lắc lư
Verb: - To oscillate; to swing; to sway: To move repeatedly and rhythmically from side to side or back and forth, often with a gentle or unsteady motion. This movement can be voluntary (like dancing) or involuntary (like an object in the wind or on water).
The verb lắc lư describes a continuous, often relaxed or unsteady, swinging or swaying motion. It is commonly used for the movement of body parts (like the head or hips), objects, or vehicles. - It is an intransitive verb (does not take a direct object) when describing the subject's own motion. - It can be used transitively (taking a direct object) in specific constructions, often with body parts.
Intransitive use (subject moves itself):
- Cây cối lắc lư trong gió. (The trees sway in the wind.)
- Cô ấy lắc lư theo điệu nhạc. (She sways/swings to the music.)
- Con thuyền lắc lư trên sóng. (The boat rocks/sways on the waves.)
Transitive-like use (moving a body part):
- Đứa trẻ lắc lư cái đầu. (The child nods/waggles its head.)
- Anh ta lắc lư hông một cách điệu nghệ. (He swings his hips skillfully.)
- "Lắc lư lắc lẻo": This reduplicative phrase intensifies the meaning, implying a more pronounced, exaggerated, or frivolous swaying motion, sometimes with a negative connotation of being unsteady or unserious.
- Cái ghế cũ lắc lư lắc lẻo. (The old chair is wobbling and unsteady.)
- Nó đi đứng lắc lư lắc lẻo. (He walks with a pronounced, unsteady swagger.)
- Lắc (verb): To shake, to jiggle. Implies a quicker, more forceful, or shorter movement than lắc lư.
- Lắc chai nước. (To shake the water bottle.)
- Đu đưa (verb): To swing, to dangle. Often implies a suspended object swinging freely (like a pendulum or a hammock), with a more regular arc than lắc lư.
- Chiếc võng đu đưa. (The hammock swings.)
- Nghiêng ngả (verb): To tilt, to lean from side to side. Focuses more on the tilting angle rather than the rhythmic motion.
- Đung đưa: To swing gently (very close synonym, often interchangeable).
- Chao đảo: To stagger, to totter (implies unsteadiness, often from weakness or intoxication).
- Bập bềnh: To bob, to float up and down (specifically on water).
Note: As a single verb, lắc lư does not commonly form phrasal verbs in the same way English verbs do. Its meaning is modified through context or accompanying words. - Lắc lư người: To sway one's body. - Lắc lư theo nhạc: To sway to the music.
- Lắc lư như con lật đật: To sway like a roly-poly toy (a tumbler). Used to describe someone or something that sways unsteadily but doesn't fall over.
- Nói lắc lư: To speak in a evasive, non-committal, or roundabout way. (Figurative use, comparing unsteady speech to unsteady motion).
- to oscillate; to swing