Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Hard of hearing, having poor hearing: "kém tai" describes a person whose ability to hear is reduced or impaired, but not completely deaf. It indicates a partial hearing loss.
   • Having a poor ear (for music/languages): In a figurative sense, it can describe someone who is not good at distinguishing sounds, such as musical notes or phonetic differences in a foreign language.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Ông cụ ấy hơi kém tai nên bạn phải nói to lên. (That old man is a bit hard of hearing, so you have to speak louder.)
  • Tôi kém tai nên không thể phân biệt được các nốt nhạc. (I have a poor ear, so I can't distinguish musical notes.)
  • Bà tôi năm nay đã già và kém tai nhiều. (My grandmother is old now and has become quite hard of hearing.)

Advanced Usage

• "Kém tai bẩm sinh": Congenitally hard of hearing.

  • Đứa trẻ kém tai bẩm sinh cần được hỗ trợ đặc biệt. (A child who is congenitally hard of hearing needs special support.)

• "Ngày càng kém tai": Becoming increasingly hard of hearing.

  • Bố tôi tuổi cao nên ngày càng kém tai. (My father is getting older, so he is becoming increasingly hard of hearing.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lãng tai (adj): A more common and slightly softer synonym for "kém tai," also meaning hard of hearing.

  • Bà ấy chỉ hơi lãng tai thôi. (She is just a little hard of hearing.)

• Nghễnh ngãng (adj): Somewhat deaf, hard of hearing (often used similarly to "kém tai").

  • Cụ ông nghễnh ngãng nên không nghe rõ. (The old man is hard of hearing so he doesn't hear clearly.)

• Điếc (adj): Deaf, completely or severely unable to hear. This is a stronger term than "kém tai."

  • Anh ấy bị điếc sau một tai nạn. (He became deaf after an accident.)

Synonyms

• Nghe kém: To hear poorly (a verbal phrase with similar meaning).
• Thính lực kém: Poor hearing (a more formal or medical term).

Related Idioms

• "Điếc hơn sỏ đá" / "Điếc đặc": (As deaf as a post / Stone deaf). These idioms describe complete deafness and are much stronger than "kém tai."

  • Nói mãi mà nó chẳng nghe, điếc đặc cả tai. (I talked forever but he didn't listen; he's stone deaf.)

• "Tai này ra tai kia": (In one ear and out the other). This idiom describes not paying attention or forgetting immediately, which is different from the physical condition of "kém tai."

  • Những lời khuyên cứ tai này ra tai kia. (The advice just goes in one ear and out the other.)