nhỏng nhảnh
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Flirtatious, coquettish: Describes a person's manner or behavior that is playfully seductive, teasing, or shows a lighthearted, often exaggerated, interest in attracting romantic or sexual attention. It implies a certain lively, sometimes affected, bounce or swing in movement or attitude.
- Affectedly disdainful or pretentious: In some contexts, it can describe a manner that is deliberately aloof, haughty, or dismissive in a showy way.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Cô ấy đi đứng nhỏng nhảnh trước mặt anh ta. (She walked with a flirtatious sway in front of him.)
- Đừng có nhỏng nhảnh thế, trông không đứng đắn chút nào. (Don't be so coquettish; it doesn't look proper at all.)
- Cái kiểu nhỏng nhảnh giả tạo của cô ta khiến mọi người khó chịu. (Her affectedly haughty manner annoyed everyone.)
Advanced Usage
- The word is often used in its reduplicated form "nhỏng nha nhỏng nhảnh" to intensify the meaning, emphasizing a stronger or more conspicuous degree of flirtatiousness or affectation.
- Cô ta cứ nhỏng nha nhỏng nhảnh mãi, chẳng chịu nghiêm túc. (She kept on acting all flirty and coy, refusing to be serious.)
Variants and Related Words
- Nhỏng nha (adj): A component of the reduplicated form, carrying a similar meaning of being lightly flirtatous or affected. It is rarely used alone.
- Lẳng lơ (adj): A stronger, often more negative synonym meaning "flirtatious," "flighty," or "of loose morals."
- Điệu đà (adj): Describes a dainty, delicate, or affectedly graceful manner, which can overlap with the mannerisms described by .
Synonyms
- Lả lơi: Flirtatious, seductive (often with a more overtly sexual connotation).
- Đỏng đảnh: Coy, capriciously flirtatious.
- Kiêu kỳ: Haughty, proud (shares the "disdainful" aspect).
Notes on Meaning
- The primary and most common meaning in contemporary Vietnamese is flirtatious/coquettish behavior.
- The meaning of pretentious and disdainful is derived from older or more specific interpretations (as seen in the Vietnamese-French dictionary) and may be less common in everyday modern usage, though the element of affected or showy behavior is central to both interpretations.
- Behave in a flirtatious manner, have flirtatious manner
- nhỏng nha nhỏng nhảnh (láy, ý tăng)