ngặt ngòi
Definition
- Adjective:
- Extremely critical or perilous: Describes a situation that has reached a point of utmost danger, severity, or difficulty, where the outcome is hanging in the balance.
- At a breaking point / at its limit: Refers to a tense or strained condition that cannot be sustained for much longer and is likely to culminate in a crisis or collapse.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Tình hình chiến sự đã trở nên ngặt ngòi. (The military situation has become extremely critical.)
- Cuộc đàm phán đang ở trong giai đoạn ngặt ngòi nhất. (The negotiations are at their most critical stage.)
- Cơn bão đẩy thành phố vào tình thế ngặt ngòi. (The storm pushed the city into a perilous situation.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is often used in formal or literary contexts to describe severe circumstances in politics, war, diplomacy, or survival.
Variants and Related Words
- Ngặt nghèo (adj): Severe, stringent, critical. This is the more common base form from which "ngặt ngòi" is derived and is largely synonymous.
- Điều kiện ngặt nghèo (Stringent conditions).
Synonyms
- Critical: Of the greatest importance to the outcome of a crisis.
- Perilous: Full of danger or risk.
- Dire: Extremely serious or urgent.
- Precarious: Not securely held or in position; dangerously likely to fall or collapse.
Related Idioms
- Vào thế ngặt ngòi: To be in a tight corner/to be in a dire strait.
- Công ty đang vào thế ngặt ngòi vì thiếu vốn. (The company is in dire straits due to a lack of capital.)