Definition

1. Verb phrase:
   • To tell lies / to fib: The phrase "nói lếu nói láo" means to speak untruthfully, to say things that are not true, often in a casual, habitual, or nonsensical manner. It implies a pattern of dishonest or unreliable speech.

Usage Examples

• Verb phrase:
  • Đừng có nói lếu nói láo với tôi. (Don't you tell lies to me.)
  • Thằng bé hay nói lếu nói láo. (That boy often tells fibs.)
  • Nó nói lếu nói láo suốt ngày, chẳng ai tin nữa. (He tells lies all day long; no one believes him anymore.)

Advanced Usage

• The phrase is often used to scold or criticize someone for being dishonest. It carries a stronger connotation of annoyance and unreliability than a simple, one-time lie.

Variants and Related Words

• Nói dối (v): to lie, to tell a lie. This is the standard, more neutral term for lying.
• Nói láo (v): to talk nonsense, to tell a falsehood. This is a synonym and the core component of the phrase "nói lếu nói láo."
• Bịa chuyện (v): to fabricate stories, to make things up.

Synonyms

• To fib: to tell a small or trivial lie.
• To tell falsehoods: to utter statements that are not true.
• To talk nonsense: to speak in a foolish or senseless way.

Related Idioms

• Nói như đấm vào tai: to talk in an offensive or unacceptable way (literally: to talk as if punching someone's ears). This shares the sense of speaking improperly, though it focuses more on offensiveness than dishonesty.
• Ăn không nói có: to turn something that is not into something that is; to grossly misrepresent the truth (literally: to eat "no" but say "yes"). This idiom specifically means to fabricate or claim something exists when it does not.