Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Misty, foggy: Describes a physical scene that is obscured or unclear due to mist, fog, or haze, making visibility poor.
   • Vague, nebulous, hazy: Describes abstract concepts, ideas, thoughts, or plans that are unclear, ill-defined, or lacking in precision and detail.

Usage Examples

• Adjective (Physical Scene):

  • Cảnh mông lung của buổi chiều tà. (The misty view of a late afternoon.)
  • Núi đồi chìm trong màn sương mông lung. (The hills were submerged in a vague, foggy mist.)

• Adjective (Abstract Concept):

  • Ý kiến của anh ấy còn rất mông lung. (His opinion is still very vague.)
  • Tương lai phía trước thật mông lung. (The future ahead is truly nebulous.)

Advanced Usage

• Used to describe a state of mind or memory that is indistinct or dreamlike.
  • Ký ức về tuổi thơ giờ đã mông lung. (Memories of childhood have now become hazy.)

Variants and Related Words

• Mơ hồ (adj): ambiguous, unclear. Often interchangeable with the abstract meaning of "mông lung," but "mơ hồ" is more common for ideas and less for physical fog.
• Mờ ảo (adj): illusory, phantom-like; often describes something that seems real but is unclear or intangible.
• Mù mịt (adj): heavily foggy, densely obscure; often stronger than "mông lung" for physical conditions and can also imply a hopelessly unclear situation.

Synonyms

• Vague: Of uncertain or indefinite character.
• Nebulous: In the form of a cloud or haze; unclear.
• Hazy: Covered by a haze; vague or confused.
• Foggy: Filled with fog; mentally unclear.

Related Idioms

• While "mông lung" itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, it is used in poetic or descriptive phrases to evoke a sense of obscurity.
  • Một cảm giác mông lung: A vague, indistinct feeling.
  • Những suy nghĩ mông lung: Nebulous thoughts.

1. Misty, foggy
   • Cảnh mông lung của buổi chiều tà
     The misty view of a late afternoon