Definition

Noun: 1. Quincunx: A specific arrangement of five objects, with four placed at the corners of a square or rectangle and the fifth at its center. This term is used in Vietnamese to describe a staggered planting pattern where trees in one row are positioned opposite the gaps of the adjacent rows, resembling the interlocking teeth of a crocodile. 2. Staggered pattern/arrangement: A general method of arranging objects (like trees, chairs, or items in a design) in offset rows, not in straight lines, creating a zigzag or interlocking effect. This is the primary and most common meaning.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Người nông dân trồng cây ăn quả theo kiểu nanh sấu để cây có đủ ánh sáng. (The farmer plants the fruit trees in a staggered pattern so the trees get enough sunlight.)
  • Trong thiết kế sân vườn, nanh sấu là một cách bố trí phổ biến. (In garden design, a quincunx is a common layout.)
  • Hãy xếp những chiếc ghế này theo lối nanh sấu. (Arrange these chairs in a staggered arrangement.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is almost exclusively used to describe physical arrangement patterns, particularly in agriculture, forestry, gardening, and sometimes in seating or object organization.
• It functions as a noun but is most frequently used in the adverbial phrase "theo lối nanh sấu" (in a staggered pattern / in quincunx) or "kiểu nanh sấu" (staggered style/pattern).

Variants and Related Words

• Trồng so le: (verb phrase) To plant in a staggered pattern. This is a more common descriptive phrase than the specific noun "nanh sấu".
• Bố trí so le: (verb phrase) To arrange in a staggered pattern.

Synonyms

• Kiểu so le: Staggered style/pattern.
• Hình nanh sấu: Quincunx pattern (less common).
• Cách bố trí 5 điểm: Five-point arrangement (descriptive, technical).

Related Phrases/Idioms

• Theo lối/kiểu nanh sấu: This is the standard phrase. It is not an idiom but a fixed technical/colloquial phrase meaning "in a quincunx/staggered pattern".
  • Khu rừng này được trồng theo lối nanh sấu. (This forest was planted in a quincunx.)

noun

1. quincunx