Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Skillful; Dexterous: Having or showing the ability to perform a task with precision, neatness, and manual or technical ability.
   • Clever; Tactful: Showing social skill and sensitivity in dealing with people or difficult situations.

2. Adverb:

   • Skillfully; Cleverly: In a manner that shows skill or tact.
   • Used for emphasis: Expressing surprise, irony, or a strong opinion about a situation, often translated as "really" or "indeed" in exclamations.

3. Particle:

   • Perhaps; Might: Used to express possibility or likelihood, similar to "maybe" or "it might be that".

Usage Examples

• Adjective:

  • Cô ấy là một nghệ nhân rất khéo tay. (She is a very skillful artisan.)
  • Anh ấy có cách cư xử rất khéo léo. (He has a very tactful manner.)

• Adverb:

  • Cô ấy may khéo cái áo này. (She sewed this shirt skillfully.)
  • Khéo mình lại bị lừa mất! (I might just get cheated again!)

• Particle (Exclamatory):

  • Khéo thật đấy! (How clever/annoying indeed!)

Advanced Usage

• "khéo mà...": Used to give a warning about a possible negative outcome, meaning "you might..." or "be careful or you'll...".

  • Đi chậm thôi, khéo mà ngã đấy. (Walk slowly, or you might fall.)

• "khéo như...": A simile structure meaning "as skillful as...".

  • Nó vẽ khéo như họa sĩ vậy. (He draws as skillfully as a painter.)

Variants and Related Words

• Khéo léo (adj): Skillful, deft, tactful. A more formal and common variant.

  • Cần sự khéo léo để giải quyết vấn đề này. (Tact is needed to solve this problem.)

• Khéo tay (adj): Good with one's hands, handy, deft.

  • Cô ấy khéo tay trong việc làm bánh. (She is good with her hands at baking.)

Synonyms

• Skillful: Having or showing skill.
• Dexterous: Demonstrating neat skill, especially with the hands.
• Tactful: Having or showing tact.
• Adroit: Clever or skillful in using the hands or mind.

Related Idioms

• Khéo ăn thì no, khéo co thì ấm: A proverb meaning "Skillful eating leads to fullness, skillful curling up leads to warmth." It conveys that resourcefulness and clever management can overcome limited means.

• Khéo mồm khéo miệng: To be smooth-tongued or eloquent, often with a slightly negative connotation of being glib.

  • Đừng nghe anh ta, anh ta chỉ khéo mồm khéo miệng thôi. (Don't listen to him, he's just smooth-tongued.)

adj

1. clever; skilful; dexterous
   • thợ khéo
     clever workman