Definition

Verb: - To threaten; to intimidate: The act of making someone feel afraid or coerced, often through the use of authority, a fierce demeanor, or menacing words, to force compliance or submission.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Anh ấy thường dọa nạt bạn bè để đạt được điều mình muốn. (He often threatens his friends to get what he wants.)
  • Đừng dọa nạt trẻ con như vậy, nó sẽ làm chúng sợ hãi. (Don't intimidate children like that; it will frighten them.)
  • Bọn tội phạm dọa nạt nhân chứng để họ không dám khai báo. (The criminals intimidated the witnesses so they wouldn't dare to testify.)

Advanced Usage

• "dọa nạt tinh thần": to psychologically intimidate; to mentally bully.
  • Hành vi dọa nạt tinh thần tại nơi làm việc là không thể chấp nhận. (Psychological intimidation in the workplace is unacceptable.)

Variants and Related Words

• Dọa (verb): to threaten, to scare (often a single act or a simpler form of threat).
  • Nó chỉ dọa chơi thôi, đừng sợ. (He's just joking/scaring you, don't be afraid.)
• Hăm dọa (verb): to menace, to threaten (carries a stronger, more imminent sense of danger).
  • Những lời hăm dọa của hắn nghe rất đáng sợ. (His menacing words sound very frightening.)
• Nạt nộ (verb): to scold or rebuke harshly and intimidatingly.
  • Bà giáo không bao giờ nạt nộ học sinh. (The teacher never harshly scolds the students.)

Synonyms

• Đe dọa (verb): to threaten, to menace. (Often used in more formal or serious contexts, like legal threats.)
• Bắt nạt (verb): to bully. (Often implies a power imbalance and repeated actions, commonly among children.)
• Khủng bố tinh thần (verb phrase): to psychologically terrorize. (A stronger term for severe mental intimidation.)

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

Note: As a single verb, "dọa nạt" is typically used without separable particles. However, it can be part of common verbal phrases. - Đi dọa nạt (verb phrase): to go around threatening people. - Hắn ta chuyên đi dọa nạt các tiểu thương trong chợ. (He specializes in going around threatening small vendors in the market.)

Related Idioms

• "Dọa ma bắt nạt trẻ con": Literally "to scare ghosts and bully children." This idiom criticizes someone who only dares to threaten those who are weaker or more vulnerable.
  • Hắn chỉ giỏi dọa ma bắt nạt trẻ con chứ gặp người cứng thì chạy mất. (He's only good at bullying the weak; when he meets a tough person, he runs away.)

verb

1. to threaten; to intimidate