Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Parsimonious, stingy, frugal: Describes a person who is excessively careful or reluctant to spend money or use resources, often to the point of being miserly.
   • Scrimping, sparing: Indicates a habit of being very economical or tight-fisted.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Ông ấy rất dè sẻn khi chi tiêu cho bản thân. (He is very parsimonious when spending on himself.)
  • Sống dè sẻn là một thói quen tốt, nhưng đừng nên quá keo kiệt. (Living frugally is a good habit, but one shouldn't be too stingy.)

Advanced Usage

• "dè sẻn từng đồng": to scrimp and save every penny.

  • Bà ấy dè sẻn từng đồng để dành dụm cho tương lai. (She scrimps and saves every penny to save for the future.)

• "thái độ dè sẻn": a parsimonious/stingy attitude.

  • Thái độ dè sẻn của anh ta khiến mọi người khó chịu. (His stingy attitude makes people uncomfortable.)

Variants and Related Words

• Dè dặt (adj): Cautious, reserved, circumspect. (Note: This word relates to caution in behavior or speech, not specifically with money.)
• Keo kiệt (adj): Stingy, miserly, tight-fisted. (This is a stronger, more negative synonym.)
• Hà tiện (adj): Mean, niggardly, penny-pinching. (Another strong synonym with a negative connotation.)
• Tiết kiệm (adj): Economical, thrifty. (This is a more positive term for being careful with resources, without the negative implication of being stingy.)

Synonyms

• Bủn xỉn: stingy, miserly.
• Bòn rút: to be niggardly, to skimp. (Often used as a verb)

Related Phrases

• Ăn tiêu dè sẻn: to spend parsimoniously.
  • Gia đình họ phải ăn tiêu dè sẻn sau khi ông chủ mất việc. (His family had to spend parsimoniously after the father lost his job.)

Related Idioms

• Dè sẻn như mắm đổ muối: (Literally: as stingy as spilling salt on fish sauce) An idiom describing extreme stinginess.
  • Đừng có dè sẻn như mắm đổ muối, mời họ ăn một bữa tử tế đi. (Don't be so stingy, treat them to a proper meal.)

1. Be parsimonious