Definition

1. Noun:
   • Loofah, Luffa: A tropical climbing vine plant, botanically Luffa, belonging to the gourd family. Its fruit is long and cylindrical. When young and tender, it is used as a vegetable. When mature and dried, its fibrous interior is used as a natural sponge.
   • A vegetable sponge: The dried, fibrous skeleton of the mature fruit, used for bathing or scrubbing.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Mẹ tôi thường nấu canh với mướp. (My mother often cooks soup with loofah.)
  • Quả mướp già được phơi khô để làm xơ mướp. (The mature loofah fruit is dried to make a loofah sponge.)
  • Anh ta mặc một chiếc áo rách như sơ mướp. (He is wearing a shirt as tattered as a loofah sponge.)

Advanced Usage

• The phrase "rách như sơ mướp" (torn like a loofah sponge) is a common simile describing something that is very ragged, tattered, or full of holes.

Variants and Related Words

• Xơ mướp (n): Loofah sponge; the dried fibrous part of the loofah.

  • Cô ấy dùng xơ mướp để tắm. (She uses a loofah sponge to bathe.)

• Mướp hương (n): A specific, fragrant variety of loofah, often considered more flavorful for cooking.

Synonyms

• Loofah: The common English name for the plant and its sponge.
• Luffa: The botanical genus name.
• Vegetable sponge: Descriptive term for the dried fibrous product.

Related Idioms

• Rách như sơ mướp / Rách mướp: An idiom meaning extremely torn, shredded, or in tatters.
  • Chiếc lưới đánh cá đã rách mướp. (The fishing net was completely torn to shreds.)

1. Loopah, luffa
   • Xơ mướp
     A loofah; a vegatable sponge
   • Rách như sơ mướp, như rách mướp