Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Poor, impoverished: "nghèo khổ" describes a state of extreme poverty, lacking basic material necessities and financial resources.
   • Destitute, needy: It indicates a condition of severe hardship and deprivation.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Gia đình họ sống trong cảnh nghèo khổ. (Their family lives in poverty.)
  • Nhiều người dân ở vùng này vẫn còn rất nghèo khổ. (Many people in this region are still very poor.)
  • Cô ấy đã trải qua một tuổi thơ nghèo khổ. (She had an impoverished childhood.)

Advanced Usage

• "sự nghèo khổ": The state or condition of being poor.

  • Sự nghèo khổ là một vấn đề xã hội nghiêm trọng. (Poverty is a serious social problem.)

• "cảnh nghèo khổ": The scene or situation of poverty.

  • Anh ấy không thể quên được cảnh nghèo khổ nơi mình sinh ra. (He cannot forget the scene of poverty where he was born.)

Variants and Related Words

• Nghèo (adj): Poor (a more general and common term for lacking wealth).
• Nghèo nàn (adj): Poor, meager (often used for abstract things like resources, vocabulary).
• Nghèo khó (adj): Poor, in difficult circumstances (a close synonym).
• Nghèo túng (adj): Poor and strapped for cash, in financial straits.
• Bần cùng (adj): Destitute, utterly impoverished (stronger, more literary).

Synonyms

• Bần hàn: Destitute, indigent.
• Túng thiếu: In need, lacking necessities.
• Cơ cực: Miserable, living in hardship.

Related Idioms

• Nghèo khổ như con chó: As poor as a dog (very poor).

  • Sau chiến tranh, họ nghèo khổ như con chó. (After the war, they were as poor as a dog.)

• Nghèo khổ rớt mùng tơi: Extremely poor (literally: so poor one's rain cape falls off).

  • Ông ấy kể về thời trai trẻ nghèo khổ rớt mùng tơi. (He told stories about his youth when he was dirt poor.)

1. In very reduced circumstances