làm ẩu
Definition
- Verb phrase:
- To do something carelessly / to do a slapdash job: The primary meaning of "làm ẩu" is to perform a task hastily, negligently, and without proper care or attention to detail, resulting in poor quality.
- To botch / to bungle: It implies executing work in a sloppy, messy, or incompetent manner, often ruining the intended outcome.
Usage Examples
- Verb phrase:
- Anh ta làm ẩu nên sản phẩm có nhiều lỗi. (He did it carelessly so the product has many defects.)
- Đừng làm ẩu, hãy cẩn thận từng chi tiết. (Don't do a slapdash job; be careful with every detail.)
- Công trình này bị hỏng vì thợ xây làm ẩu. (This construction failed because the builders botched the work.)
Advanced Usage
- The term strongly conveys a sense of negligence and a lack of professional or personal pride in one's work. It is often used in contexts of craftsmanship, study, office work, or any task requiring precision.
Variants and Related Words
- Làm qua loa (verb phrase): to do something perfunctorily, just to get it over with.
- Cậu ấy chỉ làm qua loa cho xong việc. (He just did it perfunctorily to finish the task.)
- Làm đại (verb phrase): to do something arbitrarily or without much thought.
- Tôi không biết chắc nên cứ làm đại. (I wasn't sure so I just did it arbitrarily.)
- Ẩu (adjective): sloppy, careless (can describe a person or their action).
- Anh thợ này rất ẩu. (This worker is very sloppy.)
Synonyms
- To rush through: to do something too quickly.
- To be slipshod: characterized by a lack of care, thought, or organization.
- To mess up: to do something incorrectly or badly.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- Làm cho xong việc: to do something just to finish it (emphasizes completion over quality, similar in spirit to "làm ẩu").
- Anh ấy không quan tâm đến chất lượng, chỉ làm cho xong việc. (He doesn't care about quality, he just does it to get it over with.)