mất trắng
Definition
- Adjective/Verb phrase:
- To lose completely / to suffer a total loss: Describes a situation where one loses everything related to a specific endeavor, investment, or gamble, leaving nothing of value or benefit.
- To be wiped out: Often used in financial, gaming, or competitive contexts to indicate a complete and utter loss with no return.
Usage Examples
- Adjective/Verb phrase:
- Sau vụ đầu tư thất bại, công ty anh ấy mất trắng. (After the failed investment, his company lost everything.)
- Cô ấy đánh bạc và mất trắng số tiền tiết kiệm. (She gambled and was wiped out of her savings.)
- Đội nhà thua 5-0, thực sự là một trận thua mất trắng. (The home team lost 5-0, a truly complete loss.)
Advanced Usage
- The phrase often carries a connotation of foolishness, poor judgment, or being outmaneuvered, resulting in a zero-sum outcome for the subject.
- It can function descriptively (as an adjective) following a verb like "là" (is), or as a verb phrase itself.
Variants and Related Words
- Trắng tay (adj): to be empty-handed, to have lost everything one had.
- Cổ phiếu sụp đổ khiến nhiều nhà đầu tư trắng tay. (The stock crash left many investors empty-handed.)
- Mất sạch (v): to lose everything, to be cleaned out (similar in meaning but can be slightly less formal).
Synonyms
- To lose utterly
- To be cleaned out
- To suffer a total wipeout
Related Idioms
- Mất trắng như chơi: To lose everything as easily as in a game; emphasizes the ease and totality of the loss.
- Dự án thất bại, chúng tôi mất trắng như chơi. (The project failed, and we lost everything just like that.)