Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Physically thin and fragile; easily broken: Describes an object that is thin, delicate, and lacks durability.
   • Figuratively weak, faint, or insubstantial: Describes something abstract (like hope, a connection, or a feeling) that is weak, tenuous, or barely existing.

Usage Examples

• Describing a physical object:

  • Cái bát này quá mỏng mảnh, dễ vỡ lắm. (This bowl is too thin and fragile; it breaks easily.)
  • Tấm vải mỏng mảnh không đủ ấm. (The thin, flimsy fabric is not warm enough.)

• Describing an abstract concept:

  • Hi vọng của họ ngày càng mỏng mảnh. (Their hope is becoming increasingly faint/tenuous.)
  • Mối quan hệ giữa họ thật mỏng mảnh. (The relationship between them is very fragile/insubstantial.)

Advanced Usage

• "mỏng mảnh như cánh chuồn chuồn": as thin and delicate as a dragonfly's wing.

  • Làn da cô ấy mỏng mảnh như cánh chuồn chuồn. (Her skin is as thin and delicate as a dragonfly's wing.)

• "sự mỏng mảnh của tinh thần": the fragility of spirit.

  • Anh ấy đang trải qua sự mỏng mảnh của tinh thần sau biến cố. (He is experiencing the fragility of spirit after the incident.)

Variants and Related Words

• Mỏng (adj): Thin (primarily in a physical sense, less emphasis on fragility).

  • Tờ giấy này rất mỏng. (This sheet of paper is very thin.)

• Mong manh (adj): Similar to "mỏng mảnh," meaning fragile, tenuous, or precarious. Often used interchangeably in abstract contexts.

  • Sợi chỉ mong manh. (A tenuous thread.)

Synonyms

• Dễ vỡ: Breakable, fragile.
• Yếu ớt: Weak, feeble.
• Mảnh khảnh: Slender, slim (usually for a person's physique, implying thinness but not necessarily fragility).

Related Phrases

• Cảm giác mỏng mảnh: A fragile feeling.
  • Cô ấy giấu đi cảm giác mỏng mảnh sau nụ cười. (She hides a fragile feeling behind her smile.)

Related Idioms

• Mỏng mảnh như sương khói: As thin and insubstantial as mist; describing something very vague, elusive, or ephemeral.
  • Ký ức về tuổi thơ giờ đã mỏng mảnh như sương khói. (Memories of childhood are now as thin and elusive as mist.)

1. Fragile