khó dạy

Thằng bé khó dạy quá, bảo mãi không nghe.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Difficult to teach, hard to instruct: Describes a person, especially a child, who is stubborn, disobedient, and does not listen to advice or instruction. It implies a resistance to being taught or guided.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Đứa trẻ này rất khó dạy. (This child is very difficult to teach.)
  • Giáo viên nói nó là một học sinh khó dạy. (The teacher said he is a hard-to-teach student.)
  • Tính nó cứng đầu nên khó dạy lắm. (He is stubborn, so he's very difficult to instruct.)

Advanced Usage

• "khó dạy bảo": A slightly more formal or emphatic variant meaning "difficult to advise or instruct."
  • Những đứa trẻ hư thường khó dạy bảo. (Spoiled children are often hard to counsel.)

Variants and Related Words

• Khó bảo (adj): Difficult to advise; disobedient. Often used interchangeably with "khó dạy."
  • Nó là đứa trẻ khó bảo. (He is a disobedient child.)
• Cứng đầu (adj): Stubborn, headstrong. This is a common characteristic of someone described as "khó dạy."
  • Đừng có cứng đầu như thế! (Don't be so stubborn!)
• Bướng bỉnh (adj): Obstinate, recalcitrant. Similar in meaning but can imply more active defiance.
  • Tính bướng bỉnh của nó khiến cha mẹ phiền lòng. (His obstinate nature worries his parents.)

Synonyms

• Ngoan cố: Stubborn, obstinate (often with a more negative, willful connotation).
• Khó trị: Difficult to manage or handle (can apply to situations or illnesses as well as people).

Related Phrases

• "Đầu gỗ" (idiomatic): Literally "wooden head"; a colloquial term for someone who is very stubborn and slow to learn or accept advice.
  • Nó đồng ý rồi, đừng có đầu gỗ nữa! (He agreed, don't be so thick-headed anymore!)
• "Cá tính mạnh": Strong personality. This can be a more neutral or positive way to describe a trait that might also lead to being seen as "khó dạy."

Notes on Usage

• "Khó dạy" is primarily used to describe children or young people who are disobedient and resist instruction from parents, teachers, or elders.
• It carries a negative connotation, implying frustration on the part of the teacher or guardian.
• While similar to "khó bảo," "khó dạy" can place slightly more emphasis on the formal or instructional aspect (dạy = to teach), whereas "khó bảo" emphasizes the advisory aspect (bảo = to tell, to advise). In practice, they are often used synonymously.