Definitions

1. Noun:

   • A narrow strip or piece (of fabric, paper, etc.): A small, often long and thin, piece that has been cut or torn from a larger material.
   • A narrow strip of land: A long, thin piece of land, often along a border like a riverbank.

2. Verb:

   • To trim or cut the edge (of fabric, paper, etc.): To cut off a narrow strip from the side or border of a material to make it even or smaller.
   • To skirt or move along the edge (of something): To travel or move closely along the border or margin of an area.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • Cô ấy dùng một rẻo vải nhỏ để lau kính. (She used a small strip of cloth to clean the glasses.)
  • Nhà họ có một rẻo đất hẹp ven sông. (Their family owns a narrow strip of land along the river.)

• Verb:

  • Thợ may rẻo bớt mép vải cho vừa kích thước. (The tailor trimmed the edge of the fabric to fit the size.)
  • Chúng tôi rẻo theo con đường mòn trên sườn núi. (We skirted along the trail on the mountainside.)

Advanced Usage

• "rẻo rẻo": An adverbial reduplication emphasizing the action of moving swiftly or closely along an edge.
  • Chiếc thuyền nhỏ đi rẻo rẻo theo bờ sông. (The small boat moved swiftly along the riverbank.)

Variants and Related Words

• Rẹo: A less common variant spelling with the same meanings.
• Rogner (French loan influence): To trim or cut edges, showing the etymological link in some historical dictionaries.

Synonyms

• Noun: Dải (strip), mảnh (piece, fragment), miếng (piece).
• Verb: Xén (to trim, to cut), men theo (to go along), đi sát (to go close to).

Related Phrases (Verb Usage)

• Rẻo theo: To follow closely along the edge of something.
  • Đàn vịt rẻo theo bờ ao. (The ducks waddled along the edge of the pond.)

Related Idioms

• Không một rẻo đất cắm dùi: (To not have) a strip of land to stick a stake into; meaning to be utterly destitute or landless.
  • Sau trận lụt, nhiều gia đình không còn một rẻo đất cắm dùi. (After the flood, many families were left without a scrap of land to their name.)

1. Piece (of cloth, paper)
   • Cắt một rẻo vải
     To cut off a piece of cloth
2. Cut the edge of (cloth, paper)
3. Skirt
   • Rẻo theo bờ suối
     To skirt the edge of the stream