leaves are hairy, and it is used in traditional medicine.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Device):
  • Bà tôi vẫn giữ chiếc cối xay bằng đá cũ. (My grandmother still keeps the old stone mill.)
  • Trước đây, người ta dùng cối xay để nghiền thóc thành gạo. (In the past, people used a mill to grind paddy into rice.)
• Noun (Plant):
  • Lá cây cối xay thường được dùng trong các bài thuốc nam. (The leaves of the Indian mallow plant are often used in traditional Southern Vietnamese remedies.)
  • Quả cối xay có hình dáng rất đặc biệt. (The fruit of the Indian mallow has a very distinctive shape.)

Advanced Usage

• "cối xay gió": windmill (This is a compound term listed separately as a variant).
• "cối xay nước": watermill (This is a compound term listed separately as a variant).
• The term can be used metaphorically to describe something that crushes or grinds continuously, though this is less common in modern usage.

Variants and Related Words

• Cối xay gió (n): Windmill. A mill powered by the wind.
• Cối xay nước (n): Watermill. A mill powered by flowing water.
• Cối (n): Mortar. A bowl-shaped container for pounding with a pestle. While related as a grinding tool, a (mortar and pestle) is for pounding, whereas a is specifically for grinding.
• Máy xay (n): Grinder, blender. A modern electric machine for grinding.

Synonyms

• Cối nghiền (n): Grinding mill. A more formal or technical synonym.
• Máy xay (n): Grinder (for modern devices). This is a broader term for any grinding machine.

Related Phrases (Compound Terms)

• Xay xát (v): To mill, to grind (grains). This is the verb describing the action performed by a .
  • Nhà máy này chuyên xay xát lúa gạo. (This factory specializes in milling rice.)

Related Idioms

• "Xay như cối xay": To grind like a mill. Used figuratively to describe working tirelessly, repetitively, or being stuck in a monotonous routine.
  • Công việc văn phòng đôi khi khiến tôi cảm thấy mình xay như cối xay. (Office work sometimes makes me feel like I'm grinding like a mill.)

noun

1. Mill