Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Having a very offensive, sharp, or pungent smell: "khẳn" describes an unpleasant odor that is strong, acrid, and often associated with decay or rot. It is frequently used in its reduplicative form "khăn khẳn" to slightly soften the intensity of the description.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Mùi cá ươn bốc lên khẳn. (The smell of spoiled fish rose up, sharp and offensive.)
  • Căn phòng khoá kín lâu ngày có mùi khăn khẳn. (The room, locked up for a long time, had a musty, foul smell.)

Advanced Usage

• "khăn khẳn" (reduplicative form): This is the most common usage. The reduplication slightly reduces the harshness of the adjective "khẳn," making it mean "rather foul-smelling" or "having a distinct, unpleasant odor."
  • Thùng rác để lâu ngày bốc mùi khăn khẳn. (The trash bin left for days emitted a rather foul smell.)

Variants and Related Words

• khẳm (adj): Often used interchangeably with "khẳn" to describe a foul, rotten smell. "Khẳm" can sometimes imply a deeper, more rotten stench.
  • Mùi thức ăn thiu khẳm. (The smell of rancid food.)
• khú (adj): Describes something musty, moldy, or stale from being enclosed for too long.
  • Mùi quần áo để lâu ngày bị khú. (The smell of clothes stored for too long became musty.)

Synonyms

• Hôi (adj): Smelly, stinky. A more general term for bad odor.
• Thối (adj): Rotten, putrid. Specifically refers to the smell of decay.
• Nồng nặc (adj): Used for a thick, heavy, and oppressive smell (can be good or bad, but often unpleasant in context).

Notes on Usage

• The word "khẳn" is almost exclusively used to describe smells. It is not typically used for tastes or other sensations.
• It carries a negative connotation and describes a smell that is immediately noticeable and disagreeable.
• The primary form encountered in modern Vietnamese is the reduplicated form "khăn khẳn." Using "khẳn" alone can sound somewhat literary or intense.

1. Having a very offensive smell.
2. (Khăn khẳn) (láy, ý giảm)