Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Indefinitely dragged out / interminably prolonged: Describes a task, process, or situation that is tediously extended without a clear end in sight, often causing annoyance or frustration due to its lingering nature.
   • Persistently clinging / hanging on obstinately: Describes a person, typically a child, who sticks very closely and persistently to someone (like a parent), refusing to leave them alone or let go.

Usage Examples

• Adjective (Dragged out):

  • Công việc nhằng nhẵng mãi không xong. (The job is dragged out indefinitely, never finishing.)
  • Vụ kiện đó cứ nhằng nhẵng suốt mấy năm trời. (That lawsuit just dragged on interminably for years.)

• Adjective (Persistently clinging):

  • Thằng bé theo mẹ nhằng nhẵng cả ngày. (The little boy hangs on to his mother obstinately all day.)
  • Đứa trẻ nhằng nhẵng bám lấy chân bố nó. (The child clung persistently to his father's leg.)

Advanced Usage

• The word often carries a negative connotation of nuisance or tiresomeness, whether referring to an endless task or to bothersome, clingy behavior.
• It is primarily used in spoken or informal written Vietnamese to emphasize the tedious or annoying aspect of the prolongation or attachment.

Variants and Related Words

• Nhằng nhịt (adj): Can be used similarly to describe something tangled, messy, or complicated and drawn-out, often overlapping in meaning with "nhằng nhẵng" in the context of protracted affairs.

Synonyms

• Dragged out: prolonged, interminable, never-ending.
• Clinging: persistent, obstinate, sticking like a leech.

Related Idioms

• While "nhằng nhẵng" itself is descriptive, it is used in contexts similar to the idiom "bám như đỉa" (to cling like a leech), which describes extremely persistent, unwanted attachment.

1. Drag out indefinitely
   • Công việc nhằng nhẵng
     An indefinitely dragged out job
2. Hang on to (somebody)
   • Thằng bé theo mẹ nhằng nhẵng
     The little boy hangs on to his mohter