diêm
Definition
- Noun:
- Match: A small, thin piece of wood or cardboard with a tip coated in a substance that ignites when struck against a rough surface, used to produce a flame.
- (Historical/Chemical) Saltpeter; Potassium nitrate: A white crystalline compound used historically in making gunpowder and preserving food. This meaning is now largely archaic in modern Vietnamese.
Usage Examples
- Noun (Match):
- Anh ấy quẹt một que diêm để thắp nến. (He struck a match to light the candle.)
- Hộp diêm này đã hết. (This box of matches is empty.)
- Noun (Saltpeter - archaic):
- Trong lịch sử, diêm tiêu được dùng để chế tạo thuốc súng. (Historically, saltpeter was used to make gunpowder.)
Advanced Usage
- "Đánh diêm": To strike a match.
- Cô ấy đánh diêm trong bóng tối. (She struck a match in the dark.)
- "Đầu que diêm": The match head.
- Chất hóa học trên đầu que diêm rất dễ cháy. (The chemical on the match head is highly flammable.)
Variants and Related Words
- Diêm sinh (n, archaic): Sulfur.
- Diêm tiêu (n, archaic): Saltpeter; potassium nitrate.
- Diêm dân (n, historical): A person who harvested saltpeter.
- Hộp diêm (n): Matchbox.
- Que diêm (n): Matchstick.
Synonyms
- Match (for the common meaning): A device for producing fire.
- Thuốc đánh diêm (n, less common): Literally "match medicine," referring to the match head material.
Related Phrases
- Tắt ngấm như diêm gặp nước: (Idiom) To be extinguished instantly, like a match meeting water; meaning to fail or end suddenly and completely.
- Cháy như diêm gặp gió: (Idiom) To burn/spread like a match in the wind; meaning something happens very quickly and intensely.
noun
-
match salt; sulphur
