Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Difficult to recite, hard to read aloud: Describes a line of poetry or verse that is awkward, twisted, or has a harsh, dissonant sound, making it challenging to recite smoothly.
   • Cacophonous; dissonant: Pertaining to language or sound that is jarring, unharmonious, and unpleasant to the ear, often due to awkward combinations of sounds or tones.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Câu thơ này quá khổ độc, rất khó để ngâm nga. (This line of poetry is too difficult to recite, it's very hard to chant.)
  • Nhà phê bình nhận xét rằng đoạn thơ có vần điệu khổ độc. (The critic commented that the stanza has a cacophonous rhythm.)

Advanced Usage

• Describing Literary Style: Used in literary criticism to analyze the phonetic quality and rhythmic flow of poetic language.
  • Tác giả cố tình sử dụng những từ khổ độc để tạo cảm giác bất an. (The author intentionally uses dissonant words to create a sense of unease.)

Variants and Related Words

• Trúc trắc (adj): Bumpy, jerky, uneven. Often used similarly to describe awkward, non-flowing language or rhythm.
  • Câu văn trúc trắc khó đọc. (The jerky sentence is hard to read.)
• Chói tai (adj): Harsh-sounding, grating to the ear. Focuses more on the unpleasant auditory effect.
  • Âm thanh chói tai. (A grating sound.)

Synonyms

• Khó đọc: Hard to read.
• Nghịch nhĩ: Unpleasant to the ear, dissonant (more formal/literary).
• Thô ráp: Rough, coarse (can describe texture or, metaphorically, style).

Related Idioms

• Chữ nghĩa khó nhai: Literally "hard-to-chew words/phrases"; an idiom describing convoluted, difficult-to-understand, or awkward language.
  • Bài viết đầy chữ nghĩa khó nhai. (The essay is full of convoluted phrases.)

1. Hard to recite, tomguetwisting (nói về câu thơ)