Definition

1. Noun:
   • Canthus; corner: The point where the upper and lower eyelids meet, or where the upper and lower lips meet. It specifically refers to the anatomical junction.
   • Corner (of a room or house): The interior angle formed where two walls meet. This meaning is less common in modern usage.
2. Noun (figurative):
   • Trick; artifice; cunning method: A clever, often sly or underhanded, way of doing something to achieve a goal.
3. Adjective:
   • (Of speech) indirect; insinuating; hinting: Speaking in a roundabout way, often to mock, tease, or imply something without stating it directly.

Usage Examples

• Noun (anatomical):
  • Cô ấy có nếp nhăn ở khóe mắt. (She has wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.)
  • Một giọt nước mắt lăn dài từ khóe mắt. (A tear rolled from the corner of her eye.)
  • Anh ấy mỉm cười, khóe môi nhếch lên. (He smiled, the corner of his mouth turned up.)
• Noun (figurative: trick):
  • Hắn ta có nhiều khóe để trốn việc. (He has many tricks to avoid work.)
• Adjective (indirect speech):
  • Đừng nói khóe nữa, hãy nói thẳng đi. (Stop speaking indirectly, just say it straight.)

Advanced Usage

• The word is rarely used alone in modern Vietnamese. Its primary function is in fixed phrases referring to body parts (khóe mắt, khóe miệng/môi) or in the figurative/adjectival senses.
• When used as an adjective (nói khóe), it often carries a negative connotation of being sarcastic, mocking, or unnecessarily oblique.

Variants and Related Words

• Khóe mắt (n): The corner of the eye; canthus.
  • Khóe mắt cô ấy đầy vết chân chim. (The corners of her eyes are full of crow's feet.)
• Khóe môi / Khóe miệng (n): The corner of the mouth/lips.
  • Nụ cười đọng lại nơi khóe môi. (The smile lingered at the corner of her lips.)
• Nói khóe (v): To speak insinuatingly; to make indirect, sarcastic remarks.
  • Anh ấy thích nói khóe người khác. (He likes to make indirect, mocking remarks about others.)

Synonyms

• Corner (anatomical): góc (mắt, miệng).
• Trick; artifice: mánh khóe, thủ đoạn, mưu mẹo.
• Indirect (speech): nói bóng gió, nói cạnh, ám chỉ.

Related Idioms

• Mánh khóe: A cunning trick or scheme. This is a very common compound.
  • Hắn dùng đủ mánh khóe để thăng chức. (He used all sorts of cunning schemes to get promoted.)
• Giấu ở khóe mắt: To hide something in plain sight (literally "to hide in the corner of the eye").
  • Tên trộm giấu tài sản ở khóe mắt mọi người. (The thief hid the loot in plain sight.)

noun

1. canthus; corner (of eyes)
   • khóe mắt
     corner of the eye
   • khóe môi
     corner of the lips