sượt
Definition
Verb:
- To graze; to brush past; to narrowly miss: Describes an object moving very close to another object or person without making direct contact or causing a collision.
- To scrape; to skim: Can describe a glancing, superficial contact where surfaces touch lightly.
Adjective (in compound forms):
- Soaking wet; drenched: Used in the compound "ướt sượt" to emphasize a state of being completely wet.
- Lying flat and stiff: Describes the act of stretching oneself out rigidly, often in a prone position.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Viên đạn sượt qua tai anh ta. (The bullet grazed past his ear.)
- Chiếc xe tải sượt qua người đi xe đạp. (The truck brushed past the cyclist.)
- Adjective (in compounds):
- Quần áo ướt sượt sau cơn mưa. (The clothes were soaking wet after the rain.)
- Nó mệt lả và nằm sượt ra sàn. (He was exhausted and lay stretched out stiffly on the floor.)
Advanced Usage
- The word is often used in its reduplicated form "sườn sượt" to intensify the meaning.
- To sigh repeatedly and heavily: Cô ấy ngồi thở dài sườn sượt. (She sat sighing heavily, one sigh after another.)
- Completely soaked: A stronger form of "ướt sượt."
Variants and Related Words
- Sượt qua (verb phrase): to glide/skim past.
- Máy bay sượt qua ngọn núi. (The plane skimmed past the mountain.)
- Ướt sượt (adjective phrase): soaking wet, drenched.
- Nằm sượt (verb phrase): to lie down flat and stiff.
Synonyms
- Graze: to touch lightly in passing.
- Skim: to move quickly just above a surface.
- Brush: to touch lightly against something.
Related Idioms and Expressions
- Đánh sượt một cái: To let out a single, heavy sigh (often with a sound).
- Nghe tin buồn, anh ấy thở dài đánh sượt một cái. (Hearing the sad news, he let out a heavy sigh.)
- The reduplicated form "sườn sượt" itself functions as an idiomatic expression for continuous sighing or being utterly drenched.