Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Torn to shreds, extremely tattered: Describes something, especially fabric or clothing, that is severely ripped, frayed, and in many pieces.
   • In a state of utter disrepair or ruin: Can be used metaphorically to describe something that is completely broken down or in a very poor condition.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Chiếc áo cũ của ông ấy đã rách bươm. (His old shirt was torn to shreds.)
  • Sau trận bão, những lá cờ treo ngoài đường đều rách bươm. (After the storm, the flags hanging on the street were all tattered.)
  • Căn nhà bỏ hoang trông rách bươm. (The abandoned house looked completely dilapidated.)

Advanced Usage

• "rách bươm xơ mướp": An intensified idiom meaning "tattered and torn to an extreme degree," often used for emphasis.
  • Quần áo của đứa trẻ mồ côi ấy rách bươm xơ mướp. (That orphan child's clothes were utterly ragged and torn.)

Variants and Related Words

• Rách tươm (adj): A near-synonym meaning "torn to pieces, tattered."
• Rách nát (adj): Torn and ruined.
• Tả tơi (adj): In tatters, disheveled (can apply to both objects and abstract concepts like plans or morale).

Synonyms

• Tattered: Worn and torn into shreds.
• Ragged: Torn and in poor condition, especially at the edges.
• In shreds: Literally torn into strips or pieces.
• Dilapidated (for structures): In a state of disrepair or ruin.

Related Idioms

• "Nghèo rớt mồng tơi": An idiom meaning "dirt poor, extremely impoverished." While not using "rách bươm," it describes a similar state of destitution where one would likely have tattered clothes.
• "Rách như tổ đỉa": A colloquial simile meaning "as torn as a leech's nest," used to describe something very tattered.

1. Torn to shreds, tattered