Definition

1. Verb:
   • To bob, to undulate, to rise and fall rhythmically: "dập dềnh" describes a gentle, rhythmic, up-and-down motion, typically of water surfaces or objects floating on slightly wavy water.
   • To float gently, to sway on waves: It conveys the sense of something floating and moving softly with the movement of the water.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Sóng nước dập dềnh. (The water waves undulate gently.)
  • Chiếc thuyền dập dềnh trên sông. (The boat bobs on the river.)
  • Những chiếc lá dập dềnh trên mặt hồ. (The leaves float gently on the lake surface.)

Advanced Usage

• "dập dềnh" to describe abstract concepts: Sometimes used metaphorically to describe unstable or fluctuating situations.
  • Cuộc sống của anh ấy vẫn còn dập dềnh. (His life is still unstable/fluctuating.)
• "dập dềnh theo...": to move/bob along with something.
  • Con thuyền dập dềnh theo từng đợt sóng. (The boat bobs along with each wave.)

Variants and Related Words

• Dập dìu (adj): bustling, crowded with people coming and going (often used for festivals or busy streets). This is a separate word with a different meaning related to lively movement.
• Chập chờn (verb): to flicker, to be unsteady (like a flame or light); to appear and disappear intermittently. Shares the concept of unsteady movement but in a different context.
• Bập bềnh (verb): A close synonym, also meaning to bob or float on water. The usage is very similar to "dập dềnh".

Synonyms

• Bập bềnh: to bob, to float (on water). Very similar meaning and often interchangeable.
• Nhấp nhô: to rise and fall (can describe waves or terrain like hills).
• Lên xuống: to go up and down (more general term for any up-down motion).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

Note: As Vietnamese does not have phrasal verbs in the same structure as English, this section lists common verb phrases. - Trôi dập dềnh: to drift while bobbing. - Chiếc bè trôi dập dềnh trên dòng nước. (The raft drifts, bobbing on the water current.) - Nổi dập dềnh: to float while bobbing. - Những cành cây nổi dập dềnh sau trận lũ. (Tree branches float, bobbing, after the flood.)

Related Idioms

• Sống dập dềnh: to live an unstable, precarious life without a firm foundation.
  • Cả đời ông ấy sống một cuộc sống dập dềnh trên sông nước. (He lived his whole life an unstable life on the rivers and waters.)
• Công việc dập dềnh: work or business that is unstable, with fluctuating income or prospects.
  • Nghề đánh cá là một nghề dập dềnh, phụ thuộc vào thiên nhiên. (Fishing is an unstable profession, dependent on nature.)

verb

1. bob
   • con thuyền dập dềnh trên sóng nước
     to boat was bobing on the waves