sóng soài
Definition
- Adjective/Adverbial phrase:
- At full length; stretched out flat: Describes a person or large animal lying down completely stretched out, often with limbs extended. It emphasizes a prone, elongated, and sometimes careless or ungainly posture.
- Fallen flat (in a sprawl): Specifically used to describe the manner of falling, resulting in a person landing flat on their front or back, spread out.
Usage Examples
- Adjective/Adverbial phrase:
- Nó nằm sóng soài trên sàn nhà. (He lay stretched out at full length on the floor.)
- Cậu bé ngã sóng soài trên bãi cỏ. (The boy fell flat in a sprawl on the grass.)
- Con chó mệt nhoài nằm sóng soài ở hiên. (The exhausted dog lay sprawled out on the porch.)
Advanced Usage
- The term often carries a nuance of an uncontrolled, relaxed, or exhausted posture. It is not typically used for graceful or deliberate reclining.
- It can be used metaphorically in informal contexts to describe something covering a surface in a spread-out manner, though this is less common.
- Tấm vải phủ sóng soài trên bàn. (The cloth was spread completely flat over the table.)
Variants and Related Words
- Soài (adj): An abbreviated, colloquial form with the same core meaning of being stretched out or sprawled.
- Nằm soài ra. (To lie sprawled out.)
Synonyms
- Sprawled: Lying or sitting with limbs spread out carelessly.
- Outstretched: Extended to full length.
- Prone: Lying flat, especially face downward.
- At full length: Stretched out completely.
Related Idioms
- Ngã sóng soài: To fall flat; to take a spill landing in a sprawled position. This is the most common collocation.
- Trượt chân, anh ấy ngã sóng soài. (Slipping, he fell flat on his face/back.)