Definition

1. Onomatopoeia:
   • Click, clatter: A word that imitates the sharp, crisp, and irregular sounds produced when small, hard objects strike or rub against each other. It often describes a repeated or continuous series of such sounds.

Usage Examples

• Onomatopoeia:
  • Tiếng bát đĩa va vào nhau kêu lách cách. (The dishes clattered as they hit each other.)
  • Nghe thấy tiếng lách cách của bánh răng. (Hear the clicking sound of the gears.)
  • Chiếc xe cũ kêu lách ca lách cách trên đường gồ ghề. (The old car made a clattering sound on the bumpy road.)

Advanced Usage

• "lách ca lách cách": This is a reduplicated form (láy) of "lách cách". It emphasizes a continuous, repeated, or more intense series of clicking or clattering sounds.
  • Máy chữ cũ kêu lách ca lách cách suốt buổi sáng. (The old typewriter clacked away all morning.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lách tách (onomatopoeia): A similar word often used for lighter, finer cracking or sizzling sounds, like rain, fire, or something frying.
  • Củi cháy kêu lách tách. (The firewood crackled as it burned.)

Synonyms

• Lập cập (onomatopoeia): Often used for the chattering of teeth or a shaky, rattling sound.
• Lọc cọc (onomatopoeia): Typically used for a hollow knocking or clunking sound, like horse hooves or objects bumping.

Related Phrases

• Kêu lách cách: To make a clicking/clattering sound.
  • Cánh cửa cũ kêu lách cách mỗi khi mở ra. (The old door creaks and clatters every time it's opened.)

Related Idioms

• While "lách cách" itself is not typically the core of a fixed idiom, it is commonly used in descriptive phrases to vividly depict auditory scenes.
  • Cả nhà ngồi ăn trong tiếng lách cách của đũa bát. (The whole family ate amidst the clinking and clattering of bowls and chopsticks.)

1. click, clatter