lăn long lóc
Definition
- Adjective/Adverbial phrase:
- Rolling and tumbling repeatedly: Describes the action of an object or person rolling over and over many times, often in a chaotic, uncontrolled, or continuous manner. It emphasizes the motion's repetitiveness and lack of stability.
Usage Examples
- Adjective/Adverbial phrase:
- Quả bóng rơi xuống dốc và lăn long lóc. (The ball fell down the slope and rolled and tumbled.)
- Đứa trẻ lăn long lóc trên thảm cỏ vì vui sướng. (The child rolled around repeatedly on the grass out of joy.)
- Chiếc xe đồ chơi bị hỏng, chỉ lăn long lóc tại chỗ. (The toy car was broken and just rolled around in place repeatedly.)
Advanced Usage
- The phrase is often used to depict a state of continuous, often clumsy or helpless, rolling motion. It can be applied literally to physical objects or figuratively to describe a situation of constant, turbulent change or instability.
- Sau trận bão, nhiều thùng hàng lăn long lóc trên bến cảng. (After the storm, many cargo containers were rolling and tumbling all over the dock.)
Variants and Related Words
Lăn (v): to roll.
- Hãy lăn quả bóng lại đây. (Roll the ball over here.)
Lăn lộn (v): to struggle, to experience hardships; can also imply rolling around.
- Anh ấy đã lăn lộn nhiều năm trong nghề. (He has struggled for many years in the profession.)
Synonyms
- Tumbling end over end
- Rolling over and over
- Tossing and turning (when in bed)
Related Idioms
- While "lăn long lóc" itself is a descriptive phrase, it is sometimes used in contexts similar to idioms describing turmoil.
- Công việc kinh doanh lăn long lóc, lúc lên lúc xuống. (The business is tumbling around, sometimes up, sometimes down.)