hâm nóng
Definition
- Transitive Verb:
- To warm up (food/drink): To heat something, especially cooked food or a beverage, to make it warm again without cooking it further.
- To rekindle, to revive (a feeling, relationship): (Figurative, colloquial) To make an emotion, memory, or relationship become active, strong, or warm again.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Cô ấy hâm nóng phần cơm chiều còn lại cho bữa sáng. (She warmed up the leftover dinner rice for breakfast.)
- Chúng tôi hâm nóng tình bạn cũ sau nhiều năm không gặp. (We rekindled our old friendship after many years apart.)
- Bài phát biểu đó đã hâm nóng bầu không khí của buổi mít tinh. (That speech warmed up the atmosphere of the rally.)
Advanced Usage
"hâm nóng lại": To warm up again; to rekindle once more. Emphasizes the repetitive or renewed action.
- Anh phải hâm nóng lại món súp này trước khi ăn. (You have to warm this soup up again before eating.)
Used in news/media contexts to describe reviving or giving new life to a topic, trend, or diplomatic relation.
- Cuộc gặp đã hâm nóng quan hệ giữa hai nước. (The meeting revived the relations between the two countries.)
Variants and Related Words
- Hâm (verb): To warm, to heat (often implies a gentle, sustained heat). The core meaning.
- Nóng (adjective): Hot, warm. The result state.
- Làm nóng (verb phrase): To heat up, to warm up. A more general synonym.
- Hấp (verb): To steam. A different cooking/heating method.
Synonyms
- Làm nóng: To heat up (general).
- Hơ nóng: To warm by holding near a heat source.
- Hồi sinh (for figurative sense): To revive, to resurrect.
- Khơi lại (for figurative sense): To reawaken, to stir up again.
Related Phrases (Collocations)
- Hâm nóng thức ăn: To warm up food.
- Hâm nóng tình cảm: To rekindle feelings/affection.
- Hâm nóng ký ức: To revive memories.
- Hâm nóng quan hệ: To warm up/revive a relationship.
Notes on Meaning
- The primary, literal meaning is culinary, focusing on returning something to a pleasantly warm state.
- The figurative meaning is very common in Vietnamese, used for emotions, discussions, and situations. It carries a positive connotation of restoring warmth and vitality.
- It does not mean "to make something hot" from a cold state (that would be đun nóng or làm nóng); it implies a previous state of warmth is being restored.