Definition

1. Verb:
   • To open one's lips (to speak): To begin to speak, often used to describe the act of starting to say something, especially when it is done cautiously, secretly, or with negative intent.
   • To breathe a word; to utter a word: Used to indicate speaking, typically in negative constructions to mean "not to say a single word" or "not to reveal anything."

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Nó không dám rỉ hơi gì về bí mật đó. (He didn't dare breathe a word about that secret.)
  • Cô ấy ngồi im, không rỉ hơi suốt cả buổi họp. (She sat silently, not uttering a word throughout the entire meeting.)
  • Đừng rỉ hơi về kế hoạch này cho ai biết. (Don't breathe a word of this plan to anyone.)

Advanced Usage

• "Không rỉ hơi": To not say a word; to keep completely silent.
  • Bị tra hỏi, nhưng nghi phạm vẫn không rỉ hơi. (Although interrogated, the suspect still didn't say a word.)
• "Không dám rỉ hơi": To not dare to speak; to be too afraid to say anything.
  • Trước mặt sếp, anh ta không dám rỉ hơi nửa lời. (In front of the boss, he didn't dare utter half a word.)

Variants and Related Words

• Rỉ (Verb): To leak, to ooze slowly. This is the root verb, conveying a sense of something slow, gradual, or secretive.
  • Nước rỉ từ vòi. (Water is leaking from the faucet.)
• Rỉ tai (Verb): To whisper (into someone's ear). This compound word specifically means to speak secretly into someone's ear.
  • Cô ấy rỉ tai tôi một tin quan trọng. (She whispered an important piece of news to me.)

Synonyms

• Thốt ra: To utter.
• Nói ra: To speak out.
• Tiết lộ: To reveal, to disclose (stronger, implies revealing a secret).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

• Rỉ rả (Adverb/Adjective): Describes a continuous, slow, and often soft sound (like dripping water or murmuring). While not a phrasal verb of "rỉ hơi," it shares the root "rỉ" and conveys a similar sense of something ongoing and subdued.
  • Mưa rơi rỉ rả. (The rain falls in a steady drizzle.)

Related Idioms

• Câm như hến: (To be) as silent as a clam; meaning to be completely mute or unwilling to speak. This idiom is a stronger, more figurative way to describe someone who says nothing, similar to the negative use of "không rỉ hơi."
  • Bị chất vấn, ông ta chỉ ngồi im câm như hến. (When questioned, he just sat there, silent as a clam.)

1. Open one's lips