giầm

Thân thiện

Người chèo thuyền cầm hai chiếc giầm để bơi trên sông.

Definition

Noun: A paddle; a short, handheld oar used for propelling and steering a small boat, typically by moving it through the water from side to side or in a circular motion.

Usage

The word "giầm" refers specifically to the tool used for manually moving a small boat. It is a common term in contexts related to traditional Vietnamese boating, fishing, or transportation on rivers and canals.

Examples: * Anh ấy dùng giầm để chèo thuyền qua sông. (He used a paddle to row the boat across the river.) * Chiếc giầm bị gãy khi họ đang bơi. (The paddle broke while they were rowing.) * Chèo thuyền bằng giầm đòi hỏi kỹ thuật và sức lực. (Rowing a boat with a paddle requires technique and strength.)

Advanced Usage

• Buông giầm cắm chèo (Idiom): Literally "to drop the paddle and stick the oar." This traditional saying figuratively means to stop working, to give up on a task, or to abandon one's efforts, similar to "throwing in the towel."

Variants and Related Words

• Chèo: This is a more general term for "oar." While "giầm" often implies a shorter, handheld paddle, "chèo" can refer to both paddles and longer oars used with rowlocks. They are sometimes used interchangeably, but "giầm" specifies the type.
• Mái (regional): A term used in some regions of Central and Southern Vietnam, synonymous with "giầm" or "chèo."
• Dầm: This is a common alternate spelling for "giầm." Both "giầm" and "dầm" refer to the same object (a paddle). The spelling "dầm" is widely accepted and used.

Synonyms

• Paddle: The direct English equivalent.
• Oar: A more general term; an oar is often longer and used with a rowlock, while a paddle is usually handheld.

Notes on Different Meanings

The primary and most common meaning of "giầm" is the paddle for boating. * The reference to "plantoir" (dibber/planter) from the Vietnamese-French dictionary is an archaic or highly specialized agricultural meaning, which is very rarely used in modern Vietnamese. The common word for a planting tool is "dụng cụ tra hạt" or "cây trồng." * In modern usage, when referring to the boating tool, the spellings "giầm" and "dầm" are both correct and common.

Học thuật

noun

1. paddle
   • chèo thuyền bằng giầm
     to row a boat with a paddle