Definition

1. Verb:
   • To wander about aimlessly: To move around without a specific destination or purpose, often in a leisurely or idle manner.
   • To loiter / to linger: To remain in or move through a place without a clear aim, often slowly and casually.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Bọn trẻ lượn lờ quanh công viên cả buổi chiều. (The children wandered about the park all afternoon.)
  • Anh ta chỉ lượn lờ ở quán cà phê mà không làm gì. (He just loitered at the coffee shop without doing anything.)
  • Một con thuyền lượn lờ trên mặt hồ phẳng lặng. (A boat drifted about on the calm lake surface.)

Advanced Usage

• The word often carries a connotation of gentle, slow, or somewhat purposeless movement. It can describe the movement of people, animals, or objects like boats or kites.

Variants and Related Words

• Lượn (v): to glide, to soar (like a bird or aircraft); to take a stroll.
• Lờ (v, in this compound): to be slow, indifferent, or to feign ignorance. Combined with "lượn," it emphasizes the aimless, unhurried quality.

Synonyms

• Wander: to walk or move in a leisurely or aimless way.
• Loiter: to stand or wait around without purpose.
• Linger: to stay in a place longer than necessary.
• Drift: to be carried along by currents or to move aimlessly.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Lượn lờ như ma trơi: To wander about like a will-o'-the-wisp (describing elusive, ghostly, or purposeless wandering).
  • Kẻ đáng ngờ ấy lượn lờ như ma trơi quanh khu nhà. (That suspicious person wandered about the neighborhood like a will-o'-the-wisp.)

1. Wander about