Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Groping, fumbling, searching blindly or uncertainly: Describes the action of feeling or searching for something with one's hands, often in the dark or without clear vision, implying a slow, tentative, and uncertain manner.
   • Figuratively, proceeding hesitantly or by trial and error: Used to describe attempting to do something without clear knowledge, guidance, or a plan, moving forward slowly and cautiously.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Trời tối quá, tôi phải mò mò tìm công tắc đèn. (It's too dark; I had to fumble around to find the light switch.)
  • Anh ấy không có kinh nghiệm nên cứ mò mò làm từng bước một. (He has no experience, so he just gropes his way through, doing it step by step.)
  • Đứa bé mò mò trong túi để tìm kẹo. (The child fumbled in the bag to find candy.)

Advanced Usage

• "Làm việc gì một cách mò mò": to do something by groping/feeling one's way, to proceed tentatively.
  • Dự án mới nên cả nhóm phải làm mò mò. (It's a new project, so the whole team has to feel their way through it.)

Variants and Related Words

• Mò (verb): to grope, to fumble, to feel for. This is the root word.
  • Mò cá (to grope for fish), mò mẫm (to grope around).
• Mò mẫm (adjective): a synonym with a very similar meaning of groping or fumbling uncertainly.

Synonyms

• Dò dẫm: to feel one's way, to proceed cautiously (often used literally for moving in the dark and figuratively).
• Lần mò: to grope one's way, to proceed slowly and摸索 (mōsuǒ).

Notes on Usage

• "Mò mò" is a reduplicative form (từ láy) of the root verb "mò". Reduplication often adds a sense of continuity, repetition, or attenuation to the base meaning. Here, it emphasizes the slow, continuous, and uncertain nature of the action.
• It is primarily used in informal, spoken Vietnamese.
• The reference "xem mò (láy)" indicates that the full definition is understood by looking at the root word "mò", and that "mò mò" is its reduplicated form.

1. xem mò (láy)