lấp lửng
Definition
- Adjective:
- Floating intermittently, bobbing: Describes something that appears and disappears on the surface, not fully submerged nor fully stable, like objects on water.
- Ambiguous, equivocal, non-committal: Describes speech, an attitude, or an answer that is deliberately vague, unclear, or evasive, making it difficult to understand the true intention or get a definite answer.
Usage Examples
Adjective (Literal - Floating):
- Những cánh hoa *lấp lửng trên mặt hồ.* (The flower petals were bobbing on the lake's surface.)
- Chiếc thuyền nhỏ *lấp lửng trong sóng.* (The small boat rose and fell in the waves.)
Adjective (Figurative - Ambiguous):
- Anh ấy trả lời một cách *lấp lửng, không dứt khoát.* (He answered in an equivocal manner, not decisively.)
- Lời hứa *lấp lửng của họ chẳng đáng tin.* (Their non-committal promise is not trustworthy.)
Advanced Usage
"Ăn nói lấp lửng": To speak ambiguously or evasively.
- Đừng *ăn nói lấp lửng, hãy nói thẳng điều anh nghĩ.* (Don't speak evasively; say what you think directly.)
"Thái độ lấp lửng": An ambiguous or non-committal attitude.
- Thái độ *lấp lửng của anh ta khiến mọi người bối rối.* (His non-committal attitude confused everyone.)
Variants and Related Words
- Lấp ló (verb): To peek, to appear and disappear intermittently (often behind something).
- Mặt trăng lấp ló sau đám mây. (The moon peeked from behind the clouds.)
- Mập mờ (adjective): Vague, obscure, ambiguous. A close synonym in the figurative sense.
- Câu trả lời mập mờ không giải đáp được thắc mắc. (The vague answer did not resolve the doubt.)
Synonyms
- Không rõ ràng: Unclear, not clear.
- Nước đôi: Equivocal, having two possible meanings (often used for speech).
- Ứ ờ: Hesitant, hemming and hawing.
Related Idioms
- "Nói lấp lửng như bắt ma": To speak so ambiguously it's like trying to catch a ghost (i.e., utterly incomprehensible or evasive).
- Anh ta nói lấp lửng như bắt ma, chẳng ai hiểu ý thực sự. (He speaks so ambiguously it's like trying to catch a ghost; no one understands his real intention.)