nao
Definition
Adjective (tính từ):
- Troubled, agitated, unsettled: Describes a state of mental or emotional disturbance, confusion, or disquiet.
- Faint, slight, mild (when reduplicated as 'nao nao'): Describes a gentle, subtle feeling of emotion or sensation.
Interrogative pronoun (đại từ nghi vấn - archaic/poetic):
- Which, what, where: An archaic or literary phonetic variant of the modern interrogative word "nào." It is used to ask questions about identity, choice, or location, primarily found in classical poetry and old texts.
Usage Examples
Adjective:
- Nghe tin ấy, lòng tôi thấy nao nao. (Hearing that news, my heart felt a slight disturbance.)
- Cảnh vật tiêu điều khiến lòng người nao. (The desolate scenery made one's heart feel troubled.)
Interrogative pronoun (archaic/poetic):
- Phương nao có thể tìm thấy bình yên? (In which direction can one find peace?)
- Thuyền về bến đỗ bến nao? (To which wharf does the boat return?)
Advanced Usage
"Nao lòng": To be troubled in heart/mind, to feel unsettled.
- Câu chuyện buồn khiến ai nấy đều nao lòng. (The sad story left everyone feeling troubled.)
"Nao nao" (reduplicated form): To feel a faint stirring of emotion (e.g., melancholy, nostalgia, anticipation).
- Mùa thu về, lòng nghe nao nao. (When autumn arrives, one's heart feels a gentle wistfulness.)
Variants and Related Words
- Nào (modern standard): The standard modern Vietnamese interrogative word meaning "which," "what," or "where." "Nao" is its archaic/poetic variant.
- Bối rối: Confused, flustered (a stronger, more common synonym for the adjectival sense of disturbance).
- Xao xuyến: Fluttered, emotionally stirred (a close synonym for "nao nao").
Synonyms
- For the adjective (troubled): Băn khoăn (worried), xáo trộn (disrupted).
- For the interrogative (which): Đâu (where - for location), gì (what - for things).
Related Phrases
- Lòng dạ nao nao: A set phrase describing a heart/mind filled with mild, lingering emotion.
- Biết tin sắp được gặp lại, lòng dạ nao nao. (Knowing I would meet them again soon, my heart was all aflutter.)
Related Idioms
- Nao lòng rối trí / Nao lòng rối chí: An idiom meaning "troubled in heart and confused in mind," describing a state of deep mental and emotional agitation.
- Gặp phải chuyện khó xử, anh ấy nao lòng rối trí. (Facing a difficult situation, he was deeply troubled and confused.)
-
(từ cũ; văn chương) như nào
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