Definition

1. Adjective / Verb (to feel):

   • To shiver with fear; to feel a creeping fear: The primary meaning of "rợn" is to experience a sudden, often vague feeling of fear or dread that causes a physical shiver or chill.
   • To be creeped out; to have the creeps: It describes the sensation of fear or revulsion, often from something eerie, supernatural, or unsettling.

2. Adjective (in compound forms):

   • Used in reduplicative forms to modify the intensity of the feeling, often indicating a lighter, more persistent sense of unease.

Usage Examples

• Adjective / Verb:
  • Căn nhà hoang đó trông thật rợn. (That abandoned house looks really creepy.)
  • Tôi cảm thấy rợn khi nghe tiếng động lạ trong đêm. (I felt a shiver of fear when I heard a strange noise at night.)
  • Câu chuyện ma khiến đứa trẻ rợn người. (The ghost story made the child shiver with fear.)

Advanced Usage

• "rợn tóc gáy": An idiom meaning "to make one's hair stand on end" or "to give one the creeps," indicating extreme fear or horror.

  • Cảnh tượng trong phim kinh dị đó thực sự rợn tóc gáy. (The scene in that horror film really made my hair stand on end.)

• "rờn rợn": A reduplicative form meaning "to feel a slight, lingering creepiness" or "to have a mild, constant sense of unease."

  • Không khí trong rừng lúc chạng vạng thật rờn rợn. (The atmosphere in the forest at dusk was eerily creepy.)

Variants and Related Words

• Rợn người (adj/phr): To be frightened enough to cause a physical shiver through one's body.

  • Tiếng hú bất ngờ làm nó rợn người. (The sudden howl made him/her shiver with fright.)

• Ghê rợn (adj): Horrifying, gruesome; often used for something that causes fear and disgust.

  • Đó là một tội ác ghê rợn. (That was a gruesome crime.)

Synonyms

• Creepy: causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or unease.
• Eerie: strange and frightening.
• To shiver (with fear): to shake slightly because of fear.
• To have the creeps: to feel fear or disgust.

Related Idioms

• Rợn tóc gáy: As above, for intense fear.
• Nổi da gà: To get goosebumps (can be from cold or fear, while "rợn" specifically implies fear).
  • Nghe xong câu chuyện, tôi vừa rợn vừa nổi da gà. (After hearing the story, I was both creeped out and had goosebumps.)

1. Shiver with fear
   • Rờn rợn ; rợn rợn (láy, ý giảm)
     To shiver slightly with fear
   • Đi đêm cảm thấy rờn rợn
     To shiver slightly with fear when going out at night
   • Rợn tóc gáy
     One's flesh has the creeps; one's hair is made to stand on end
   • Trông thấy người bị xe lửa nghiền nát mà rợn tóc gáy
     The sight of someone crushed by a train made one's hair stand on end