Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Gaunt; haggard: Describes a person's face or appearance as looking very thin, tired, and worn out, often due to illness, exhaustion, or worry. It emphasizes a sunken, skeletal look.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sau trận ốm dài, anh ấy trông rất hốc hác. (After the long illness, he looks very gaunt.)
  • Khuôn mặt hốc hác của cô ấy cho thấy sự mệt mỏi và lo âu. (Her haggard face showed fatigue and worry.)

Advanced Usage

• The word hốc hác is used almost exclusively to describe the physical appearance of a person, particularly the face. It carries a stronger negative connotation than simply "thin" (gầy), implying a state of physical decline or severe strain.

Variants and Related Words

• Tiều tụy (adj): Worn out, haggard, often from hardship or grief. This is a close synonym but can describe overall demeanor, not just appearance.
  • Bà ấy trông tiều tụy sau cú sốc. (She looked worn out after the shock.)

Synonyms

• Gaunt: Very thin, especially because of sickness or hunger.
• Haggard: Looking exhausted and unwell, especially from fatigue, worry, or lack of sleep.
• Emaciated: Abnormally thin or weak, often from illness or malnutrition (a more extreme state).

Related Idioms

• While hốc hác itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, it is commonly used in descriptive phrases like mặt mày hốc hác (gaunt face) to intensify the imagery of exhaustion and poor health.

adj

1. gaunt; haggard
   • mặt mày hốc hác
     gaunt face