Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Extremely bland, tasteless: Used to describe food or drink that has very little flavor or is completely lacking in taste.
   • Extremely dull, boring, uninteresting: Used to describe stories, events, conversations, or any situation that is completely devoid of interest, excitement, or appeal.

Usage Examples

• Describing food/drink:

  • Món canh này nhạt phèo, chẳng có chút muối nào. (This soup is completely bland; it doesn't have any salt at all.)
  • Cà phê nhạt phèo, uống như nước lã. (The coffee is extremely weak; it tastes like plain water.)

• Describing something boring/uninteresting:

  • Buổi họp hôm nay nhạt phèo, chẳng có thông tin gì mới. (Today's meeting was incredibly dull; there was no new information.)
  • Cuốn sách đó nhạt phèo, tôi đọc được mười trang đã buồn ngủ. (That book is terribly boring; I got sleepy after just ten pages.)

Advanced Usage

• "nhạt phèo" as an intensifier: The word "phèo" acts as an intensifier for "nhạt," emphasizing an extreme degree of blandness or dullness. It is a colloquial, expressive term.
  • Câu chuyện cười của anh ấy nhạt phèo, chẳng ai buồn cười. (His joke was completely flat; no one even cracked a smile.)

Variants and Related Words

• Nhạt (adj): Bland, tasteless, dull. This is the root adjective without the intensifier.
  • Thức ăn hơi nhạt. (The food is a bit bland.)
• Nhạt nhẽo (adj): Bland, insipid, vapid. Similar to "nhạt phèo" but slightly less intense and more common in formal contexts.
  • Bài phát biểu nhạt nhẽo. (The speech was insipid.)

Synonyms

• Vô vị: Tasteless, uninteresting.
• Chán ngắt: Extremely boring.
• Tẻ nhạt: Dull, monotonous.

Related Idioms

• Nhạt như nước ốc: As bland as snail water (a simile meaning extremely bland or boring).
  • Bộ phim ấy nhạt như nước ốc. (That movie is as dull as ditchwater.)

1. xem phèo