Definitions

1. Noun:
   • Hole, opening, orifice: A hollow place or gap in a surface or object; an opening that allows passage.
   • Loss, deficit (in business/finance): The state or an instance of losing money, especially when expenses exceed revenue.
   • (Vulgar/Colloquial) Place, spot: A general, often imprecise, location.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Hole/Opening):
  • Con kiến chui vào cái lỗ trên tường. (The ant crawled into the hole in the wall.)
  • Xỏ chỉ qua lỗ kim. (Thread the needle through the eye.)
  • Rửa sạch lỗ tai. (Clean your ear canal.)
• Noun (Financial Loss):
  • Cửa hàng bán quần áo bị lỗ nặng trong quý này. (The clothing store suffered a heavy loss this quarter.)
  • Nếu bán với giá này, chúng ta sẽ lỗ. (If we sell at this price, we will take a loss.)

Advanced Usage

• "vào lỗ ra lỗ hổng": An idiom meaning "easy come, easy go" or to lose money as quickly as it was made, often due to poor management.
  • Anh ta kiếm tiền nhanh nhưng tiêu cũng nhanh, đúng là vào lỗ ra lỗ hổng. (He earns money quickly but spends it just as fast, it's a classic case of easy come, easy go.)
• "gần xuống lỗ": A euphemistic idiom meaning "near death" or "close to the grave" (literally, "close to going down into the grave").
  • Ông cụ đã gần xuống lỗ rồi. (The old man is close to the grave.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lỗ hổng (n): Gap, loophole, vulnerability. (e.g., - security vulnerability).
• Lỗi (n): Error, mistake, fault. (Note: Different word, often confused).
• Lỗ chỗ (adj): Full of holes, pockmarked. (e.g., - a pockmarked face).
• Lỗ đáo (n, vulgar): Anus. (A crude slang term).

Synonyms

• For Hole: .
• For Loss (financial): .

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs/Collocations)

• Bán lỗ / Bán lỗ vốn (v): To sell at a loss.
  • Họ phải bán lỗ đống hàng tồn kho. (They had to sell off the inventory at a loss.)
• Chịu lỗ (v): To bear/accept a loss.
  • Công ty sẵn sàng chịu lỗ để chiếm thị phần. (The company is willing to take a loss to gain market share.)
• Lỗ ròng (n): Net loss.
• Lỗ đen (n): Black hole (astronomy).

Related Idioms

• Ăn lông ở lỗ: To live a primitive, uncivilized life (literally, "to eat feathers and live in a hole"). Implies living like a wild animal.
• Đánh lỗ đầu: To hit someone so hard it makes a hole in their head (exaggerated/colloquial).

noun

1. loss
   • bán lỗ vốn
     to sell at a loss